Mountain Biking - Riding the MB on the road? Any do that here? Show your MB road bike :D

Do any of you ride the MB on the road on road tyres?
You have any pics of your bikes?

I have a good pairr of Michelin Commuters. But I am lazy and just ride the knobbies everywhere these days. I should switch out the Raptors on the HT and just use the HT in town. Where are your pics?

I just ordered the tyres. Wanted to see your setup.
This is what I bought

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I've got a Trek 4500 (hardtail) that sees some trails on the weekends, but by far sees more road miles. I bought a pair of super cheap 'Vee Rubber (http://veerubber.co.th/veerubber2012/bview.php?Pname=VRB-081%20C&btype=Trekking%20Tire&lang=en&mid=3)' semi trekking tires at my LBS. There's a flat-ish continuous surface with a rut in the middle of the tire, and knobby ridges further to the periphery. They actually work quite well, but I wouldn't mind trying out those Continentals next time round.

I swap on Kenda knobbys for the trails.

Here's mine. First is the MTB setup, the second is in commuting mode. Note: The MTB setup is more up to date (grips, saddle). The change over takes less than an hour (closer to 30 minutes). I have two front wheels with tires mounted - the commuter uses a dynamo hub and Supernova E3 lighting. So I change the rear tire, throw on the fenders, lights and rack and I'm ready to go.
Tires are Schwalbe Marathon Supreme 50mm.

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Do any of you ride the MB on the road on road tyres?
You have any pics of your bikes?

My Specialized Rockhopper has a Marathon Plus ATB tyre on the front and a Marathon Extreme on the back. Most of the riding I did on it was on the road, which is why I bought a cross bike. Now I can get around faster on the road but still cope with light offroading. I've still got the Rockhopper, and now I don't need it to be so road-friendly I'm probably going to put chunkier tyres on it to blat around in the mud.

Don't have pictures at the moment...

I have an older Cannondale HT that I keep in knobbies, because my rides around Flagstaff often involve a mix of miles on trails and roads. It's fun to alternate between them on impulse. Have two road bikes for long distance rides on pavement.

I ran a pair of Continental Contact and are by far the best 26" tire for road that I have used so far.

I have run all different kinds of tires on my MTB, which sees 100% of my riding -- commuting, errands, trails, MUP, etc -- and the only tires I've run that have worked better than the present Michelin Country Dry 2.15's were the Intense Micro Knobby 2.25's. Those, however, SUCKED at anything but pavement rolling, whereas the Mich's rock the dirt, as well.

I have a set of Maxxis Ridgelines (2.1) waiting for the Mich's to wear out, so the experiment continues.

http://www.saenen.net/forums/fotos/copperhead/PB040021mic.jpg (http://www.saenen.net/forums/fotos/copperhead/PB040021.jpg)

2011 Bulls Copperhead 3 on Bontrager Hank 2.2" full-slicks.

The bike has since received upgraded brakes and loads of KCNC parts, but I'm still waiting for good weather to take new pictures.

These tires are only suitable for road use. Despite the lack of profile, they handle rain and ice just fine.
On snow they tend to slide a bit more than knobby tires, but they provide enough feedback to know how much grip I have left. I did around 500 miles in the snow last winter without a single scary moment.
In all conditions I have around 50 psi at the front, 58 at the back. (translated from 3.5 bar and 4.0 bar, due to using the metric system here)

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On my previous bike, the Cannondale F6, I also used the Schwalbe Big Apple, both in 2.00 and 2.35" versions.

http://www.saenen.net/forums/random_pics/dale/IMAG0002mic.jpg (http://www.saenen.net/forums/random_pics/dale/IMAG0002.jpg)

They wore out a lot quicker, provided less grip and had no feedback whatsoever when going near the limit. Truly horrid tires, but they looked magnificent.

Do any of you ride the MB on the road on road tyres?
You have any pics of your bikes?

I tour (on-road and off-road) on a flat-bar MTB:

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Just bought a set of Schwalbe Marathon Plus 26x1.75 tires that I am most happy with. Nice, smooth rolling rubber with enough tread for trails and gravel roads.

