Tag Archives: mountain biking

Mountain Biking: A Fun Exercise

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Mountain biking is a good way to explore outside, exercising and having a good time.

Racing down a mountainside is exciting ; however, it may also be perilous. As with any outside sport, choosing the right appliances and a knowledge of the game will be the key to a great journey.

Though the styles are close in some respect, all of them need different abilities. The style you select will identify the sort of bike. Sometimes this sport is perceived as biking on an unpaved surface. Most regions have areas in particular designed for this grand sport. State and Fed. parks are the best place to off-road bike.

However, you check with your local parks to get the routes and other laws or rules they could have. There are also groups that have mountain bicycle rides and competitions. You might search the web or local paper to see what’s available in your neighborhood. There might be groups for the sophisticated rider as well as the amateur. A must have for a great mountain biker is endurance and staying power. In addition, it takes discipline to practice and the aspiration to succeed and conquer the course. A beginner mountain biker will have to beat the bumps and bruises from falling of the bike. Like all sports, it requires practice and the constitution to keep trying.

Choosing your bicycle is an individual choice and crew on the sort of riding you may do. A good mountain biker becomes one with their bike.

Check for comfort, fit, and how it is geared, all of these factors have to be considered. As discussed earlier, trail bicycle riding on unpaved roads can be unsafe. The everyday safety gear is a helmet, knee and elbow pads.

You must also consider goggles if riding in an exceedingly dense wooded area or if following a group of bikers. Safety should be your top concern and not treated lightly when riding regardless of what the terrain.

Bike Trick: Bunny Hop

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It is a bike trick were the rider lifts the bike up and over an obstacle while remaining in motion on the bike.  Experience bikers can lift their bikes above one meter or one and half feet. The world record for this trick stands at 4 feet.

Bunny hop is executed by approaching in an obstacle with speed, lifting the front of the bike then leveling the pedals.  Some bike with front or full suspension, preload the shocks by pressing down the bike just before you reach the obstacle.

Once the shock have been preloaded, the rider will spring upwards pulling up with the hands and feet at the same time.  As the biker lifts, the hands will roll through twisting the throttle.  After the object is cleared, push down on the bike then absorb the impact with the arms and legs.

It is often times a misconception that a bunny hop without toe clip is achieved by rotating forward on the handlebars.  Lifting a mountain bike while standing next to it is quite difficult to hold on to the handlebars.

Experienced rider can make it look a lot easier than actually is.  New mountain bikers should practice a lot before the attempt to try the bunny hop.  Doing it in a bigger obstacle is quite dangerous too.

With the proper time and practice, this trick can be achieve by the beginners too.

The Right Tire Pressure

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The control of your mountain bike depends on the amount of pressure in your tires.

Too high tire pressure can result to poor contact with ground and will give you less control over your bike. If too low, can make your tires unpredictable and more prone to pinch flats.

The pressure on your tires greatly varies from one rider to another and they setup of your tires. The trail conditions and terrain where you will be riding can also have an effect on your tires.

Trial and error system will help you determine what the right amount of pressure should be used on your tires. Learning that trick can certainly help a rider gauge how much pressure his tires would need and therefore be able to adjust the pressure for different trails as needed.

To help you know your bike tire pressure, you should get a reliable pressure gauge or pump with pressure gauge. This can be helpful when you need to make changes in the pressure.

When pumping your filling your tires with pressure, you should begin with a higher pressure of around 40-50 psi. For tubeless system, it should start lower, around 30-40 psi. Remember, the more you weigh, the higher pressure to start with. Try the pressure for a while and feel how your tires take corners and loose dirt while biking.

Then drop the pressure by 5 psi in each tire and feel how it affects your tires. Compare it to you previous set up. If no improvement in stability, drop another 5 psi.

A pinch flat happens when your tire rolls over an object then compresses it to the point where the tire and the tube get pinched between the rim and the object. This should be avoided especially when you want to determine the lowest pressure you can ride in.

You can run much lower pressure for tubeless tire systems so no worries about getting pinch flats. You will know that the pressure is too low when you start denting your rims or feel the tire roll under the rim.

Learning what feels right for your tires even your bike takes time. You have to be patient in finding things like the right amount of pressure and other stuff about biking to enjoy and be safe at the same time when you are riding your bike.

