I plan on getting back into mountain biking in 2022 after a 30 year absence (bike arrives in May) due to moving away from Upper Michigan. Retirement will allow me the time to rediscover my preferred form of cycling. So glad to know about this app, and you did a great job outlining its capabilities!! Thanks.
I liked you talking about the 'emergency info'. You said you can share your GPS location with emergency services. Can you also share it with a family member/friend, just to pre-emptively let them know where you're roaming?
To make one thing sure :D I watch the video because of Tom, the funny Kiwi. Solid performance throughout every byte of content he does. In Germany trail forks is unfortunately unusable. No trails.
@@ANTheWhizkid Thanks for the information. Yes there are good trails but for german riders it's hard to find a proper app. Komoot is quite good. There are some great trails available.
@@schwarzerune3125 True, many Germans use this app and yeah I totally agree. Currently I am planning the beginning of an official trail network there somewhere. From my personal pov... TF is a good app regarding presentation, usw. (though I´m also criticizing the premium thing), but the state I´m living in for example is a blank spot on their map which is why we as a group were asking ourselves the question if we should even offer routes on there or not and so on... long story short, the answer was no (for now) - I´m aware that this also depends a bit on where in Germany you might live - bavaria and the area around freiburg seem to have a lot of trails in there and yeah, every larger bike park of the high lands is in there as well - But the overall coverage of trails in Germany on trail forks is really bad. I don´t know how you experience it but I suppose the majority using koomoot there is a result of a missing localization, marketing measures and some other things that didn´t allow users to build up a community around TF. Cheers!
So you have to keep your phone handy if you don’t know where your going? I would never put my phone on my bars. I only use my Wahoo Roam. Do any of these gps unit incorporate TrailForks?
@@JF-lt5zc Right... Which is why I'm thanking TrailForks for not listing them. You don't even need heat maps on the "other" app to find all our illegal trails.
In my region of Europe we don't need to donate for trail maintenance, we just ride natural trails done by hikers, errosion, etc. If it gets blockers or muddy usually it's locals or amateurs of the trail who do it, mysrlf o do help. Is this only in USA?
I use trail forks on most rides. And on every ride when I'm somewhere new. The thing that kills me I how freaking hard it is to create a route using the web interface. In particular, it does the craziest long loops to connect two points that are right next to each other. It's horrible. If I can find a someone's previous ride and convert that to a route - then that works fine. The downside of having this on my phone was stopping at every intersection, pulling my phone out and making a decision. So I bought a Gamin Edge last year with the idea that the data would be readily available. We'll see,
its easier for them to find new trails because the location they are in, for us the unlucky we have to probably drive an hour or two to get to the nearest trails
ya gotta recognize that they didn't have any ads on it, it was free, and no way to make a profit from it. So the only option is to make it cost money. They give you a service you pay a small fee.
@@hunter2519 I loved TrailForks as well. And I was set to go to the store and buy my copy when I saw that they finally went to a pay model (not surprising). Until I saw that it was subscription based. No thanks. I'd rather pay my money up front and be done with it. Monthly subs tend to either go up in price or down in features in my experience. Not to mention I don't need yet another business pecking away at my bank account every month. Too bad as it was the gold standard.
@@JF-lt5zc you can cancel any time. i subbed to invest. currently its fucking aweful even as a free app but about the only comprehensive list of trails. too many shit unverified trails (in uk). please anyone in uk dont rely on trails even existing in some instances - seems any 12 year old kid can add a random forest track as a 'red graded mtb trail'...
@@hunter2519 you have to recognise it was free because all the info on there is user generated, without free users creating the content it would be nothing.
There were a number of reason to go to a subscription model with Trailforks outlined here: www.trailforks.com/blog/view/response-to-criticism-that-trailforks-is-now-charging-for-access/ You’re right, paying for something that was once free is annoying, but in order to keep making the app better with new features that make it more useful to more people it was a necessary move.
@@tvelocidad Care to share your source for claiming that Trailforks was self sufficient financially? They may have been running it at a loss before entering into a monetization model that includes a subscription. TBH I don't see a strong link for it driving eyeballs (& revenue) to Pinkbike. As for your other comment, YT gain income from ads based on views and sponsors. Some may also use their videos to drive customers to other services & products.