I don't use road tires on my mountain bikes at all, but I've done literally 10,000s of mile on the road on my MTBs over the past 25 years, and 10-20 years ago I would regularly (every 1-2 weeks) do 150-180+ mile on-road/off-road days. I still regularly do 40-60 mile on-road/off-road days at 55 years old on my Fisher Opie and 60-80 mile on-road rides on the Serrota T-Max. The Maxxis MaxxLites are the closest thing to a mountain bike "road" tire I've used since I had a set of Fatboys back in the '90s and at 60psi they roll plenty fast enough for me.

The Fisher Opie normally runs Michelin Country Muds 26x2.0, or WTB Weirwolf 26x2.3 Kevlar tires with between 40-60psi and gets a lot of use as an Cross Country/Freeride/Urban Assault bike, and it also doubles as my winter bike with Nokian Mount and Grounds or 294 Extremes .
http://i221.photobucket.com/albums/dd133/stealthammer/Da%20Opie/DSCN0174.jpg

The Serrota T-Max normally runs Maxxis MaxLite 26x1.95 310 at 60psi and is used almost exclusively as a commuter/Urban Trekker.
http://i221.photobucket.com/albums/dd133/stealthammer/Da%20Serotta/DaSerotta_02.jpg

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2010 DB Sorrrento Sport CST street tires.. They're soft but seem to hold up so far. going for the Kenda Kwik Tendrils next time though.

I've got some slicks but it's a pain in the bum (I'm lazy) to swap them back and forth with my knobbies. Knobbies sound groovy along the road too.

Road cassette and rear deraileur...

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f266/orbeamitis2/Gary%20Fisher%20Aquila%201998/DSC_0686.jpg

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f266/orbeamitis2/Gary%20Fisher%20Aquila%201998/DSC_0361.jpg

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f266/orbeamitis2/Gary%20Fisher%20Aquila%201998/DSC_0356_edit0.jpg

I think they were 26x1.5 Kenda Kwiks... :D

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7049/6856677877_f1935bd2a0_o.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/nowensby/6856677877/)
1994 Specialized HardRock Sport - Drop-Bar Conversion (http://www.flickr.com/photos/nowensby/6856677877/) by owensbyphoto (http://www.flickr.com/people/nowensby/), on Flickr

^ This one looks nice.
How fast would you think I could get average on those Contis that I plan to buy?

^ This one looks nice.
How fast would you think I could get average on those Contis that I plan to buy?
Would be nice if you could figure out things that easily. But Andy Schleck could ride a mountain bike faster than I can ride my road bike, sooo...

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As an aside, what is with the format for embedding photos? I seem to have no control over whether my attached photos appear inline (as I would prefer) or in the scripted pop-up format as above.

Dick's Sporting Goods carries a tire called the Swiss Army Tire. It is smooth on the road and it works OK in the dirt. I've found it to be the best all around tire, and I've tried many. I got them because I do both kinds of riding on my Rockhopper. You might look into these.

I have a mountain bike I use exclusively as a commuter. I have some sort of cheap Nashbar or Performance slicks on it and I'm very happy with that setup. The slick tires have noticeably less drag than knobbies but still have enough volume to soak up the rough pavement and potholes without pinch flatting.

The Serrota T-Max normally runs Maxxis MaxLite 26x1.95 310 at 60psi and is used almost exclusively as a commuter/Urban Trekker.
http://i221.photobucket.com/albums/dd133/stealthammer/Da%20Serotta/DaSerotta_02.jpg

You're braver than me- I'd be too scared to put a lock on spinergys. Have you noticed any chipping/scratching? They look cool, but they scare the crap out of me.

I don't know if they still make them but the Ritchey Tom Slick or Moab Bite were the tires to have for paved mountain biking in the day.

http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u189/jmccaintx/Bridgestone%20mountain%20bike/FullBike.jpg

Commuting on a HT MTB is cool...

I have an adversion to commuting with a fully suspended MTB on almost 100% paved streets.

