Mountain Biking - Mountain Bikers, Did you Ever Go To the Other Side?

I am someone who rides mountain bikes and keeps getting this urge to try the road bike world. Has anyone here ever made the move to road biking and found they didn't like it? IOW, did you every try Roadbiking, not like it and come back to Mountain Biking?

I think about it often.

A few guys over in the roadie forum used to come in here quite a bit. I don't think many have made the full switch and just stopped riding :) (ro visa versa)

I doubt i ever will. I tried it sort of, i never invested much into it. BUt i dont know it just seems....boring. GO for hours and hours sitting there on the road going reasonably fast. I dont like road bikes because i dont like they have the versatility of my XC rig. THey can go on tar fast, but thats all. Well with my xc rig I cant go as fast, but at 21 pounds with slicks I can still go pretty fast on the road. And I can go on trails, across grass patches etc. guilt free

Both are fun.

Don't limit yourself :D

Roadbikes are much more like running than MTB is, more of a zen/groove thing than an adrenal thing. They can give you a rush though, like when you hit a good 50mph in a downhill sprint, and realize you've got a contact total contact patch the size of a small pencil :) They can also be really relaxing if you find some nice backroads, and just spend all day cruising.

I like how on my MTB it never seems to be the same. When i go on the road which i have been doing this week and lately, waiting for trails to dry up. Well it just seems like its the same thing, on the trails theres always some new event, keeping you on your toes.

I started raod, but i wanted a chance of pace. Something a little diffrent, and gives me a diffrent kind of rush.

I get more excitement out of moutainbiking.

I ride road durning the day and I ride moutain evenings, or weekends (when im not racing)

I went to a private junior high school, where mountain biking was a large part of the curriculum, we would take 3 or 4 week to two-week trips a year. After that, I rode mountain until I got my drivers license...you know how it is when you're 16. Anyway, I built a track bike when I was 18, and built and rode road bikes exclusively until january of this year. At that time, I built a SS mtb, and haven't looked back- until I sold that and built my dream bike. Now I'm doing about 100 dirt miles a week.

Anyway, road biking is nice in that it is fast, and you don't need a trail to use the bike to its full capacity. However, as phantomcow said, it does get boring...if you're not racing. Plus, you cant really have the same kind of man-fun you can on a MTB on a road bike. Man-fun being defined as getting muddy, getting cuts and scrapes, drinking beer, and not wearing spandex.

i would consider road biking if i lived anywhere else but Regina.. Far too windy here, and bloody boring! no way i could ride all day on these highways where the most exciting thing i would see is a tumbleweed (although tumble weeds are pretty cool!) if i was up in northern saskatchewan or BC, i wouldnt mind buying a road bike..

This is as close to a road bike as I'm getting at this point in time.
Clickhttp://www.konaworld.com/Prod/000000074/2K4_JaketheSnake_460.jpgme (http://www.konaworld.com/shopping_cart/FrontEnd/Products/product_detail.aspx?productid=74&parentid=182)
The few instant changes will be: changing the big ring to a 52 the cassette to a 11-23 and the tires to 700 x 28. That's roadie enough for me

I think about it, but the few times I've ridden a road bike I definitely felt uncomforable on it. I didn't have the control of my mountain bike. That's not really much riding though. I bet a nice bike on a dead country road would be pretty sweet on a nice day. Like from augusta to statesboro, for any of you GA folk. I bet that would be nice.

I must admit, racing cars going down hills in town is fun. But, I don't think a real road bike would make much sense at this point. I don't worry if my mtb falls over, lands hard from a crash, etc, since it probably won't break the whole thing at least...

A road bike, I'd worry about scratches, worry about it falling over in the wind, worry about setting it down on the ground, etc. They're just so pretty in the first place :P

Especially if it cost like $700, then I'd be bummed if I broke the handlebars, shifters, brake levers, bent the rims, seat post, scratched/bent the fork, and frame... all from losing traction on a sandy road corner that I leaned into a little too much.

