ed 

I have been reading alot lately about types of bikes and what works best for your style of riding. With all of the new styles of riding and specific designs of bikes, it would be nice to know if 90% of mountain bikers should truly be riding "trail bikes" like some magazines have been saying.

The poll: Which best describes your "MAIN" style of riding. Please explain what your main bike for this style is.

Do you ride:

1.XC - Racing or recreational- Bunny hopping trail obstacles, minimal jumping to smooth transitions and moderate technical terrain.

2.Agressive / All Mountain- "An aggressive riding style, including jumps with soft transitions and drops (3 feet or less) associated with technical cross-country riding."

3.Freeride-"Pushing the envelope...Pedaling over very technical terrain, big drops, big gaps, ski area's."

4.Downhill-Gravity runs where getting down the mountain is the main focus.

6.Urban/Dirt Jump/Skate, Bike Parks- Stairs, ramps, BMX..."anything that the rider's body can withstand without damage."

7.Mountain Cross / 4-Cross - 2-up/4-up head to head racing on a downhill "BMX style" course.

***edit-Okay, I tried to make this into a poll and delete this thread. I guess I don't have the ability to do that so let's just leave it as a thread, I guess.***

LowCel 

I'm primarily xc with some agressive / all mountain thrown in from time to time.

Maelstrom 

2 and 3

pinkrobe

#1 with a bullet

DrugCoder

mainly #1 but this season working on doing more of the Agressive/ all mountain

ed 

I'm mainly a #2 with a Fisher hardtail and 4" fork.

Indy_Rider

Primarily XC, but smooth has never been used to describe my riding style. I am a very aggressive XC rider who tends to carry way to much speed in turns and other obstacles, so smooth I am not.

junkyard

xc

born2bahick

XC, only as agressive as needed to get over obstacles!

jaypee

#1 and 2. I'm running a full rigid On-One Inbred.

mcoine

xc, but if there is a jump or drop (not huge) in the trail, I will take it.

Portis

Cool, a poll without a poll. Seriously none of those really describes my riding. I mainly ride, dirt and gravel roads.

wethepeople

3,4,6.

But I guess you can count 6 in with 4, as it is still freeride.

dorsalis

is there really a formal definition for "technical terrain"

Maelstrom 

Theres a poll there...just no option for gravel roads as he might not be interested in knowing that. I can add it if the op wants me to.

ed 

Actually, I posted as a poll and as I was entering in the poll information I hit the "back" button to copy and paste. When I tried to go back to the 'poll' it wouldn't let me do it anymore. I figure I'll let it go a few days and then post a tally.

As for gravel roads, ya I guess I forgot that people ride MTB's on more than trails and wild terrain. There are a ton of MTB'ers that ride paved trails in my town as well as singletrack.

Portis

Sure there is, but it isn't a poll-poll. You know the kind, where you submit a poll?

Maelstrom 

haha there is now a poll ...

FLBandit

I guess XC describes my riding best. I like most any trail. However, I leave the extreme stuff to others. I'll do a few small jumps or drops, but that's about it. At 45 with a broken vertebrae, my extreme days are behind me!

Maelstrom 

I edited the poll to relflect the answers in this thread

JagdNeun

XC, 51 years old, I go as hard as I can and keep my limitations always in the forefront. Relatively new, I am a quick learner, but wise enough to leave the risk taking stuff to the more experienced and usually, younger riders. I still take plenty of falls, but so far at low speeds trying to do more technical rocky trail/bunny hop type riding.

I voted....

Maelstrom 

Oh I didn't explain the bikes. I do 3 types of riding.

Downhill - exclusively my transition dirtbag/bighit
FR - depends, sometimes my roast, trailorpark or bighit/transition.
Trail riding - just like fr. Little of each depending on which side of the coin I feel like excelling at.

dminor 

Mael, you needed one more box on the poll: "All of the above." I'd check that (well, maybe not mountaincross, tho' I'd liike to give that a try too).

Most of my focus is toward 2, 3 & 4; but I do a lot of more XC-oriented trail riding: like or shop's weekly group rides; and XC racing at a much more casual/recreational level than my DH racing. I even enjoy getting out on the tame bike paths for rides with my wife (though I think I finally have her talked into letting me get her a mountain bike ) As long as it's making the pedals go 'round and 'round and doesn't send me headlong into serious bodily harm, I'm down with it.

mjw16

Mostly XC. I used to go really hard then stop for a breather, then hard again. I love logjams, creek crossings, hills, and jumps and drops (but nothing really above 2-3 ft. at most). I'm working on a riding style that's is more smooth and consistant.

Peek the Geek

I ride XC, partly because that's all the trails near me have to offer. Not that there's anything wrong with that. I like riding XC because I love the aerobic part of the ride and the minimalist nature of it all.