i'm a road cyclist/racer, and i'm considering a MTB for two reasons - i'd like to try riding off-road, and there are times when riding an aero race bike on the street just doesn't make sense. I would be at a 'beginner' level.
i'm guessing, admittedly based on nothing, that i might want to build a hardtail 29er.
I prefer to build my own, but i know precisely zero about MTB components.
So, how do i start thinking about this? Any recommendations?