My first real bike was a fixed wheel single speed road racer. It was slow to get up to speed but once there it felt like I could go forever. I could never go back to road bikes now. Iv'e commuted on them, raced them and used them as courier hacks but their just too damm uncomfortable and uncompromising. Just too single purpose, which I sort of admire but I cant bend myself into that pretzel shape for hours anymore.

edit (How old? well that ss was a 28") :D

I ride both.

Roadies: Bianchi Piaggio, Specialized S-works E5
Mountain bike: C'dale Super V 500, hopefully will have a DJ/Urban bike built up someday.

Both are fun. Mountain biking is(for me) definately more technical than endurance. The road bike is for days I feel like going out and riding 60+ miles and just seeing how fast and far I can go.

As for babying my road bikes. It doesn't happen:D My E5 is scratched all to hell from crashes and the bianchi is just plain old, the paint has started to flake off in some areas. I'm trying to save it but I'm losing the battle...

I guess a good thing for me to have would be a nondescript, black fixie with a nice clearcoat so it wouldn't chip, that'd suck. I bet riding on dirt roads filled with potholes would be quite an experience... heh

I'm going to make a fixie someday.

I have a nice Nishiki International frame that would work great. It's already got the moustache handlebars and aero brake levers.

Just need to get rid of cassette, derailleurs and 2 ring crank and it's good to go.

Someone has a fixie mountainbike, I just don't remember who it was. Maybe it was a2?

I'd rather flat bars and no brakes myself. Mainly for riding along the highway and county roads, and admittedly gears are a pretty nice thing for that...

Someone has a fixie mountainbike, I just don't remember who it was. Maybe it was a2?

I've got one of those. They're fun.

Wouldn't be too fun going over roots. It'd take some real good timing to have the cranks level to clear them, anyway.

I'm going to repost what I said in your other thread titled, How many of you are former Mountain Bikers? because it seems relevant to this thread too.


I don't consider myself to be a former mountain biker because that would imply that I no longer mountain bike. As a kid I rode around on the sidewalk and road. I went through a lot of bikes at the time including a cheapie Roadmaster 10-speed roadbike which I destroyed by riding offroad. I guess that's what turned me onto MTBing. During college, I picked up another roadbike for training and to keep in shape as I was racing XC back then.

Currently, I still consider myself a MTBer even though I also consider myself a RBer. I do not find the two activities to be diametrically opposed. I live right next to some trails (http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=98318) so I can get out and do offroad riding anytime I wish. Likewise, nothing keeps me from heading out and hitting the roads around here.

I think if I had to classify myself into one style of cycling, it would be as an adventure cyclist. I use cycling as a method for allowing me to exercise my sense of adventure. Sometimes that means a twisty singletrack deep in the woods. Sometimes that means cruising between towns on quiet country roads. Sometimes that means fast rolling smooth hardpack singletracks or fireroads. Sometimes that means hucking off walls at the local college campus. I simply like cycling and what cycling allows me to experience.

Guess I could call myself a mtber gone over to the dark side. My first serious (non kiddie) bikes were a Trek 2000 (stolen) and a Trek 920 (still have it) back around 1990. Had some great rides on them, but because of the area I live in with not many good spots to ride mountain bikes, I found myself spending all my time on the road. Eventually, I spent way more than I should of on a good roadbike (Specialized Roubaix Comp) and I'm in love. There are few things that are giving me more enjoyment in my life at the minute than a perfect day out on a 70-100 km ride when you push yourself hard the whole way and everything gels.

Like Snuffleupagus says it's more like a zen/groove thing, combined with the love of going fast that's just so appealing at the minute. However, since my roadie has gotten me fitter than I have ever been in my life, I'm starting to think more about getting back into mtbing on a modern mountainbike and doing a bit of racing and just testing my bike control more.