Parts of A Mountain Bike

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A mountain bike is all you need in mountain biking.  This contains may parts that we will cover below :

  • Bottom Bracker – Attaching the crankset to the body of the bike.
  • Brake Cable – This cable is connected to brake lever up to the brake mechanism.
  • Brake lever – The lever is installed at the left and right of the handle bar. The left side is for the front brake and the right side is for the rear brake.
  • Chain – This is the circular set of links that transfer power from the chain ring to the gears.
  • Chain ring – This is the toothed ring that attach to crank to hold the chain.
  • Crank – This is the lever that extends from the bottom bracket to the pedal and transfer the power to the chan rings.
  • Derailleur – This is the mechanism for moving the chain from one gear to another.
  • Down tube – This is the section of the frame that extends downward from the stem to the bottom bracket.
  • Front shock – This is the shock absorber on the front fork.
  • Handlebar – This is the horizontal bar attached to the stem with handgrip on the end.
  • Headset – This is the mechanism in the front frame that connects the fork to the stem and handlebar.
  • Hub – This is the center parts of the wheel, were the spokes are attached.
  • Idler pulley – This is the bottom pulley of the rear derailleur that provides spring tension to keep the chain tight.
  • Nipple – This is a threaded receptacle that holds the end of the spoke to the rim.
  • Pedals – This is the platform to pedal on; attached to the crank.
  • Rear shock – This is the shock absorber for the rear, mostly use on dual suspension type bikes.
  • Rim – This is the metal ring that holds the spokes on the inside and the tire to the outside.
  • Saddle – This is the seat.
  • Seat post – This is the metal tube that hold and support the seat.
  • Skewer – This is the metal rod that goes through the hub, attaching the wheel to the dropouts of the frame.
  • Spindle – This is the free rotating axle that the crank arms are attach to; it is also a part of the bottom bracket.
  • Spokes – This is the thick wires that joins the hub to the rim.
  • Stem – This is the portion that attaches the handlebar to the steering tube.
  • Wheel hub – This is the center of the wheel, were the spokes are attach.

Kinds of Mountain Bikes

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Mountain biking can be split into 9 different categories that are verse in what can they offer. The following are:

  • BMX- has 20 inch wheels and are commonly used at skate parks or dirt jumps. It is easy to perform tricks and stunts with because of their smaller wheels.
  •  Cross Country- made for riding up and down hills. It is considered to be the least extreme form of mountain biking.
  •  Cyclo cross- a cross between road and mountain biking where the riders have to go through obstacles, cross rivers and race on and off course or trials.
  •  Dirt jumping- used to jump over man-made dirt jumps while doing tricks on air.
  •  Downhill- for racing downhill as fast as possible. It is very intense and extreme that is very perfect for adventure seekers.
  •  Freeride- Competitions on this are popular as the rider has to find the perfect line down the mountain using all of the terrain to express himself.
  •  Single speed- a bike with only one gear. Simplicity is the key meaning, less mechanical problems plus a lighter bike to compete with.
  •  Street and Urban- involves riding around the city or urban areas, through stall and grinds.
  •  Trails- 20 or 26 inches of wheels are used and they have small low frames. Trail riders are required to have an extreme amount of balance and concentration to jump over their obstacles.

Stay Safe When Mountain Biking

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There are a lot of ways to improve your your mountain biking safety.

Some rider says that wearing a helmet is the most important step in staying safe. The second important step is always ride in control. Controlling your ride will not only prevent you from crashes but also other people on the trail will be safe too. Riding out of control could result you and other people to serious injury.

Below are the guidelines that must be followed when biking.

  • Gears. Make sure that you wear your helmet always and other safety gears when biking.
  • Never ride beyond your control. Never be ashamed when you walk in the area of the trail were you feel that you are not comfortable in riding.
  • Keep your speed under control . Make sure to keep your speed at a level where you can easily adjust to any obstacle or changes in the trail.
  • Knowing your trail . Never push the limits on trails that you are not familiar with. Make your speed slow until you learn the trail better.
  • Slowdown around blind corner. When you are approching a blind corner, slowdown, you do not know who or what is around it.
  • Start small then go big. Practice in less difficult or less dangerous situations before you move up to something risky.
  • Playing it smart. Always think about what you are doing and go with your instincts.

Let’s Go Cross Country Biking

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Cross country mountain biking is exciting and adventurous experience. It is because they have to go to the top of the mountain by the ride to get to their destination. Most people says that although free riding is very popular, the life vein of the game has always been cross country biking.

These individuals are in different class of their own as well as the bikes that they ride, completely different from other types of mountain bikes because what is important to the cross country riders is speed. So, the whole thing revolve with the idea of making their bike runs more faster. This bikes can be in a fully ridgid frame, hardtails or even full suspension frame, as this becomes more popular nowadays.

The weight of a cross country mountain bike should be more lighter so that the biker can handle those mountains and rough terrains more easily. At least 5 to 10 pounds weight difference between a cross country mountain bike and free ride bikes, if you are about compare them.

