my58vw

Hello all,

I am considering joining a bike club but a question keeps on coming up. I want to do the long 12 - 15 or so mile rides on the road but I do not have a road bike. Is it ok to ride a MTB on the road in this fasion? Does it look funny for someone to be riding a full suspension bike on the road in a group that way? Thanks

cyclezealot

Its not that it looks funny. A person should ride what they like..Many say, the problem is the extra drag from MTN. bikes. Can be minimized by putting slicks on your wheels.
But still you are pushing a bike not meant to be used for long distance cycling.
Since I knew from the get go , I wanted to commute, I choose a responsive bike and immediately favored a road bike. IF they hassle you about a MTN bike, thumb your nose at them...But, for road riding, eventually you might want something lighter.
On the other hand..I recall seeing roadies training on MTN bikes..That extra drag makes them stronger for getting on a road bike and racing.

Chris L

I've been doing it for years, and no, I don't think it looks funny at all. I'd go with some slick (or at least semi-slick) tyres for the ride, and don't expect them to wait for you if the pull too far away. However, I don't think it matters from a "fashion" perspective.

Whoodie

Although am new in this forum I hear that a MTB has a higher drag over Road bike. Getting slicks or narrow tires will improve the road ride.

larue

Most likely their will also be recumbent bikers there so you won't be the only odd man out.

my58vw

Thanks all, the reason that I ride a MTB is that I use it for my job (security officer) and I can not afford two bikes right now (one is more than too much, but that is beyond my point). I ride over 30 - 40 miles a shift (8 hours) not constently but in 4 - 8 miles runs. With the new tires I am getting I think I can keep up with the beginners and possibly the intermediate people. Eventually I will get a road bike but until then I have to use my cannondale.

BTW I rode a S@W zap motor based bicycle and did not use the motor for the first 3 months on the job. I can say I am definitly faster on my new 30 pound cannondale vs a 75 pound motor bike. How much differnt is the weight on the mountian compared to the street bike anyway?

AndrewP

The top gear on the MTB will be lower so your legs may not be able to spin fast enough when they get up to speed. Try it and enjoy it.

bnet1

Check with the club you want to join and see if their riding style fits you. I ride a 'bent and did just that. I had a choice between a club that is hard core roadies, fast traing runs and pacelines vs one that has a couple of roadies and mostly touring/commuting type folks. I joined the latter and fit in just fine. The rides are fun. Last Sunday was an "ice-cream ride". It was a 20 mile run with a 14MPH average with lunch and/or ice cream at the end. That day I actually rode 41 miles since I had to ride from home to the start and then back home after the ride. Being on a 'bent has created enough curiosity that I was invited to do a show-n-tell at one of the meetings about recumbents. It went very well. Check things out and you should be able to find a club in your area that fits your riding style.

'bent Brian

landrover

Change your tires.....i have an atb outfitted with skinny tires in the spring and summer and fatter treads for winter.
as mentioned, let's hope your group keeps the miles-per-hour to a mininum 14/15.

my58vw

The beginner group it is 11 - 14 the advanced group 17 - 21 MPH I do know that my bike can do the 17-21 but it is hard to keep it that fast for a very long time. I am going to go with the beginners group first and then see what happens...

BTW I broke my 8 mile patrol record, 8 miles in 28 minutes, average of 21 MPH for 8 miles. The time is with stops for the end of streets where I have to turn around and the 6 gates. Not to bad as my last time was 32 minutes. I am able to patrol over 42 miles in a 4 and one half hour time period also, with water breaks and other small duties that I have to take care of including a 20 minute stop to observe a few buildings.

Thanks all again, I guess I have a good reason to start wearing bike appearal on rides... everyone else is wearing them.

