Why must everyone have a Mountain Bike??

[3narf]

We camped at Broadway Cottage campsite last year. Lovely spot!

 

[Chris S]

I agree that the roads are bad but would suggest that you are either 30 stone/doing something wrong if you have wrecked multiple wheels, either via poor buying choices or poor riding.
Even if you consider factory built road wheels not up to scratch (for inner city commuting I can sympathize) you could get a set of touring wheels or handbuilts.

I'm actually 12 stone and 6 foot which is about right for a 45 year old.

I take your points about using hand-built or touring wheels but riding an off the shelf MTB is just a far cheaper option.

 

[Lisa21]

If the objective is for your friend to get fit through cycling, then a heavy mtb with chunky tyres will do him far better than a light weight roadie frame with slicks.

If I had to choose one bike to keep, it would be a mountain bike.

Ditto. when I got my bike it was to get me fit and healthy and to enjoy the countryside. Aside from the fact that I would kill a bike with skinny tyres the places I go, my thinking was i would get fitter quicker with a MTB than i would doing twice the miles with half the effort on a road bike. A decision i have never regretted.

 

[Grendel]

A mate of mine has been told to get some extra exercise, specifically cucling, by the doc to combat hypertension. Now, he doesn't drive so he'll not be loading the bike and taking it off-road - and I know him too well, he doesn't like going somewhere just for the enjoyment of the journey - on holidays he'd rather watch DVDs or find a pub then go for a walk "just to go and come back again - what's the point?" - so I know for a fact he won't get as far as cycling out to the peak district to use an off-road bike. It's not that he's lazy, he does have active hobbies such as airsoft, he just can't see the enjoyment in the journey.

He's asked me to help him choose a bike, and has come back with an example of the bikes he likes

Now, I appreciate drop handlebars aren't everyone's cup of tea so not everyone wants a road bike, and there's an image thing...but he likes black, urban styles, he'd make a great ninja, so I'm trying to direct him to the fakenger style, with a bike to suit (although not SS!!!)

I can see myself having difficulty persuading him that an MTB is not the best option - though thankfully the models he likes both happen to be hardtails with lock-out forks so that's one thing

Now, in the 80s and early 90s, MTBs did a lot for cycling IMO, making cycling "cool" again unlike the grange-hill-bike-shed falcon 5-speeds (though i was never cool, I always had the 5-speeds.

There are so many more options out there....why do some people have to have a "mountain bike or nothing" - which inevitably ends up rusting away or given away?

Have you seen the potholes in Glasgow?

 

[jethro10]

Me and the Wife took my Bro In Law out this saturday round the Fells over Loweswater lake.
He's not a cyclist per-se, not dedicated, not a person who knows the difference between a cassette and a double and bash


He has a £300 Claude butler MTB and has had for 2-3 years and only did road miles.
This was his first foray offroad. he loved it and couldn't have done it with a different bike.

He was so worked up with pleasure when we got back he was totally hyped. As we loaded the bikes onto the rack, two road cyclists went by.
He commented "those bikes are for folks who wont have a go, those are" (meaning wont go off road - they have limited themselves by choosing only to do roads)

Joking aside, he's kinda right. An MTB will do anything - it's the only bike available to do anything - so unless your a dedicated hobbyist, it's the best choice of bike I guess.

He's coming round the fells near Keswick with us this weekend. Can't stop him now - this week, he's getting pedals with pins as his feet were slipping - we've created a monster ;-)

Jeff

 

[martynjc1977]

I'm lucky enough to have both as an option. Got the Marin for tagging with the family and off road jaunts at Dalby, and me Trek 1.5 for commuting and training.

The MTB came first tho as it could do everything I needed, it's just real slow feeling on the road.

 

[Norm]

Those who think an MTB is the choice for those wanting a bike to do anything should try a cx-style bike.

 

[jethro10]

Those who think an MTB is the choice for those wanting a bike to do anything should try a cx-style bike.

your possibly right, but it seems the answer to this thread is the answer to this comment.
They are not very well marketed, a lot of non-cyclists have never heard of this type of bike. also I bet they don't hit the same price point as MTB's even though being seemingly simpler bikes. So again the newcomer seems VFM in MTB's

Marketing has a lot to answer for :-(

J

 

[oliglynn]

always used to ride a mtb up til when I left uni - I had a Specialized Hardrock, and was oblivious to the world of road bikes.

It wasn't until I tried keeping up with a mate on a road bike that I noticed how much of a difference it really made.

Then the hardrock got nicked, and replaced it with a Hybrid as I was mainly riding on roads. The difference in speed was amazing.

I now ride a road bike, and the hybrid is there as my winter commuter / spare.

Sometimes feel the urge to off-road it, but generally unless you live near some good trails it requires a bit more organisation than just jumping on the road bike for a blast.

Although I'd like to go out mtbing this summer, I'm not sure I could justify spending hundreds on a bike that I'd use only once in a while! Think i'll just get some knobbly tyres for the hybrid if anything!

 

[Angelfishsolo]

Instead of thinking MTB thing ATB (All Terrain Bike). You can ride a ATB / MTB anywhere you choose. May not be as fast on the road as a drop handled bar but it will ride on the roads, on forest trails, at trail centres, etc, etc. This is why I think they are so popular.

 

[tyred]

Instead of thinking MTB thing ATB (All Terrain Bike). You can ride a ATB / MTB anywhere you choose. May not be as fast on the road as a drop handled bar but it will ride on the roads, on forest trails, at trail centres, etc, etc. This is why I think they are so popular.

How many people actually do venture off-road on a bike? I mean proper off-road, over rocks, through mud, etc.

I have happily and safely rode an old three speed over gravel paths through forests and across fields in the summer time, even passing teenagers on proper "mountain" bikes. For most people, having a bike a with knobbly tyres is the equivalent of driving a Range Rover 500 yards along a tarmac road to buy a newspaper.

 

[Fnaar]

[QUOTE 1339821"]
Oi, there is nothing bog standard about Cheddar
[/quote]

I refer the right-honourable gentleman to the amount of times the terms coincide in a google search :
http://www.google.co.uk/search?q=bo...=1I7GGIC&redir_esc=&ei=6WuHTZ2dB42DhQfR34m4BA

 

[Angelfishsolo]

That is up to the individual. It gives the option of all terrain which I think is most important.

How many people actually do venture off-road on a bike? I mean proper off-road, over rocks, through mud, etc.

I have happily and safely rode an old three speed over gravel paths through forests and across fields in the summer time, even passing teenagers on proper "mountain" bikes. For most people, having a bike a with knobbly tyres is the equivalent of driving a Range Rover 500 yards along a tarmac road to buy a newspaper.

 

[youngoldbloke]

That is up to the individual. It gives the option of all terrain which I think is most important.

Are you referring to the Range Rover or MTB? - the same comment could apply to both .

 

[Angelfishsolo]

LOL. The difference is that one doesn't drink fuel like it's going out of fashion and pollute the atmosphere

Are you referring to the Range Rover or MTB? - the same comment could apply to both .