So basically for me at the minute I think I have the need for both. But I definitley could never live without my roadie. :)

I am someone who rides mountain bikes and keeps getting this urge to try the road bike world. Has anyone here ever made the move to road biking and found they didn't like it? IOW, did you every try Roadbiking, not like it and come back to Mountain Biking?
Oh yeah, I had a Specialized Allez 04 that some friends talked me into.I rode it a little,did some 50 to 75 milers. To me it just was'nt fun like the mtnbike.Not to start a war but a lot of roadies are real......Well there different from my mtnbiker friends.

i'm actually looking to get a road bike to do some long distance rides. i really want to do the MS150 in NJ this September and I am not going to do that on a mountain bike with or without slicks.

i've decided however to not get a road bike that is anything more than entry level. i am not going to race and i am not going to join a ride club. i've got a couple of friends that mountain bike and road ride, so for now i'll just ride with them.

snuffleupagus is absoutely right. road riding is a zen/groove thing. without explaining it too well, it lets me think about things without actually thinking about them. it puts stress on the back burner and lets the subconscious work out problems.

mountain biking is all about the rush and challenge. my brain is concentrating too hard to think about other things. it just wants to keep me on the bike. and i don't mind letting it. ;)

I come from a MTB background. I raced for 5 years and lived and breathed MTB. I lived in a house we're all 5 of us (college buddies) road and it wasn't a matter of ARE we riding today it was a matter of WHERE/WHEN.

I used to shun road biking. Thought it was boring. Laughed at those shaven legged fools. Then I started to notice that my friends who were road riders had startling better endurance. They just lacked the bike handling skills that my MTB buddies had. Then this freak of nature named Joe came to stay with us for a while. He was from West Virginia and road both constantly and I have never, still to this day, seen anyone with better bike handling skills and endurance. So, he talked me into trying this road thing and I've never looked back.

If you think road riding is boring, you may not be riding in the right places or repeating the same route too often. I'm lucky to have friends all over the country and family that lives in the mountains of North Carolina. So I get to go out on rides that have hour long climbs and bomber descents. Not to mention fantastic views of gorgeous contryside from the top.

I will never give up the MTB side of riding though. It's such a completely different experience. The crowd is different. More comraderie. The workout is different. Being back in the woods, pushing yourself, taking that obstacle that little bit faster than the last time you rode. It's great therapy.

Both are beautiful in their own way. Embrace them both and live a well rounded cycling life.

This is as close to a road bike as I'm getting at this point in time.
Clickhttp://www.konaworld.com/Prod/000000074/2K4_JaketheSnake_460.jpgme (http://www.konaworld.com/shopping_cart/FrontEnd/Products/product_detail.aspx?productid=74&parentid=182)
The few instant changes will be: changing the big ring to a 52 the cassette to a 11-23 and the tires to 700 x 28. That's roadie enough for me

That, sir, is a duck.

Both are fun.

Don't limit yourself :D

Roadbikes are much more like running than MTB is, more of a zen/groove thing than an adrenal thing. They can give you a rush though, like when you hit a good 50mph in a downhill sprint, and realize you've got a contact total contact patch the size of a small pencil :) They can also be really relaxing if you find some nice backroads, and just spend all day cruising.

I've never understood this idea that you have to be a roadie or a mountain biker. Nearly 30 years ago I started riding road bikes. There were no mountain bikes. Then they started making mountain bikes so I started riding them too. I didn't get rid of my road bikes, I just rode whichever struck my fancy. Mountain bikes are fun and kinetic. Road bikes are fun and serene. If I want to take 3 weeks and go for a ride, I use a road bike. If I want to go off into the woods and camp and fish for a week, I take a mountain bike.

Ride them both. A mountain bike builds strength while a road bike builds endurance. They do complement each other.

Nothing against it..Have tried mountain biking..Had a hybrid did soft trails...Not that didn't like it...But, don't go anywhere...just a big loop...Do a loop the ride is soon done..I like going from point a to point b , somewhere way down the road...
I like to go somewhere...so, I stayed on the 'other' side...besides, sharp cornering on dirt curves with crap in the way..did not do well...and things like Rattlesnakes litter the way.
Just a comment from the other perspective..

