Originally Posted by
BBnet3000
if you want a mountain bike for trail riding, by all means get it, but theres no particular reason to use one in the rain. the only difference between a bike for the dry road and a bike for rain is fenders, which i prefer anyway for a commuter because they keep a portion of road grit out of the drivetrain.
Very good point. Any bike made can take the rain--as long as you don't have steel rims, which are slippery when wet. The only bike part I've had ruined by rain was a computer, and that was replaced free under warranty.
Tires are the big variable. Knobbies can be slippery on wet pavement, so take it a little slower if that's what you've got. Slick tires don't have that problem (much), whether they're 26" or 700c.