This February Skihut opened the Adventure Center on Grand Avenue right across the street from Spirit Mountain. We’re doing something completely new and opening up a rental center/ retail space. In the winter time we’ll have downhill skis, snowboards, and cross country skis. This bike season we’re gonna have options for all types of riding. From hopping on the paved Munger trail right behind our building to taking a mountain bike across the street to Spirit Mountain for downhill laps, we’ll have it all.
There are alot of reasons to rent a bike, maybe you’re coming to Duluth to check out the trails but don’t want to deal with hauling your bike, no matter what kind of riding you want to do we’ll have the bike for you. I know when my grandparents come to town I’ll be renting some e- bikes for them so they can explore Duluth in the best way! If you have a friend or family member who has been wanting to get into mountain biking but aren’t sure they’ll like it, have them rent a bike and try it first. We’re lucky to have access to some easy beginner mountain bike trails right at the base of Spirit Mountain. I’m particularly excited to have the Santa Cruz Heckler SL in our rental fleet. The Heckler SL is an electric full suspension mountain bike. Personally I plan on riding it from the Adventure Center over to Mission Creek where having an e-bike to help me on some of the grueling climbs will be fantastic!
What sets our rental service apart from all the rest is the dedication our staff puts into choosing the perfect selection of bikes, so that no matter what type of riding you want to do we’ll have an awesome bike for it. Additionally we put a lot of care and effort into making sure the bike is ready to ride as well as set up specifically for you. Having our start in the retail space selling bikes has allowed our staff to become quite knowledgeable when it comes to setting up the fit of the bike as well as making sure all the components are functioning properly. I certainly will be taking the rental bikes out for joy rides to make sure everything is working properly.
You might be wondering what rental bikes will we be bringing into our fleet? We’re bringing in a wide range of bikes fit to ride anything you might be interested in riding while in Duluth. With the Munger paved trail right behind our store we made sure to bring in the perfect bike that makes riding the Munger a breeze, the Verve +3 lowstep from Trek. The Verve + is an electric bike that provides a comfortable upright positioning with a comfortable saddle and an adjustable stem to make it perfect for long rides and all day comfort.
On the other side of the street from our store we have the awesome Spirit Mountain, so we had to make sure to bring in some full suspension mountain bikes capable of riding the world class downhill trails you’ll find just across the street. That’s why we’ve brought in Hightowers and Megatowers from Santa Cruz Bikes. Both of these full suspension mountain bikes are a ton of fun for doing laps at any downhill park. If you’re looking for a bike that can ride over just about everything and have the suspension to allow you to fly down the hill look no further than the Megatower. If you want a bike that is a little bit more versatile because you plan on riding Spirit but also heading over to Piedmont where you’ll be doing some more pedaling, go the route of the Hightower. A bike also great downhill or technical riding is the women’s specific Juliana Roubion. The travel on the Roubion falls right in between the Megatower and the Hightower so it feels right at home doing laps at Spirit Mountain or climbing up a techy section in Piedmont.
If technical or downhill mountain biking isn’t your cup of tea but you still want to explore some of the awesome trails we have in Duluth then we also have bikes for you. The Santa Cruz Tallboy is the perfect all around Duluth trail bike. The Tallboy is equipped with enough suspension to allow it to tackle any rocks and roots you’ll run into but at the same time it pedals incredibly well so you’ll be flying up the uphills. I would recommend taking the Tallboy over to Mission Creek where you’ll find machine built trails that flow through some beautiful woods. You’ll have to do some pedaling but what goes up must come down and on the Tallboy you’ll be ready for it all. We’ll have the counterpart to the Tallboy the Juliana Joplin as well in smaller sizes. The Juliana bikes have the same specs and geometry as Santa Cruz but the suspension is tuned for lighter weight riders, the handle bars are shorter and it comes with a women’s specific seat.
The bikes that I’m the most excited about riding that we’ll have for rent are the Santa Cruz Heckler and Heckler SL. We know that Duluth is a really hilly town and if you want to go for a bike ride and explore Duluth chances are you’ll be climbing up a few hills and the best way to tackle Duluth hills is with a motor and the Heckler is equipped with a powerful one. 85 nm of a torque and a battery capacity of 720 watts will allow you to pedal all over with ease. The Heckler is fun on easy cross country green and blue trails but also has enough suspension to make it capable of riding technical black diamonds as well, it can do it all. If a full powered ebike isn’t quite your cup of tea but you still want some help getting up the hill then the Hekler SL will be the way to go. It has a smaller motor and battery but in turn the bike is lighter coming in at just over 42 lbs. No matter where you go in Duluth if you bring the Heckler or the Heckler SL you will have an excellent time.
If you’re interested in bike rental from Skihut, it’s super easy to get setup via our website skihut.com, we use bike rental manger to make the whole process as painless as possible. Once you’ve got your bike setup and ready to go you might need some recommendations on where to go. You can find some route recommendations and other general biking information at Bike Duluth. If you need some help navigating the trail system, some useful apps to download are Trailforks and MTB Project. They have saved me more times than I would like to admit, and of course you can always chat with one of our employees to get recommendations on where to ride.
Duluth is the perfect place for a biking vacation, and if you’re looking for a way to ride a bike without having to haul yours with you, or you just want to try something new, then stop by the Adventure Center and get set up for some awesome adventures! We’ll have the perfect bike for your riding needs, and we’ll set you up properly so that you can ensure an awesome experience.