Originally Posted by
mtnbike_mike
Do you use a mtnbike or a road bike to tour, and why ?
I have toured for years on a mtn bike and always seem to find people who swear by road bikes.
I find the upright position more comfortable, the ride smoother, the low gears a blessing and the ability to hit the trails after dinner a nice change, I also would think that the fatter tires would help provide stability. Oh ya (knock on wood) there is also less risk of a flat with a mtn bike.
Let the debate begin.
I did the same two-day tour twice on a mountain bike. My reasoning was simple, that was the bike I had. I certainly learned to figure out what was absolutely essential and leave everything else behind. That ride was on a combination of roads and canal towpaths where the suspension fork was a real blessing.
Later on I did a three-day tour using a cross bike. I'd bought the cross bike since the previous tours and found it had a variety of hand positions, made it easier to chew up the miles due to the higher gearing but at the same time it was still sufficiently easy to climb hills to not want to leave it behind in favour of the MTB.
Because I've got a pannier rack for the cross bike it also meant I could carry a little more stuff with me, which was useful given it was a much hillier route than the previous tours and so I could carry a bit more food with me. On a few of the descents I did miss the MTB's hydraulic disc brakes.
All that said my MTB is partly hybridised, I've got a high saddle position and tyres that are much more road-friendly than the kind of knobbly things you'd expect to find on an MTB. Attempting a long ride on knobbly tyres isn't something I'd be too quick to sign up for.