Try and experience the cross contry mountain biking. You will most likely find it to be a break from the ordinary because this type of biking involve hills and rough terrains.
New bikers or beginners with out the proper  experience can never go to this terrain.

For all the mountain bikers out there, cross country mountain biking is the way to go.  It present to you a new twist to mountain biking, new areas to bike and a new assortment of bikes.

Clothes for Winter Riding

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Cold weather has always been a challenge in mountain biking because you have to start cold then warm up to break a sweat, making yourself wet. When you travel in this kind of situation, the combination of wet skin  and the windchill will be more chilling.

There are some cold weather clothing below that will minimize your bone chilling experience when you ride in the winter season.

When you ride in a cold temperature, the feet are them most exposed part of your anatomy.  Force from pedaling will tend to cut off the circulaton to your toes and this can put you at a risk of frostbite. You must wear neoprene booties. It will zip over your shoes and has a pattern in the sole where you can cut out a piece for cleats.

Wear a gloves when riding during winter.  There are some manufacturer that makes “lobster gloves”, a hybrid glove that seperate your index finger and thumb from the rest of your hand and these are warmer than regular gloves.  This gloves will not affect your riding because the index finger is free and will allow you to operate shifting and brake levers.  It is also advisable that you bring along a pair of lightweight glove liner to protect your hand from cold.

Wraparound glasses provides you a maximum protection from the wind, cold and debris while riding.

Try to wear lightweight socks as this could make your feet warm without bulk. If you still need some extra layer, try silk ski sock, it is very warm and extra lightweight. Wearing heavy socks will make your shoes tight, cut off the circulation and even make your feet cold. 

Polypropylene underwear is lightweight and best for colder weather.

Wear a wind protection, you will be able to vent  perpiration while also protecting yourself from windchill.  Choose a pants and a jacket based on durability, breathing and price. 

Use a helmet with fleece liner during winter riding because it is designed to protect your head and ears from cold temperature. Your head is very important because you lose 50 percent of your body heat through your head.

Mountain Bike Designs

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Classification for a mountain bike designs have three categories based on suspension:

  • Hardtail – This is a frame with no suspension, mostly contains a front suspension fork.
  • Fully rigid – This is a sub type of hardtail with a ridgid fork.
  • Dual or full suspension – This are equipped with a front and rear suspension that are integrated in to the frame.
  • Soft tail – This is a frame with a small amount of rear suspension, normally less than a full suspension frame.

These different designs of mountain bikes has different purposes. All you need to do is select the best bike that suits your style of riding even as the terrain changes.

Mountain biking is a different sport that offers a lot of excitement and thrills.  If you are new to the game, you will find different designs of mountain bikes to be very inviting and very challenging at the same time.  Every design serves a purpose, even some who excels on the trails.

There are a lot of design that reflect on many challenging discipline in mountain biking. But no matter what type it is, select the best bike for that specific discipline.

If you are a beginner to mountain biking, you have to check out a lot of designs and types of mountain bike before you buy.

Buying A Mountain Bike

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It may take a while when you are buying something specially mountain bike. You have to determine the specification, the accessories and the price before you lay down the cash and buy.  Below are some tips and things to be aware of:

  • Price. It is better to determine first the price, actually there are really no limit as how much would you spend on a mountain bike. To help you keep your spending under control, you have to budget your money on how much you are going to pay for a new bike. You should buy on local bike shop so you could choose for a much better bike and also a much better service than buying from a mass merchant stores like Wal-Mart.
  • Style. Mountain bike are designed with different style, so you have to figure out what style of riding will you do most.  Are you interested in smooth riding or something like cross country racing, mountain cruising or lift accessed downhill riding? Better be sure that the bike you select fits your style and not that you bought it because it is on sale.A full suspension mountain bike always worth the purchase but more expensive because it offers more comfort and overall better control.  A hardtail is lighter in weight and pedal more efficiently.  You have to select based on your price range, riding style and the type of terrain you will be riding most.
  • Components or Parts. There are many mountain bike component that have many combinations available.  The best thing to do is to find a few components that are most important to you. Start with the fork, the wheels and the rear derailleur. Make sure that the price falls within your range. 
  • Discounts. The price of the mountain bike during Spring to summer is higher because it is the main season for buying one, but normally in the fall and winter, you can save a couple of hundred dollars. Many local bike shop also offers discount or other accessories during fall and winter season.Find a good dealer that cares about selling you a great bike than selling you a highed price bike. 
  • Test Drive for Overall Performance. You should test ride all the bikes that fits within your price range and riding style.  Some bike will feel right while others won’t and you will know what works and what doesn’t, if you test drive one.

Study the overall performance and reliability about a mountain bike and always look at what other owners and reviews think about a bike before buying.