I'm quite the amateur, I only got back into biking about 4 months ago. I mainly use my bike just to get around town, but I've been working on my endurance so that I can confidently hit a trail without being spent after 1 hill. I read about people and their biking experiences, talking about riding like 30+mph.

I know that mountain bikes aren't made for getting around town quickly, but all I can manage after 4 years of biking is an average about 12mph, which is about where I was when I started.

I'm sure a mountain bike is capable of going faster than that. I'm also sure that I have a long way to go in terms of power and such, but is there something I should be doing specifically to work on my speed?

If it means anything, here's what I'm riding: http://www.sportchek.ca/product/inde...uctId=11133871 I'm aware that it's a really cheap bike, but I am also a really financially unfortunate person.