Alpine Skibikes
Convert ANY bike into a Ski-bike!
Welcome to our new company website for Alpine Skibikes (formerly WinterXbike.com then HansonBikes.com)
We have been on a two-season hiatus from production of the Ski-MX Conversion Kits, but due to an overwhelming demand we have decided to do another very limited production run of kits without skis for the 2009/2010 season. We may do a run of ski-bike-specific skis later in the season, but in the meantime, there are several other ski options to consider. You can use children's skis (like the "Elan" skis pictured above left) or twin-tip ski-boards (like the "Line" ski-boards pictured above right) or you can choose to cut off the tips of some old skis from your basement. The optimum length for 20" BMX bikes is 85-90cm, and for 26" mountain bikes 95-100cm seems to work best.
Yes, the kit will fit (via removal of a spacer) either size rear dropout (as long as it is the standard 3/8" axle size). Mountainbikes have a 135 mm width between rear dropouts, and BMX bikes have a 110mm width. The kit has been engineered to fit both of these standard sizes. All forks have a 100mm width. If you have a 20mm through-axle, we have 20mm adaptors that allow the kit to be used with these axles as well.
Ski-MX Conversion Kit (without skis)
US Patent #6626441
20mm Axle Adaptors (shown mounted to front bracket)
Now Filling Orders!
The shipping cost in the contiguous USA is $15.00 per kit*. The kits without skis retail for $269.95 + $15.00 for domestic shipping. If you have a bike with a 20mm through-axle, you will also need to order the 20mm axle adaptors for $29.95.
We have only built 100 kits and they are selling fast, so don't wait and miss your opportunity to get one of these unique and sought-after kits; order it today!
To place your order, simply send your payment securely via PayPal.com to Matt@AlpineSkibikes.com. Be sure to include:
- exactly what you are ordering
- complete shipping address (FedEx Ground will not deliver to PO Boxes)
- contact phone number (required by FedEx for delivery)
- e-mail address for order confirmation and shipment notification
- specify kit configuration: Mountain Bike (135mm dropouts) or BMX (110mm dropouts)
To order by CREDIT CARD, e-mail me at Matt@AlpineSkibikes.com with the above information, and I will e-mail you an invoice that you can pay using a credit card.
*IMPORTANT NOTE FOR CUSTOMERS LIVING OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES: If you live outside the USA, then send me an e-mail containing all of the above information and I will e-mail you back with an exact shipping quote specific to your address. Once you have this information, you can then place the appropriate PayPal order.
These are Matrix FSX 99 cm skiboards that are available at Skiboards.com. They have a relatively narrow waist width and lots of sidecut. They carve really really well, track straight, and have enough surface area to float decently in the pow pow. I was very impressed with this ski as an all-mountain mobber. They are wood-core and fairly stiff. When we do a run of our own skis for next season, this is the ski they will be modeled after. The only thing they don't have is a 4 cm square, 4-hole insert pattern, but because they are wood-core, they seemed to mount up nicely with the standard top-drill method. I have already sold this pair of demos. Skiboards.com only has a limited number of these so order quickly if you want them.
We are now selling some used demo bikes. Check out the pics below:
TURNER DH RACER WITH Ski-MX CONVERSION KIT $2000.00
This is one of my (Matt Hanson's) first demo rigs that I built up back in 2002. It has 8 inchs of front travel and 7 inches of rear travel, and has a super comfy Cloud-9 saddle. It is the burliest, most indestructible downhill frame around. It has a really low center of gravity which makes it effortless to ride. It has one of the original Ski-MX kits on it with the old WinterXbike logos. The narrow 95cm X-rail skis with 8 meters of sidecut are simply the best performing skis for park riding and carving the hard-pack that you can get. They have a 4cm square 4-hole metal insert pattern which makes swapping skis a cinch. This is the rig that is featured in all the park trick riding in the original WinterXbike videos and photo gallery on this site. It is still one of the nicest riding bikes I've ever been on. If you want, you can throw some wheels on it and charge the mountain all summer as well. This is a ridiculous value for a downhill rig of this magnitude.
