Your next mountain bike or Mountain Biking 201

This post’s title is intended as a bit of a joke.  Some of you have only recently entered the realm of off-road riding.  The new hasn’t rubbed off of the bike you are riding, and you are probably thinking something like,  “What’s this?  I just got my bike, and Road Dragon is telling me I have to go and get another one!?”

Likely, some of you haven’t made it to the first mountain bike yet.  In which case, your next mountain bike will be your first one.

We’re saying that this series is over.  Hopefully, it’s been somewhat instructive, and has helped to clear away some of the confusion.  We started this series with the post on  Feb. 1, 2011.  If you are late arriving at the party, you might want to go back and read forward from there.

There will always be a “Next Mountain Bike.”  From an equipment standpoint, mountain biking is in a funny position.  It has matured, and it is in its infancy.  Consider this sequence:

1965  I “invent” mountain biking.  (So do about two million other American boys and girls.)  I strip all of the extraneous stuff off of my old Schwinn cruiser, and go bombing down fire trails in the Appalachian mountains.

• Mid 1970s  The “Marin Scene” and Mt Tam.
• 1982  I buy my first mountain bike.  It’s a Schwinn Sidewinder.  Basically a heavy 10-speed road bike with 26 inch tires and a BMX handlebar.
• 1987  I modify the Schwinn clunker to use it as a “grocery getter.”
• 1995  I buy my first “modern” mountain bike.  It’s a steel frame with a suspension fork!
• 1999  I (and many others) purchase a “full suspension” bike.  Mine was a deathtrap, with a nasty tendency to throw the rider over the bars on a hard stop.
• 2001  I get a true dualie, one with really good suspension and a “four bar” rear set up.  It’s a major bike!
• 2005  The whole trail access thing.  Local trails disappear due to development.  The time and effort needed to get to more distant trails is more than the reward.  Mountain bikes begin to disappear from my stable.
• 2011  With the opening of two very good local trails, I dive back into it!  My current “rig” is a Giant XtC.  It’s a hard tail, 29er, with an amazing fork.  It climbs well, is light, and is a blast to ride.  Can’t wait to take it up into the mountains!

The point of all this?  The world of the mountain bike is evolving.  Bike design and technology are constantly changing.  What is revolutionary today, will be seen as hopelessly out of date in a year or two.  Your style and conditions will change.  Pick a bike that suits you, and ride the livin’ daylights out of it!

Don’t change bikes too often.  (It’s an expensive occupation.)  But don’t hang on to one that limits you.  Experiment.  Test yourself.  Try new and different trails and riding conditions.  Try everything.  And above all, enjoy it.

The class titled “Mountain Biking 201” takes place on the trails.

Hopefully, this series has been of some value to you.  I’d love to hear about your adventures and experiences.  And always remember, The rubber belongs below the bike!