What do you do when you are 10 miles into a new never-been-to ride and wash a front tire and smash your phone on a rock? Now you have a smashed phone, have no idea where you are at, no idea how to get out, and no way to communicate. Encouraging riders to use their phone instead of focusing on getting routs to a dedicated GPS is reckless and open for a lawsuit! Just my 2 cents after 40 years mountain biking!
I love trailforks! I've used it a bunch of times to find awesome trails when I've taken roadtrips (mainly in Oregon, but also Cal). Getting an update on trail conditions is also really useful for keeping track of trails that are snow-covered, muddy from snow-melt, or that week when they're in perfect condition before turning to marbles on hardpack! The rider reviews can be super-useful too, as the official trail description doesn't always match the real experience, and they're helpful for getting a better understanding of whether trails are uphill/downhill or truly two-way. And I only just noticed and started using the donate feature, which is cool. I can understand if some people prefer to use other trailfinding apps, but it does bug me when people complain about having to start paying for Trailforks. Seems reasonable to pay for something useful.
As I said above, no complaint about having to pay for it. But a monthly subscription is garbage. Make it a flat cost and I'm getting out my checkbook. Monthly subs are lame.
What I hate about the app, i paid to find all the trails! I know all the good, "illegal" trails are not listed. But when i ride them, trailforks recognises the trail but wont show them on the map. That was for me the whole point of getting it
yeah sure... after trying to sign up for PB two times and reaching out for support (without any response) there is NO way I ever pay for Trailforks or contribute to it!
If I need a cell phone to ride a trail, it is poorly marked. I want to forget my cell phone, my job , my computer.... everything in my daily life to shred. Mountain biking needs to get back its organic roots. KOM chasers are f'ing annoying.
Some of the best trails are poorly marked 😉 Anyway if you are out in the middle of a 100km/mile network, are you really going to remember the way if you have never been there before? You don’t need to record your ride and it’s not Strava.
@@streddaz Guess I don't ride 100 mile networks and everything in my area is clearly marked. I like to keep it simple. Yes, I know Trailforks is not Srava. Just mentioning the guys who come to trails midday on a weekend chasing KOM''s...you know Sravassholes. More tech. I carry a phone for an emergency only.
@@streddaz You are right. I'm being a turd to some extent. Guess I'm encouraging people to attempt to disconnect as much as possible. I would use trailforks, if I was traveling. I just don't do many mtb trips anymore. I live in OH so I have to travel to get to the big game. Beats paging trough old trail books in the pack. I really could have used trailforks when I got hopelessly lost in Asheville years ago. Getting lost is my best mtb skill. lol
I feel for Tom here as he is having to promote an app that is fucking shit now due to pink bike putting up a massive pay wall/cash grab for an app that was built for free using community uploads, it is rear sad to see such a good app be absolutely ruined by such an expensive and unnecessary pay wall
I like this presenter. He is like Blake Samson from GMBN. He is jolly, fun, presents well, and he rides hardtail, which is amazing.
Thanks Shariq, awesome to hear you're enjoying watching my ankles take a beating haha - Tom
Is that Australian edition of Blake? ;-)
Agreed! Rad dude🤙
@@eugenekrylov3654 kiwi
Who here already has great knowledge of trailforks but watched the video anyway just because Tom was presenting
I plan on getting back into mountain biking in 2022 after a 30 year absence (bike arrives in May) due to moving away from Upper Michigan. Retirement will allow me the time to rediscover my preferred form of cycling. So glad to know about this app, and you did a great job outlining its capabilities!! Thanks.
I think it's unfair not to add to the video that trailforks is directly associated with the pinkbike, since there are other alternatives to this app
I didn’t know that, I guess that’s why they’re advertising it! Seeing as it’s subscription based now.
Weird.. a company creating promo content for one of their platforms? How dare they not include the competition.
Agreed Pavel. There should have been a 'sponsored video' tag. Not very honest of them.
@@DeepStrut I'm fine with promo videos but it doesn't say anywhere that it's sponsored/promotional
I liked you talking about the 'emergency info'. You said you can share your GPS location with emergency services. Can you also share it with a family member/friend, just to pre-emptively let them know where you're roaming?
To make one thing sure :D I watch the video because of Tom, the funny Kiwi. Solid performance throughout every byte of content he does.
In Germany trail forks is unfortunately unusable. No trails.