Tried it, didn't really like it. Once I finally rode a mountain bike, I never went back. When riding roads, I am forced to maintain a higher level of attentiveness for idiot drivers. On trails, I can focus 100% on the ride. I hate dealing with traffic.

Just what i figured, nobody would tell me exactly what to do? Now i have to make up my own mind. :D Yesterday I was looking at a 2004 Specialized Allez Sport for $750. It was a European model so it had the Ultegra cranks and brakes instead of what the website shows. The darned thing was just so seductive looking. NOt to mention fast looking.

My problem now is just deciding if I like to ride on the highway. I am sort of a MTB/Road rider right now. Basically i guess it would be considered XC. Just like this morning, i rode 26 miles. Most of it is normally gravel and dirt roads, but today i did about 6 miles on the highway just for the sake of this argument.

I think the thing i don't like is the cars. It isn't necessarily that i am afraid of getting hit, but i think the thing that i enjoy most about my ride is sort of getting away from civilization. I guess it would sort of be akin to going hiking in the woods and having a car come down the trail every couple of minutes. Right now when i am out in the country on my Mountain bike it is very rare to see a car.

But maybe the speed and lure of the Road bike will change my motivation for riding into something else? It's just to darned hard to know for sure. I know that i could make a Road bike fly, since i have pushed my Mountain bikes equipped with knobbie tires nearly 9000 miles since November of 03. Hmmmmmmmmmmmm. :o

Ranger,

If I had the coin and the proper road work I would do it in a second. Especially if you have trails like myself. My trails maintain an anaerobic HR pretty much consistently. To get any aerobic work in I need to stay on the road or the truly exciting double tracks. A road bike would allow me to focus on cardio only and leave the fun riding for my xc bike or my dh bike. I am actually fairly disapointed in how bad xc riding is for cardio fitness.

Nothing against it..Have tried mountain biking..Had a hybrid did soft trails...Not that didn't like it...But, don't go anywhere...just a big loop...Do a loop the ride is soon done..I like going from point a to point b , somewhere way down the road...
I like to go somewhere...so, I stayed on the 'other' side...besides, sharp cornering on dirt curves with crap in the way..did not do well...and things like Rattlesnakes litter the way.
Just a comment from the other perspective..

Its always good to get the opposite opinion. Unfortunately it doesn't sound like you found the holy trail. The one that brings out the offroading beast. Everyone has one, you just need to ride it :)

I started on MTBs as a kid once I was old enough to ride something larger than a 20" BMX. I had a old pseudo roadie for a little while back then, but sold it for another MTB. Up until December last year I was strickly MTB, but wanted to get a roadie and try it out, mainly because I don't really like riding my FS MTB any real distance on paved road, and to increase my endurance and strength for MTB. And it has worked :).

I thought at first I would be bored by just riding along the road trying to get there, but like with MTBing, I quickly realized its about the process of getting to "there", and I've gotta say I love it now. Still won't stop me from trail riding though.

What I notice..I see so often Mtn bikes on roads..Why is that? I suspect, not enough places to ride in some areas...Mtn. bikes on roads, does not make sense to me..I know, some Stumpjumpers put on slicks and they think they can build up endurance?
I think..YOu climb 10,000 feet a day on a tour..You build up endurance and strength.

Its likely them trying to get to a trail, or the unfortunate soul doesn't have enough trails. If I lived in an area with few trails I would definately be riding road bikes :)

In this area...I can only think of like five mtn. bike trails..at least the more significant one...Not that I keep track, since I don't MTN bike...But to me that is limiting...For roadies the roads lead in all directions.
don't you do the same old thing over and over...If the shoulders are good,we have no limits...

I have a about hundred trails in my town alone. Depending on which ones you interconnect the trail potential is limited only by your endurance, skill and imagination. Go outside of tow and I have several towns near me with the same potential. Lets put it like this. I can ride for 8 hours straight and hit a road once (I need to cross it to get to the other side)

Oh and that doesn't include to 50 dh trails that are lift assisted on the mountain :)

i want a road bike, just waiting for peformance bike's coupon :D

I can't get past the CO factor. Oh, plus I like to get away from other people while riding my bikes.... Kinda hard to do on the pavement.

