Mountain Biking - How important is weight

If i am looking at the haro 8.1 and 8.2 they weigh 30 pounds? How is that? How much does weight make a difference and in what ways? Also are these the right bikes to be looking at? I will be doing ruggid trail riding(mostly), road riding, and maybe some drop ins and tiny jumps but nothing serious.

sry the haro escapes

a lot of people look at weight differantly. Some will look at a 30lb bike like the 8.1 and think it's an XC racer, some will see it and say it weighs as much as a downhill bike, and then there's people that ride bikes on average of 40lbs that dont pedal well. So the most concrete answer i can give you is if it feels to heavy to you it is, if not then it's not. Cant forget though that 25lbs is pretty much the standard for when a bike is considered light,FS or HT

Hope this helps

The escapes aren't really intended as a XC bike. The way you described your riding, I think a dirtjumper like the escape might not be the best idea. If you're sold on a haro, you might look at the ICS 5.0 and ICS 4.0. I think they're better fit to the type of riding you describe. You might also take a peak at a Specialized Rockhopper (http://www.specialized.com/SBCBkModel.jsp?san=03RockhopperComp&bl=mountain&my=2003), or a Giant XtC (http://www.giant-bicycles.com/us/030.000.000/030.000.006.asp?lYear=2003&bikesection=8817&range=110&model=10640)

what would be the disadvantages for getting this for my riding? Whats so bad about having a freeride bike even though i am doing alot of xc and maybe beggining drop ins and little freeride stuff? so for 30 pound this bike is light?

For what you are describing I wouldn't worry about weight. 30 pounds even seems a little light. Lets say you stop the dropin and start dropping it etc...I would rather have a bike that is strong and can handle most anything then worry bout the weight. :)

I agree with Maelstrom, when you are looking at strength weight should never be an issue. The more it holds up to and the longer it lasts the better.

How abusive are you with your current bike?

For me and my type of riding, a 30 lb bike is light! Too light! I tend to break things, wheels especially. I've bent my share of handlebars, pedals are disposable, seatpost are a joke. For me, a decent weight bike starts at 35 lbs.

My last XC race bike was a lightweight Cannondale. Although the frame held up very well, I replaced the wheels (twice), the handlebars and the seatpost. And I was taking it easy with this one.

After that pain and suffering to my finances, I realized that a beefy bike is just one of my "Truths in Life". I'm no featherweight, and I shouldn't be riding a featherweight bike!

I think that Haro's are well made bikes, and spec'd very well for the price. The downside is their frames are heavier. Is that bad? If you only weight 140 lbs and are an expert level XC racer boy, then yes. If you are one of the other 95% of us that just want a nice bike to ride, then no!

L8R

Was it Greg Herbold or John Tomac or Tom Ritchey who said, "Low Price, Lightweight, Strength, Pick TWO!"

L8R

is this fine for XC riding? now that I know the weight doestn make a difference.

Originally posted by a2psyklnut
Was it Greg Herbold or John Tomac or Tom Ritchey who said, "Low Price, Lightweight, Strength, Pick TWO!"

L8R

I think it was Tomes, but then again that boy rode a DH bike with drop bars on it, so do you really trust his judgement? :lol:

Yeah, it'll be fine for XC riding and all around bashing. Especially if you're going to do some jumps and small drops.

I rode a Specialized P.3 as my XC bike for awhile. It'll definately make you stronger, and you'll have more fun jumping off of any obstacle on the trail.

L8R

thank you

i consider 26-28lbs to be decent for general trail riding/xc riding. remember when you mountain bike, anybody can bomb downhill really fast, but the difference is who can get to the top fastest =]. well it really depends, i used to care a lot about weight but of course there is cost and strength to sacrifice. but then again i rather hate walking my bike uphill so i prefer a bike with more oldschool geometry and weigh as little as possible.

Originally posted by tFUnK
remember when you mountain bike, anybody can bomb downhill really fast, but the difference is who can get to the top fastest =].

I adamently disagree funkman. While i think i can hang pretty well with alot of XC racers in climbing, bombing downhill just happens to be my specialty. Weight isnt nearly as important as skill.
If its something im going to be jumping, hucking and bombing with, it better weight over 35.

Originally posted by Scooby Snax
I think it was Tomes, but then again that boy rode a DH bike with drop bars on it, so do you really trust his judgement? :lol:

I'd trust his judgement when combined with his skills. But I think I'll utilise greater principles of self-preservation when it comes to judging what I can do with my skills (or rather lack thereof).

Originally posted by tFUnK
i consider 26-28lbs to be decent for general trail riding/xc riding. remember when you mountain bike, anybody can bomb downhill really fast, but the difference is who can get to the top fastest =].

Sorry man I am with Burly. You might make it to the top faster but any good dhiller would smoke you on a real dh section for sure. Not just anyone can ride a real dh course FAST. (just like not just any bike can survive)

sorry i wasn't really talking about racing (that's something else in its own). I didn't mean to say that anybody can bomb downhill at an equal fast speed, but just that when you ride some general trails, you always have the climbs and decents and going uphill will be a lot more pain than going downhill. if you're tired or walking your bike up most of the time how will you have the concentration and power to focus on the downhill especially if it's really rough? course on really technical DH a strong bike is a must, i know because my bike tends to be on the lighter side and after riding my friends bulkier bike, i knew the difference.

i didnt mean to trivialize DH in any way in my earlier post, sorry.

No worries tFunk...heavy bikes have a place as do light ones. :)...

Originally posted by a2psyklnut
Was it Greg Herbold or John Tomac or Tom Ritchey who said, "Low Price, Lightweight, Strength, Pick TWO!"

L8R

I thought it was keith bontrager...I could be wrong though...