Should I try Mountain Biking or Road Riding

[Northamger Abbey]

I am trying out cycling for the first time by going to a club.
I wish to be CONSISTANT with the choice I make, so could you suggest which I should go for?
I'm quite short, so which discipline favours that? Also tell me a bit about the sports.

 

[Sittingduck]

There is no rule that says you need to make a choice and never try out the darkside! I'd try a bite of each and see which you favour

Anyway, I suppose it depends on what type of rides this club organise, doesn't it?

 

[rusky]

It depends on what you want from cycling.

For opposite ends of the scale, you can go down the road route, get lycra'd up & mingle with traffic or you can wear baggy clothes, get with nature & muddy when wet.

 

[Cubist]

Mountain, definitely





















or Road

 

[Cubist]

Seriously though, I prefer MTB. It's been a really lousy year for it, but it appeals more to my nature, it has far more geek and niche content, and is more diverse. (You haven't specified which MTB discipline by the way.... DJ? AM? DH? XC? 4X? Enduro? Freeride? Slopestyle? )

 

[deptfordmarmoset]

It's more of a buffet than a fixed menu. Lots of pro-level cyclists start off in one discipline and then use the skills they've acquired - be it on the track, road, hills - to help them succeed in other disciplines. There's probably more of a drift to road cycling but you'll never hear (well, at least, I've never heard) them saying ''I wish I'd chosen a different discipline.''

 

[Radchenister]

All a bit too controlled that question for me; why not go with the flow, live a little, experience a variety in order to find your natural place and level ?

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

I am trying out cycling for the first time by going to a club.
I wish to be CONSISTANT with the choice I make, so could you suggest which I should go for?
I'm quite short, so which discipline favours that? Also tell me a bit about the sports.

do you prefer speed, lycra and looking at someone's arse or do you prefer mud, water and well more mud and usualy getting nowhere fast?

 

[Northamger Abbey]

Thanks a bunch for your contributions.

 

[biggs682]

do both good reason to have more than 1 bike

 

[Radchenister]

Thanks a bunch for your contributions.

... no problem whatsoever and thank you for the interesting question.

Where do you plan to take things next?

Contrary to popular opinion, it's all about the bike in my view, it will be your new partner, trusty steed, 'Hey-ho Silver' etc. - is this a bike buying driven question?

Are you trialling bikes at a shop / club?

If not, then why the urgent need to decide one way or the other?

 

[Psyclist]

I did XC for five years, and ended up with the road bike bug. MTB is great, but I personally prefer road. It just depends what you like. Not everybody else

If you decide to do MTB>road or road>MTB, go with your choice. You could always buy another bike of a different discipline in a couple of years (as Biggs said) and have two bikes.

 

[Deleted member 23692]

Even living in Cumbria, I find I have to 'go somewhere' to get a good MTB ride as there isn't much off-road route choice locally. Which means sticking the bike on the car and going to the Lakes, North Pennines or nipping over the Scottish border. If I want a decent road ride, I can just start from my front door.

The road bike gets used much more, but I still love getting out on the MTB

 

[brucers]

Surely, as a hobby, you do whatever takes your fancy. To my mind other people's preferences are irrelevant (no insult intended to 'other people')!

 

[Deleted member 20519]

CROSS BIKE.