Midman

For city road rides up to 30mi or so, I prefer my hardtail MTB with 60+psi slick tires to my "road bike". I ride a narrow flat bar with bar ends, a flat stem, and high seat so my riding position is sort of similar to a road bike. I keep my suspension fork screwed down tight with little sag when roading. Sure I'm not quite as fast as on my road bike, but so what? With this set up I can ride many miles with acceptable pedaling efficiency and still stay nimble in a potentially hostile enviroment (e.g. keep my ability to jump a curb & go off road if some misguided SUV tries to make me into a hood ornament. It's happened to me more than once!). FWIW- I regularly ride my 30# FS bike 4-5mi each way to a local MTB trail. The roadies give me dirty looks for riding FS on asphalt, and the "hard core" MTBer's frown at me for not transporting my MTB to the trail by car. Who cares! The road ride serves as a nice warm-up/cool-down for my trail rides.
Bottom line: Cycling is about enjoyment and exercise. Pick a good biking group & ride what you like!!!!!!

Maelstrom 

You can change the gearing quite easily. Get some dh rings and you will be doing much better. Big ring in the front helps a lot to keep up to (or come closer to) roadies. Otherwise the typical 32 to 36 ring won't do much for speed on the roads.

You're riding. Thats all that matters.

slvoid

Why not, I took my mtb on the last group century I was on cause it was more comfortable and it turned out ok.

wildjim

I ride a Giant XTC Hardtail with Slick Tires; which is designed for "Cross Country" riding, racing on variable terrain. I ride it mostly on Bicycle Pathways for about 22 miles per trip each weekend and whenever I can during the week. Many people on the paths ride the same type of setup.

I think if you are going to ride strickly on the road with a fast road group then a road bike "may" suit you better in the long run. But it's not necessary for casual group rides. As you see all types of bicycles and riders in the group.

I also own a Giant Carbon road bike and many others, only because of my interest in "Bicycles" not of requirement.

There is a fellow that rides around my neighborhood and beyond on a trashcan on wheels. He shames and humbles me as he rides the bike "everywhere" and probably covers more distance in a day than I do in a week.

I think that the Rider not what is ridden commands the respect. . . Just Ride. . .

oldspark

It's all about having someone to ride with no matter what you ride other wise you might as well ride alone. Won't take long to find out how many people ride at or near your speed and it will be all good.

operator

I did a metric century on my mtb. Why not.

Chris L

The 222.5km I did last Sunday was on my MTB, too.

JohnnerJohnson

I use my diamondback apex everyday to cycle to work on the road. I fitted it with 26x1.25 slicks and it does look strange, but it goes excellently and I wouldn't thinks twice about using it on a club leisure ride.

Juha

Some of the MTBers I see have their saddles lowered to a point where their knees hit their jaw when riding seated. Combine that with soft shock settings and you get a VERY uncomfortable bike for any distance on road. But you must already have the basic ergonomics right, if you can sustain an average of 21mph over 8 miles. Change to slicks if needed and enjoy the ride!

--J

Maelstrom 

I hope the people with saddles in those positions aren't doing distance. MY dh and fr bikes have the seat that low for safety purposes. But I would dream of doing any signifigant distance on them

CPcyclist

My older FS MTB is around 30lbs, HT MTB is around 26lbs, and road bike is 20lbs. Many road bikes are know lighter down to 14-16lbs.

Differences not in favor of MTB on the road:
wider and low pressure tire-more friction (rolling resistance)
longer crank arm- harder to spin
up right position- catches more air (wind resistance) and have fewer hand positions may numb hands

Differences in favor of MTB on the road:
wider and low pressure tire- gives softer ride
longer crank arm- better power on up hills
up right position- more comfortable on lower back for most

As for riding a MTB on the road get slicks.

If you have disk brakes you may be able to buy/build a set of 700c(road) wheels on disc rims as the final outside diameter of a 700x25 is close to that of a 26x2.5 ie. you should have the clearance for disc road wheels and this will lower your rolling resistance the more then the slicks.

It sounded like you also had a FS MTB I would stiffen the suspenson up some for longer road rides as power loss from the suspension can be significant.

Any way get out and ride.

jeff williams

I run my IRC xc tires on ashphalt, I pump them to the max- ride to an offroad site- lower the pressure and go for broke. Sure it's a rougher ride, but if your contact patch is a big spread under the rim> you're not rolling well.