You're braver than me- I'd be too scared to put a lock on spinergys. Have you noticed any chipping/scratching? They look cool, but they scare the crap out of me.......
Actually I am with you regarding wrapping a lock around the Rev-X-Roks or hanging the bike from the front wheel, and I normally won't even mount them until it is at least 50-60*outside (and even then they are only used for light commuting/grocery runs). I have a 700c wheelset as well and neither shows any sign of chipping/cracking at all after nearly a decade of use, but I won't sell them to anyone else due to there age, and I will probably cut them up before I feed them to a dumpster one day.

BTW: in researching the legendary Spinergy wheel failures I found that the actual number of wheel failures is quite low, even though there were a few very serious injuries that resulted from those failures. I have also known several track riders, mountain bikers, triathletes and ultra athletes who have run them for years without a failure, and I know that they put far more stress on them than I will. They are getting old for CF products however so their days are numbered.

This bike also has a second set of Spinergy Xyclone wheels that are normally mounted and I have no concerns at all with their reliability, but I am very impressed by their light weight.

Weighs 18.6 pounds, with Maxxis Maxxlite 310 race tires. Roadies always do a double-take, when I drop them:

http://i276.photobucket.com/albums/kk20/Dilberto88/Light%20Bikes/DSCN0362.jpg

Weighs 18.6 pounds, with Maxxis Maxxlite 310 race tires. Roadies always do a double-take, when I drop them:

..

Great looking bike, but I'm confused with how you would drop a roadie with MTB gearing. Wouldn't you run out of gears, or have you converted to road chain rings and cassette?

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff237/mechBgon/Done.jpg
Midnight Century, year 1. Course record using the super-fast Continental RaceKing 2.2 Supersonic tires, which are an XC-race tire with high volume and incredible suppleness.

Year 2: same bike, same tires, another course record.

Year 3: different bike, Schwalbe Furious Fred 2.0" tires, another course record. Furious Freds are a minimalist XC tire with edge knobs and a diamond tread in the center.


This year, it'll probably be the Furious Freds again.


Great looking bike, but I'm confused with how you would drop a roadie with MTB gearing. Wouldn't you run out of gears, or have you converted to road chain rings and cassette?

A 44 x 11 is good for around 26mph @ 85rpm on 26" wheels. That's enough to take down the typical solo road rider on level terrain, if you have the wattage. On a climb, it boils down to your power-to-weight ratio. I grabbed this King-of-the-mountain mark (http://app.strava.com/segments/673160) with my XC bike, and no one has managed to take it back yet, with a road bike or otherwise.

My Moulden XC/MX is one of my favourite bikes... with the 2.0 Hurricanes it is a very capable road bike and will let me drop in to the valley and take some long cuts through the trail system we have here.

Took it on a century ride last fall and it rates as one of the nicest century rides I have ever taken... ran it with knobbies for a little bit but switched back the the slicker, faster Hurricanes since this bike sees more hard pack and gravel than roots and rocks and when you slide into those drops and put the hammer down it does not give up much to any road bike.

http://www.ravingbikefiend.com/bikepics/2011mouldenfallcommute8.JPG

http://www.ravingbikefiend.com/bikepics/2011mouldenfall1.JPG

http://www.ravingbikefiend.com/bikepics/2011mouldenfall2.JPG

My old Stumpjumper, this quickly became my go to for anything not super technical. I loved this bike.. Sadly I broke the frame near the end of last summer. I am on the lookout for another frame every now and then. It had 26 X 1.5 but the Brand is currently escaping my memory.

http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c353/Funrover/Bike/magic%20gear/DSCN3661.jpg

http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c353/Funrover/Bike/Road%20Rides/May%2025%202011/DSCN3672.jpg

http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c353/Funrover/Bike/Road%20Rides/June%2018%202011/DSCN3782.jpg

Great looking bike, but I'm confused with how you would drop a roadie with MTB gearing. Wouldn't you run out of gears, or have you converted to road chain rings and cassette?

I have a Shimano Dura Ace 7700 11-27 cassette, and spins like a mofo. As for dropping them - it only happens to the noob roadies. :)

This entire thread is like cutting your steak with the side of your fork. It will do, and if it is your only utensil, have at it. However, there are better tools for the job.

Great looking bike, but I'm confused with how you would drop a roadie with MTB gearing. Wouldn't you run out of gears, or have you converted to road chain rings and cassette?