So there are no trails to find in the app?
I think there are some pretty trails in Germany.
@@schwarzerune3125 I cannot confirm that. There´s pretty trails in Germany indeed. But they are on "the" app... and not on trail forks.
@@ANTheWhizkid Thanks for the information.
Yes there are good trails but for german riders it's hard to find a proper app. Komoot is quite good. There are some great trails available.
@@schwarzerune3125 True, many Germans use this app and yeah I totally agree. Currently I am planning the beginning of an official trail network there somewhere. From my personal pov... TF is a good app regarding presentation, usw. (though I´m also criticizing the premium thing), but the state I´m living in for example is a blank spot on their map which is why we as a group were asking ourselves the question if we should even offer routes on there or not and so on... long story short, the answer was no (for now) - I´m aware that this also depends a bit on where in Germany you might live - bavaria and the area around freiburg seem to have a lot of trails in there and yeah, every larger bike park of the high lands is in there as well - But the overall coverage of trails in Germany on trail forks is really bad. I don´t know how you experience it but I suppose the majority using koomoot there is a result of a missing localization, marketing measures and some other things that didn´t allow users to build up a community around TF. Cheers!
Can someone pleaseee explain to me how to change directions from "closest parking" to "my location"
Best part was seeing that trail named "Your Mom".
Mtb'er 1, "What are you doing today?"
Mtb'er 2, " Riding Your Mom!"....🤣🤣🤣🤣
We have your mom and step mom here in Vegas lol
It’s really cool stuff, and the end of an era.
What era
@@novamtb2039 the age of hidden trails.
So you have to keep your phone handy if you don’t know where your going? I would never put my phone on my bars. I only use my Wahoo Roam. Do any of these gps unit incorporate TrailForks?
Still hoping for a good Gravel trail option.
Tom is the man.
I use Strava heatmap
And unlike that "other" app you guys don't post all our unsanctioned trails. Which I greatly appreciate!
Heat map might say otherwise. :)
@@JF-lt5zc Right... Which is why I'm thanking TrailForks for not listing them. You don't even need heat maps on the "other" app to find all our illegal trails.
What would the “other” app be?
@@harrybryson1130 🤫
@@harrybryson1130 Probably strava?
In my region of Europe we don't need to donate for trail maintenance, we just ride natural trails done by hikers, errosion, etc. If it gets blockers or muddy usually it's locals or amateurs of the trail who do it, mysrlf o do help. Is this only in USA?
Where's that dialect from?
And he is riding the hardtail on a double diamond... yeah!
I use trail forks on most rides. And on every ride when I'm somewhere new. The thing that kills me I how freaking hard it is to create a route using the web interface. In particular, it does the craziest long loops to connect two points that are right next to each other. It's horrible. If I can find a someone's previous ride and convert that to a route - then that works fine. The downside of having this on my phone was stopping at every intersection, pulling my phone out and making a decision. So I bought a Gamin Edge last year with the idea that the data would be readily available. We'll see,
its easier for them to find new trails because the location they are in, for us the unlucky we have to probably drive an hour or two to get to the nearest trails
Yep
I live near the north shore trails but I still have to drive 45 minutes to the closest trails on seymour
Yeah, where I live Komoot is far more useful than TrailForks, but using both together can work really well.
@1:41 “There are a few ways to find a route” 🤣
I LOVED trail forks... until they made it pay to play...
I would rather pay than have ads
ya gotta recognize that they didn't have any ads on it, it was free, and no way to make a profit from it. So the only option is to make it cost money. They give you a service you pay a small fee.
@@hunter2519 I loved TrailForks as well. And I was set to go to the store and buy my copy when I saw that they finally went to a pay model (not surprising). Until I saw that it was subscription based. No thanks. I'd rather pay my money up front and be done with it. Monthly subs tend to either go up in price or down in features in my experience. Not to mention I don't need yet another business pecking away at my bank account every month. Too bad as it was the gold standard.
@@JF-lt5zc you can cancel any time. i subbed to invest. currently its fucking aweful even as a free app but about the only comprehensive list of trails. too many shit unverified trails (in uk). please anyone in uk dont rely on trails even existing in some instances - seems any 12 year old kid can add a random forest track as a 'red graded mtb trail'...
