crazyb

I ride thousands of miles a year on road bikes but had never ridden on a trail until yesterday. I was totally surprised how difficult it was to control the bike. Too far back and the front wheel pops, too far forward and the rear spins out. Much more difficult than road riding. What a hoot!
Have a 29er on order.

Carbon Unit

I posted a question a few days ago on s similar subject. I am a roadie too and have never riden a mountain bike. I have been considering buying a 29er but wasn't sure if I want to go hard tail or full suspension. f I had the budget, I would buy an Ellsworth Evolve or a Specialized Stumpjumper 29er with full suspension. I am still doing my research and will ride a few bikes before I decide.

What did you ride and what did you buy? Which bikes were on your short list?

rankin116

Why are you both aiming at 29ers?

crazyb

I borrowed a 26" hardtail with front suspension, But am buying a Fisher Cobia, 29er as I am a pretty big guy, 6,0", and felt it would be a better fit.

crazyb

[QUOTE=rankin116;11420244]Why are you both aiming at 29ers?[/QUOTE
My first ride was on a 26" and my mentor was riding a 29er hardtail, looked like he had an easier time on roots rocks etc. But a total noob at this.

Carbon Unit

I too thought that being 6'3" made a 29er a better choice for me. Most of the reviews that I have read on 29er say that they do better going over roots and rocks, but I have no experience riding a mountain bike. If I like it half as much as my road bike, I will be addicted.

crazyb

It's a rush!

Carbon Unit

Really! I have heard that it also improves your road bike performance. I have some great trailing riding within a 10 minute drive.

crazzywolfie

full suspension bike are nicer for a smoother ride but i find that hard tail have better control. plus with full suspension bikes you have a few more moving parts which will take a bit more to maintain if you don't want it to squeak.

crazyb

Find a bike to borrow or rent, soon. I'm 57 and been missing out for too long. Can't wait to get out again

Carbon Unit

I will turn 54 on my next birthday. I had been thinking that mountain biking for the a younger body, but maybe I am wrong. I have been an avid road rider since I was 49.

I will rent a hard tail 29er and give it a try.

jboyd

I am 52 and ride a full rigid GT Peace 9er Multi. Fast rolling single track is like cocaine to me I just got back from spending 3 days on TSALI and I can't stop thinking about it.

ed 

Actually...you're pretty average height. I'm 6'2" and still prefer 26" hardtail with an 18.5" frame. (though I don't keep my butt planted in the saddle) Much more fun in the air.

IchBinDarren

It is totally different isnt it? I used to ride road bikes too, but I also rode motocross too, so lets just say mountain biking is an adjustment!

cryptid01

Leave it to a roadie to describe how the bike handles when climbing but make no mention of the other, more fun half of the ride.

buttdart

enjoy it. i just started riding on the road but much prefer my mtb's.

the one thing you'll realize about mtb'ing is that you can't relax or day dream like you can on the road. try it and you'll see why!

ZippyThePinhead

This thread caught my attention. I usually ride on the road, but I have a friend who likes to ride on dirt, and I've tried it a couple of times. I have been using my '86 Peugeot Orient Express:



It's a great bike, and I put some Kenda K-Rads on it (not the Bontrager tires you see in the pic) so that I could ride on dirt a little and roads, but it weighs about 35 lbs.

I went riding on this trail the other day, and even though it is supposedly a fire road or something like that, it's been eroded quite a bit and is covered with fine dust/powder that is like beach sand in many places. I really found myself envying the bikes that my friends were riding, in particular this one.

So I have been looking at one of these, and wondering how it compares to the Kona.

Thanks in advance for any helpful insight; my concern was that the anchor point for the rear shock looks pretty flimsy on the Motobecane, especially in comparison to the Kona.

newbeat

ha, i'm a road rider who just got into mountain biking. I have an old ss 26er, but am going to get a hardtail 29er.

personally, i prefer the bigger wheel. just feels better for whatever reason.

garethzbarker

I've been road cycling for a couple of year and took my first proper group trail ride last weekend; it was one of the most thrilling things I've ever done... That was the beginner track. The workout was also amazing. My legs burned so bad I thought I wouldn't make my group ride the next day but I ended up doing the group ride with more confidence and strength.

I want to learn where all the trails are in my area and try to hit one every couple of weeks. And yeah I found technique difficult as well. It was hard to find the right amount of tire pressure. Bike positioning was odd feeling and scary leaning way back like that. I was about to eat it on a curve and finally got the balls to put all my weight on the front wheel for the turn when faced with hitting a rock-face; the toque from turning like that was insane The only thing I don't like about it is I waited until I was 34 to try mountain riding. I'm getting a little old to break bones. I came so close to bailing off the bike so many times I can surely see how eventually you are going to get hurt doing this.

Repack Rider

I used to be a road rider myself. Even got out the skinny bike one time this year, just to remind myself why I ride MTB.

Johnny Law

as Aladdin would say, "its a whole new world."

crazyb

The other half of the ride was pure enjoyment, was just making note of how much more difficult the technical aspects of trail riding are than on a road bike.

TechKnowGN

I'm a triathlete/roadie who decided MTB over cyclocross this year (mostly because entry MTB are about 1/2 the price). Doing my first race tomorrow. Been out 3 times on the bike. Mostly flat single track with some roots and rocks, but prerode the race course a week ago. The climbing isnt as bad as I thought it might be, but the handling is interesting. I'm a bigger dude so I wanted a solid bike even if I compromised on the components a bit. Wound up with a Trek 3900 Disc. Pretty happy so far, other than the plastic pedals, and I need to replace the quick release seat post clamp.

iqbal624

I'm a roadie or Should I say was a roadie until about three weeks ago... Tried out mtb... It was the coolest thing ive ever dome... I used to make fun of mtb'ers... Now I just picked up a like new Specialized S-Works Enduro And am selling my Pinarello to finance it...
That's how much I love it...

iqbal624