Even though a road bike will have a higher top end the effective gearing range on an mtb and road bike are extremely close as unless you are on a descent those top gears on a road bike are useless.

My Moulden tops out at 104 gear inches with a 44/11 which is within 1 gear inch of my vintage road bike with it's 52/13 and is not much heavier when it is stripped down to the bare essentials.

The only advantage my modern road bike has over these two is it's 52:11 which will make it a faster bike on descents where you can push 124 gear inches.

Human beings have a very narrow power band and track cyclists rarely run a gearing past 90 gear inches with 100 gear inches being the upper limit for a solo rider in calm flat conditions and even then, it is more efficient to spin a lower gear at higher rpm.

The reason a road bike is usually superior is due to the aerodynamic position you can get on a road bike which reduces the wattage requirements to travel at a given speed... if you can address that with a mountain bike and run faster tyres you are going to have a fairly fast bicycle.

Any extra weight of the mtb will become a factor on climbs if there is a big difference between the bikes.

The reason a road bike is usually superior is due to the aerodynamic position you can get on a road bike which reduces the wattage requirements to travel at a given speed... if you can address that with a mountain bike and run faster tyres you are going to have a fairly fast bicycle.


This helps: http://www.midnightcentury.com/supercruise.jpg At ~20mph, I count on 1-2mph boost from the narrow hand position.

This my trek 9900 mtb, i use it as a touring,on/off road, grocery getter, utility bike. i had it just a few months, it alot of fun.
http://i1024.photobucket.com/albums/y308/alexaschwanden/a0e7e557.jpg

What is a double take?

This helps: http://www.midnightcentury.com/supercruise.jpg At ~20mph, I count on 1-2mph boost from the narrow hand position.

If I am riding my folder, which is set up for touring the drop bars are usually in a mid point position where I have my hands above the saddle when I am on the hoods and can get into a decent aero position when I am in the drops... the effective top tube is 54 cm which sits right between my race bike which is a 53 that puts me in a very aggressive drop position and my vintage road bike which is a 55 that is a little more laid back.

The difference in speed from fairly upright to aero is good for a 3-4 kmh increase and part of that also stems from a slightly better power delivery.

http://www.ravingbikefiend.com/bikepics/2012forrestultra1.JPG

On a ride several years I had to run down a group after I stopped to take some pictures and had my bars set a little lower so the hoods offered a good aero position but no real use of the drops (the joy of an easily adjustable stem) and was slick enough and feeling strong enough to run at 40 kmh for 10km but if I sat up it was like engaging the brakes.

Aerodynamics plays the most important role in maintaining speed and reducing effort and over a flat route the extra weight of my folder was of no consequence and after catching up and catching a wheel to catch my breath, blew by the group at even better speed (it was a well paced social ride) so I could get far enough ahead to take another set of pictures.

Did the same ride on my Moulden last year and could keep up with all but the fastest of riders, one of whom now belongs to a local club team and is absolute hell on wheels.

One of the points of this ride is to bring bikes that you would not expect to function well on a 100 mile ride... have used my folder, hybrid, Moulden, fixed gear Raleigh, and my fixed gear Kuwahara.

I think this will be the 6th year of this ride I started back in 2007... maybe I will actually bring a road bike this year if I can convince someone to carry the emergency supplies as I always have had a rack and panniers which also do not affect aerodynamics very much as they are behind you.

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This is the bike I ride when I want to go fast. The tires are great on the road and ok on single track giving me a good do it all bike. Max speed with 44x12 down hill is about 57km/h and I get 30-40km/h fast cruising on the flat. Not a speed demon, but it gets me to where I want to go and I can have fun in the dirt as well. Weighs in at about 16kg with a full water bottle on board.

What is a double take?
Like when you glance at something and then away but it's not quite right/surprising, so you quickly look back again. One of those "did I just see that?" moments.