@@hunter2519 you have to recognise it was free because all the info on there is user generated, without free users creating the content it would be nothing.
Make a video on the app you own the day after you make the app payed. Good one for the mtb community thanks PB !
Finally!
thanks Tom
I prefer, Project MTB.
Trailforks used to be good when was 100% free.
There were a number of reason to go to a subscription model with Trailforks outlined here: www.trailforks.com/blog/view/response-to-criticism-that-trailforks-is-now-charging-for-access/
You’re right, paying for something that was once free is annoying, but in order to keep making the app better with new features that make it more useful to more people it was a necessary move.
@@tvelocidad would you do your job for free?
@@tvelocidad Care to share your source for claiming that Trailforks was self sufficient financially? They may have been running it at a loss before entering into a monetization model that includes a subscription. TBH I don't see a strong link for it driving eyeballs (& revenue) to Pinkbike. As for your other comment, YT gain income from ads based on views and sponsors. Some may also use their videos to drive customers to other services & products.
What do you do when you are 10 miles into a new never-been-to ride and wash a front tire and smash your phone on a rock? Now you have a smashed phone, have no idea where you are at, no idea how to get out, and no way to communicate. Encouraging riders to use their phone instead of focusing on getting routs to a dedicated GPS is reckless and open for a lawsuit! Just my 2 cents after 40 years mountain biking!
I love trailforks! I've used it a bunch of times to find awesome trails when I've taken roadtrips (mainly in Oregon, but also Cal). Getting an update on trail conditions is also really useful for keeping track of trails that are snow-covered, muddy from snow-melt, or that week when they're in perfect condition before turning to marbles on hardpack! The rider reviews can be super-useful too, as the official trail description doesn't always match the real experience, and they're helpful for getting a better understanding of whether trails are uphill/downhill or truly two-way. And I only just noticed and started using the donate feature, which is cool.
I can understand if some people prefer to use other trailfinding apps, but it does bug me when people complain about having to start paying for Trailforks. Seems reasonable to pay for something useful.
As I said above, no complaint about having to pay for it. But a monthly subscription is garbage. Make it a flat cost and I'm getting out my checkbook. Monthly subs are lame.
What I hate about the app, i paid to find all the trails! I know all the good, "illegal" trails are not listed. But when i ride them, trailforks recognises the trail but wont show them on the map. That was for me the whole point of getting it
Start pedalling ans see what happens, it's how you find new trails And improve....... Who needs apps?
If you’re a beginner and end up on a double black ur prolly only gonna improve your hike a bike skills
If your friend broke her arm on your “casual ride”, sounds like it probably wasn’t casual
yeah sure... after trying to sign up for PB two times and reaching out for support (without any response) there is NO way I ever pay for Trailforks or contribute to it!
How to get the most from trailforks: Buy our $3 per month subscription...
If I need a cell phone to ride a trail, it is poorly marked. I want to forget my cell phone, my job , my computer.... everything in my daily life to shred. Mountain biking needs to get back its organic roots. KOM chasers are f'ing annoying.
Some of the best trails are poorly marked 😉
Anyway if you are out in the middle of a 100km/mile network, are you really going to remember the way if you have never been there before?
You don’t need to record your ride and it’s not Strava.
@@streddaz Guess I don't ride 100 mile networks and everything in my area is clearly marked. I like to keep it simple. Yes, I know Trailforks is not Srava. Just mentioning the guys who come to trails midday on a weekend chasing KOM''s...you know Sravassholes. More tech. I carry a phone for an emergency only.
@@petedog9581 yeah well it’s probably not necessary if you only ride the same trails. It’s great if you travel about.
@@streddaz You are right. I'm being a turd to some extent. Guess I'm encouraging people to attempt to disconnect as much as possible. I would use trailforks, if I was traveling. I just don't do many mtb trips anymore. I live in OH so I have to travel to get to the big game. Beats paging trough old trail books in the pack. I really could have used trailforks when I got hopelessly lost in Asheville years ago. Getting lost is my best mtb skill. lol
Trailforks is terrible iny area
I feel for Tom here as he is having to promote an app that is fucking shit now due to pink bike putting up a massive pay wall/cash grab for an app that was built for free using community uploads, it is rear sad to see such a good app be absolutely ruined by such an expensive and unnecessary pay wall
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It’s a great app
🤓🤘