Mountain Bikes

By Author: Spanish Fitness
Total Articles: 12
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MTB for short, the mountain bike is a bicycle made for off-road cycling on courses that usually include those with washouts or erosions and rocks, dirt rails, steep declines, roads used for logging and other unpaved pathways. It is also made to withstand stresses brought about by off-road use, especially with wheels that are wide and with coarse-thread of knobby tire for good traction and shock absorption when traveling on uneven terrain. It is used for the sport of mountain biking in subtypes of cross-country, all-day endurance, free-ride, and downhill mountain biking. These subtypes and other disciplines of the sport use different designs of the bicycle for optimum performance in the particular type of biking competition.

Mountain bikes have various designs each oriented to the type of discipline. The most popular mountain bike is the single-speed design which has one set of gear ratio used by very fit rider on mild cross-country terrain. The other designs include cross-country, trail, enduro, downhill, free-ride, dirt jumping, mountain cross or speed cross, north shore, and circle dirt track racing bikes. The cross-country ...
... or XC mountain bikes are lightweight and designed for cross-country racing, and with emphasis on speed, climbing ability and endurance. The trail bikes are made to deal with rough terrain. When you want a bike that can climb and descend well, it is the enduro or all-mountain design that you should prefer but if it is only for downhill riding, you can choose the downhill bike which is built for the nature of speed racing downhill.

If you want a mountain bike that is easy to ride uphill, get a free-ride bicycle which is slightly similar to a downhill bike. The dirt jumping bike is made without a front brake to allow the cyclist to spin the handle bars without affecting the brake cables. Bicycle makers have the mountain cross or four-cross (4X) bikes that are used for downhill racing among four bikers, or dual slalom bikes for a race between two riders on usually man-made courses. The newest form of mountain biking is done through the lightweight short-course or speed cross bikes on short and narrow paths of the forest with rocks and large roots. The north shore bikes are similar to the free-ride and downhill bikes in their make up but are lighter and maneuverable. The circle dirt track racing bikes fall into the any-kind-of-bike category; it has lesser weight but increased brake power made for track racing competitions.

Getting to a mountain biking competition would certainly need biking skills, endurance, core strength, self-reliance and a reasonably high level of fitness. By self-reliance, a rider must have a knowhow on repairing a broken bike or a flat tire especially when stranded somewhere in the middle of the course away from help. Competing riders should also carry a lightweight backpack containing essential tools and equipment, and emergency supplies. As important as first-aid kits are protective gears such as a helmet, body pads and armor.

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