Originally Posted by
alanbikehouston
Many of the experienced bike messengers in Houston prefer mountain bikes. They find that with light weight slick tires, a mountain bike is about as fast as a road bike for the one, two or three mile trips they are taking. And, if a mountain bike is properly fitted to the rider, the looong wheelbase soaks up road shock and makes for a stable ride no matter how terrible the road conditions...gravel, dirt, debris, rain, ice...
But, unlike road bikes, mountain bikes can handle the broken concrete, potholes and other problems that exist on the bombed out streets of inner city Houston. The guy on the road bike must go around those obstacles, or even avoid certain streets entirely. The guy on the mountain bike can ride in a straight line from "A" to "B", no matter how bad the streets are in between.
I had a regular twenty mile circuit that I was riding four or five times a week. My times on a mountain bike were more or less the same as on a road bike. The only days I regretted being on the mountain bike were days I was riding into a powerful headwind...a mountain bike makes a little harder to stay in an aero position for long periods of time.
exactly what he said!
the mtb is the SUV of the bike world. It will handle any condition. That said, if you have nice roads & good conditions, there is no reason
not to use a road bike.
I have both type of bikes. the road bike gets beat up (and beats me up). The most the road bike will save me is about 2 minutes on the best day of the year.
The MTB bike, with fat slicks, disc breaks, fenders, and 4" of front suspension, will get me anywhere, anytime!
Just today I was bombing down a hill and there was a friggin tree branch in the raod. Like 3" diameter, foliage, everything. I was doing close to 30mph, in the foggy dark. Swerving was not an option, cars on the left doing 50-55mph. I saw it with just enough time to stand & unweigh the bike. The bike just rolled over it, soaked it up. That one instance is enough to make me deal with the somewhat less efficient bike.
I would say it really comes down to safety & confidence on the bike.
Another benefit is that the mtb, with slightly smaller wheels and lower gearing, can take off from stops real fast compared to road bikes. at least that's been my experience.
cheers