Dirt and road here as well, though mostly dirt. If I wanna hit the road I just pump up the tires some more and go. Or I'll do half & half. That little bag floats around, sometimes it's on the seat & sometimes in the front triangle. Just bought some bar ends the other day, too, to see how they are. And I have an extra pair of knobbier tires in the garage if I need/want to change it up. It's all good! :thumb:

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b140/Flatrat/Bike%20stuff/BikeTrek.jpg

http://www.sbike.info/photos/729/2012-06-05/P6050001m.jpg

http://www.sbike.info/photos/503/2012-05-11/P5110223m.jpg

Both on Schwalbe City Jet 26x1.95". Also available in all-black version and in 1.50".
These are basically exact replicas of the old Tioga City Slicker of the 1990s. Except for the text on the sidewalls, of course.

While I prefer the Bontrager Hank for on-the-limit riding, these are much more puncture-proof.

Been riding the Giant with slicks (Nashbar 1.5" Streetwise) on for about a year! I have a second set of rims for mountain riding with a pair of Kenda tires.


http://i1210.photobucket.com/albums/cc414/NZXTInerTia/2012-06-15_01-00-52_596.jpg

just been using for 6 month for commuting around area

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mmm question about the picture how you guys can make bigger size ????

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Thats what I ride when I want on/off road usefullness. Tires are nice on road, decent off road, and let me maintain the same speed from tarmac to gravel with decent traction. Horrible to ride on sand or deep mud though. Still you have to make some concessions if you want to be able to do both.

http://cdn.velospace.org/files/P1010022.jpg

http://img808.imageshack.us/img808/7026/bikex.jpg

i love this bike.. handles all forms of city terrain with ease. I use it for everything these days. kenda 838 1.95" fat slicks are nice and cushy... and push em up to 80psi or so and start to roll like a road tire. never had a flat.. definitely recommended tires if you're in the market for slicks

http://img40.imageshack.us/img40/677/p1030486x.jpg

Here's my 1990-ish Univega Via Carisma. MTB components and geometry with 700c wheels. It's become a very fun touring/hauling/cross bike. Kept the original Shimano Exage 500 LX drivetrain (I have ordered a new 7-speed cassette and chain) I have cross tires on it here, but I can tell you that swapping out your knobbies for higher-pressure slicks (currently running Forte Gothams and/or Vittoria Randonneurs 700x32mm @90 PSI) will give you all the road speed you're probably looking for. 48tx12t has been fast enough for me and I'm used to mashing out at 52tx11t on my 20lb old steel road bike with 23mm tires.

I've taken it on a few 50+ mile rides, bare-bones and fully loaded for camping, and I'm convinced that older rigid steel MTB frames with their durable components and relaxed geometry make very comfortable and capable road/touring/cargo bikes. It's great to be able to run errands around town, catch speed on backroads and bike paths, and still brave some single track due to the higher BB. I'm about $250 into this build and almost finished. I've ridden (and ridden with) Surly Cross Check and a Long Haul Trucker, and while they are both great bikes, there's nothing they can do that a conversion like this can't do for a much smaller budget.

http://www.biketiresdirect.com/product/vredestein-moiree-26-inch-tire

I ride these on a '06 Gary Fisher Wahoo. They're fat and fast.

This picture is too old to include the fenders I've added, but I use it for about half of my commuting. 1988ish Diamondback Ascent with 26"x1.75" Panaracer Paselas. Still does off-road stuff well. :)

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e26/sstulken80/Diamondback/pre-commute.jpg

Great looking bike, but I'm confused with how you would drop a roadie with MTB gearing. Wouldn't you run out of gears, or have you converted to road chain rings and cassette?

I think this is where the phrase-"It's the Indian, not the arrow" comes in. I am amazed at who can drop me, or used to be.

Ok, this is my "Roadie Dropping" MTB / Hybrid...
(swap the wheels out to a 26" wheel, and you've got a rigid MTB :thumb:)

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f266/orbeamitis2/Cannondale%20Bad%20Boy%20Disc/DSC_0262_edit0.jpg

I had some nimbus's on this bike for a little more speed on the pavement, but it now has 2.1 Maxxis crossmark's.
The nimbus' are on the commuter.
I just took a big spill going around a corner ON the commuter after hitting a puddle. BE CAREFUL ON WET TIRES!!!!!!!!


http://www.bikeforums.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=257542&d=1340319798



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This is my everything bike, so I guess I will post it. HEY, I was riding pavement and ran into dminor and ed, here's a picture!