Mountain biking entails the sport of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough terrain, whether riding specially equipped mountain bikes or hybrid road bikes. Most mountain bikes share similar characteristics that underscore durability and performance in rough terrain: wide, knobby tires, large frame tubing, front fork or dual suspension shock absorbers. The durability factor means a far heavier bicycle weight to rider ratio than their road touring cousins.[1]
Mountain biking is broken down into four categories: cross country, downhill, freeride, and trials/street riding. Each has differing levels of safety-consciousness with different types of mountain bikes and riding gear. A combination sport named mountain bike orienteering adds the skill of map navigation to mountain biking.
This individual sport requires endurance, bike handling skills and self-reliance, and can be performed almost anywhere from a back yard to a gravel road, but the majority of mountain bikers ride off-road trails, whether country back roads, fire roads, or singletrack (narrow trails that wind through forests, mountains, deserts, or fields). There are aspects of mountain biking that are more similar to trail running than regular bicycling. Because riders are often far from civilization, there is a strong ethic of self-reliance in the sport. Riders learn to repair their broken bikes or flat tires to avoid being stranded miles from help. This reliance on survival skills accounts for the group dynamics of the sport. Club rides and other forms of group rides are common, especially on longer treks.
Equipment
- Mountain bikes differ from road bicycles in several ways. They have a smaller, reinforced frame, knobby, wide and high profile tires which are mounted on a rim stronger than those used on most non-mountain bicycles, a larger range of gears to facilitate climbing up steep hills and over obstacles, a wider flat or upwardly-rising handlebar that allows a more upright riding position, and often some form of suspension system for either the front wheel or both wheels. Mountain bikes sometimes come with disc brakes similar to those used in automobiles, rather than rim brakes used on road bikes.
- Bicycle pedals vary from simple platform pedals, where the rider simply places the shoes on top of the pedals, to clipless, where the rider uses a specially equipped shoe with a sole that engages mechanically into the pedal. Pedals with toe cages (clips) are rarely used anymore as they take longer to get out of than clipless or platform if one takes a fall on the rough terrain.
- Helmets provide important head protection, as falls can occur over rough, rocky, sandy, or mountainous terrain. Helmets include full-faced helmets or regular.
- Gloves differ from road touring gloves, are made of heavier construction, and often have covered thumbs or all fingers covered for hand protection. They are sometimes made with padding for the knuckles.
- Glasses with little or no difference from those used in other cycling sports, help protect against debris while on the trail. Filtered lenses, whether yellow for cloudy days or shaded for sunny days, protect the eyes from strain.
- Shoes generally have gripping soles similar to those of hiking boots for scrambling over un-ridable obstacles, unlike the smooth-bottomed shoes used in road cycling. The shank of mountain bike shoes is generally more flexible than road cycling shoes.
- Clothing is chosen for comfort during physical exertion in the backcountry, and its ability to withstand falls. Road touring clothes are often inappropriate due to their delicate fabrics and construction.
- Hydration systems are important for mountain bikers in the backcountry, ranging from simple water bottles to water bags with drinking tubes in lightweight backpacks (e.g., Camelbaks).
- GPS System is sometimes added to the handlebars and is used to display and monitor progress on trails downloaded from the internet or pre-made mapping systems, record trails on the fly, and keep track of trip times and other data. The GPS system is often a handheld GPS device with color screen and rugged, waterproof (IPX7) design.
- Pump to inflate flat tires.
- Bike tools and extra bike tubes are important, as mountain bikers frequently find themselves miles from help, with flat tires or other mechanical problems that must be handled by the rider.
- Body armor Similar to the armor worn on motorcross bikes. These can consist of knee pads, elbow pads, padded shorts or armored under jackets. These are made by companies like Dainese, sixsixone, Alpinestars and others. It is especially popular with downhill cycling.
Read more about mountain bikes at Wikipedia