LENZSPORT ALPINE BRAWLER WITH Ski-MX KIT $1800.00
This bike is the bike that got Devin Lenz into ski-bike world. Several years ago I was looking online for long-travel frames with low rear ends that would fit easily under the lift chair. I saw this frame on Devin's site, contacted him and told him what I was doing. He traded me this frame for several conversion kits and the rest is history. He got totally hooked on the sport and has taken it to a new level; building the highest performance purpose-built ski-bikes available today. He and his team of riders are riding at a level (as evidenced in his videos with bumps, park, cliff-drops...) that no-one has ever seen so far on planet Earth. This bike feature's Devin's high-end 20mm front adaptor, and the Ski-MX conversion rear bracket with the old WXB logos, and Devin's wide foot pegs. The skis are mounted to a Lenzsport mounting plate which allows for easy ski-swapping. The plates are mounted to a 99cm ski that was purpose-built for ski-bikes by a company overseas. It has a comfy Cloud-9 saddle. The bike is in great shape with about 15 days riding time on it, and the skis only have one day's riding on them. This bike is tall and light. It is one of my favorite bump bikes with 8 inches of front travel and 6 inches of rear travel. The tall bars make for a very comfortable standing-riding position. This is another bike that you can throw wheels on and ride all summer.
HANSONBIKES RIP CORD $895.00
The Rip Cord (short for "Ripping the Corderoy") is a bike that I designed and built as a rental bike for Heavenly Valley Resort in Lake Tahoe. They have 30 of these bikes in their rental fleet. It was designed to be the easiest handling ski-bike around, so that all the first-timers who show up at Adventure Peak at the top of the gondola at Heavenly would have an easy time riding and carrying it on the lift. Instead of the traditional foot pegs, this ride features a large platform for your feet. This came about at the behest of the trick BMX community who are accustomed to having their feet split (one forward and one to the rear) just like when you have rotating crank arms on a BMX bike. They were not used to having their feet right next to each other, so this set-up allows for a split stance which they seem to love. I too am now a fan of the split stance riding position. It feels more stable and you have more control over your body position. There is a huge added advantage for some adaptive skiers as well. A few years ago, I tore my medial meniscus in my right knee. In the months preceding my surgery, I walked with a limp and was unable to ski or snowboard at all. I could, however, ride a ski-bike but only in the seated position. On the Rip Cord, I was able to stand with a split stance with my left leg back and right leg forward. All of my body weight was distributed between my arms on the handlebars, and my left (rear) leg. My right leg was just sort of hanging out in the middle with no weight on it. So I was able to ride standing up doing short radius turns the way I was used to. I was not able to do this on bikes with side-by-side foot pegs. This bike features the Ski-MX kit with X-rail skis that can be removed and used on any bike. It has a low-end 3-inch travel front fork (easily replaced with any fork you like) and a cushy, spring-loaded seat mounted atop a suspension seat post. It rides as comfortably as any full suspension bike I've ridden. You can absolutely rail carves on this machine, and it is a favorite amongst BMX park rats (as evidenced by the pics in the photo gallery of superman-seat-grabs, tail-whips, can cans.....). The bike and components are all brand new, with a used Ski-MX kit on it. They used to retail for $995.00 new, so this one is a deal at $895.00.
HANSONBIKES RIP CORD (set up for a smaller rider) $795.00
This Rip Cord is the one that I set up to race in Durango at the Ski-bike Festival. I was winning the main until I crashed and Jacek Stahlmach had to jump clear over top of me to avoid impaling me with his front ski (there is a video of it on YouTube). For racing, I lowered the seat to lower the center of gravity, but I guess I left it there too long, because when I tried to raise it back up, I found that the seat-post was totally fused in place. It is a long seat-post that reaches all the way down towards the bottom of the seat tube, so I guess there is just too much surface area gripping it in place. I have tried everything from heat to pipe wrenches, but it wont budge. The bike is still comfortable to ride, but being 6'3", I prefer the seat to be about 1.5" higher than this one. It is perfect for anyone 6 feet or under, you can just never adjust the seat height. The bike features a Ski-MX kit with X-rail skis that can be removed and used on any bike. It has a low-end 3" travel front fork, and a cushy spring-loaded saddle mounted atop a suspension seat-post.
TO ORDER ANY OF THE ABOVE BIKES, SIMPLY FOLLOW THE ORDERING INSTRUCTIONS LISTED ABOVE AND E-MAIL ME WITH ALL OF THE REQUESTED INFORMATION AND I WILL E-MAIL YOU BACK WITH A SHIPPING QUOTE.
Have fun out there,
~Matt Hanson, Owner
Alpine Skibikes
Alpine Skibikes
204 West Spear Street
Suite 2674
Carson City, NV 89703
(310) 892-6288