I can't get past the CO factor. Oh, plus I like to get away from other people while riding my bikes.... Kinda hard to do on the pavement.
Preach on, Killer

I can't get past the CO factor. Oh, plus I like to get away from other people while riding my bikes.... Kinda hard to do on the pavement.

I guess it depends on where you live. I have no trouble finding a lonely road where there are no cars or cyclists in sight for hours. In contrast, some of the trails here are so popular that it's actually hard to get away for a ride where you don't encounter other people.

I might be more game to try Mtn. bikes . Those pics in Mountain Bicycling on single hard track in the back country...Not so much of that around here...That I know of...

I have been a road cyclist for about 18 yrs or so and decided to buy a MTB last week. I went riding with my son yesterday and it was awesome. I think the key is to ask yourself why you are cycling and if fitness and excitement are what you are after then try and balance the two out. I love riding road as I get a great workout but when I rode MTB yesterday for the first time, I found a new type of excitement which I am now hooked on.

I will now have to figure out how to organise my time and enjoy both :)

I can't get past the CO factor. Oh, plus I like to get away from other people while riding my bikes.... Kinda hard to do on the pavement.

I think that's where i am still at. I see a lot more wildlife than people. How many roadies have seen a coyote on their ride this week? I did. :)

During certain warm months here in California..Off road looks pretty dusty, dirty...You really would have to have good wrap around glasses...There are great mtn. trails in Calif...Like in the Sierra's , I understand...
Needing to wear a dust mask..Not what I like to take on a ride...
I am sure a lot of California Mtn. bikers do not agree with the assessment...Or many western state riders for all that.

I think that's where i am still at. I see a lot more wildlife than people. How many roadies have seen a coyote on their ride this week? I did. :)

I have coyotes in my neighborhood. I've seen them in my backyard. I once rode past a couple of wolves as I was leaving my house on an early morning road ride. I see wildlife all the time on my road rides. The most common ones here are deer but I've seen others.

http://www.neebu.net/~khuon/albums/20040711-everett-laconner/PICT0019.jpg

Wouldn't it be better like this?

http://xs24.xs.to/pics/05150/save.JPG

Wouldn't it be better like this?

Yes and no. I see plenty of wildlife offroad too. I don't see the point in limiting myself to any environment really so I'll bike everywhere. My point is that adventure can be found both offroad and onroad.

Yes and no. I see plenty of wildlife offroad too. I don't see the point in limiting myself to any environment really so I'll bike everywhere. My point is that adventure can be found both offroad and onroad.

I concur. Like i said, i think road biking would be worth getting into, i just am not ready to drop the coins. I do feel that one of my primary motivations right now for riding, is to get out into the country side and away from it all. Just turning onto the highway for short stretches really sort of bums me out. You always hear that water coming towards the end of the garden hose, that turns out to be yet another car. Instead of the birds singing, cows mooing and pheasants crowing.

I was thinking that the speed and thrill of the road bike might take some of that away for me, but I guess i won't know for awhile.

I see a lot more wildlife than people. How many roadies have seen a coyote on their ride this week? I did. :)

I did. Just 3 days ago.

I've seen coyote, wolf, deer, elk and bear on road rides.

Seen Elk, Coyote, Foxes, Deer on Mtn. Bikes. I once had an elk jump out onto the trail in front of me. Scared the bejeesus out of me, then it ran along the trail in front of me for nearly a mile. It was awesome.

I did. Just 3 days ago.

I've seen coyote, wolf, deer, elk and bear on road rides.

Seen Elk, Coyote, Foxes, Deer on Mtn. Bikes. I once had an elk jump out onto the trail in front of me. Scared the bejeesus out of me, then it ran along the trail in front of me for nearly a mile. It was awesome.
Now THAT would be awsome!!!!!!!!