St. Joe State Park

[Fun4me]

I hauled the LRD out to revisit St. Joe State Park, located about an hour south of St Louis. It’s one of the largest and most popular off-road-vehicle riding areas in the Midwest. The park offers acres of sand flats, wooded hillsides, crushed limestone tailings from the lead mining process, rocks ranging in size from gravel to baseballs, creek crossings, and mud, with 54 miles of marked trails.



My previous visit proved to be quite a challenge. I felt like a cow on ice with the stock tires on the bike. I still had a blast but was rather glad there were only a handful of other riders there that day to witness my awkwardness. That convinced me to swap the original tires for Shinko 241s. I’ve been looking forward to seeing how they handled.


The Shinkos made a world of difference. I didn’t cover all 54 miles of the trails on this visit, but I definitely rode all except the steepest of them. Now I have a reason to return.

 

[sieg]

Thanks for the pictures! I used to go there every Sunday back in the 80. Before they downsized it, put in the horse and bicycle areas. looks tamer than I remember.

 

[Fun4me]

Thanks for the pictures! I used to go there every Sunday back in the 80. Before they downsized it, put in the horse and bicycle areas. looks tamer than I remember.

Yeah, you can't get a true feeling for the terrain from the pictures. I'm sure it could feel tame for a bigger bike. I got quite a workout on the Trail. After a day of riding, I had to put this 70-year-old body to bed early.

 

[Backwoods]

Good to see the 241s did well for you, I have a set waiting in my garage. That is a scenic area you have In Missouri. Bumping around the trails all day is harder now than it was 50 years ago for sure, I’m 66 and it ain’t getting any easier, but I’m easy on the gas and am moving forward with camping plans, remote swimming holes and some backwoods metal detecting. We in the 4th quarter of our lives, let’s not slow down now!

 

[Fun4me]

Good to see the 241s did well for you, I have a set waiting in my garage. That is a scenic area you have In Missouri. Bumping around the trails all day is harder now than it was 50 years ago for sure, I’m 66 and it ain’t getting any easier, but I’m easy on the gas and am moving forward with camping plans, remote swimming holes and some backwoods metal detecting. We in the 4th quarter of our lives, let’s not slow down now!

Thanks. The 241s with a 2.75 on the front and 3.0 on the rear have worked well without any clearance issues some have experienced with the 244s. I may try a pair of those when I wear these out.

St. Joe is worth the 90-minute drive for me to get the variety of terrain I can't find closer to home. I've definitely learned to take things a little slower since bones don't heal nearly as quickly as they used to. Enjoy your riding and keep the shiny side up.