Home General Training Discussions

Learn me up: mountain bikes

2»

Comments


  • Posted By Dino Sarti on 10 Apr 2013 12:15 AM


    Dude - Just try mine. It's basically this one but from two years ago: http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes/mountain/singletrack_trail/fuel_ex/fuel_ex_7/#



    I bet I have less than 300 miles on it. Come pick it up and take it for a few spins. Call me when you realize it is a dirty caveman experience compared to the civility of a gentleman's road bike and I will come collect the brut....



    Ok, let me know when I can pick it up . Maybe I'll ride on Saturday when I'm not riding 120mi and 12k with you 

  • Today I took Dino's Trek Fuel up to White Saddle at lunch, joined by the Man in Black . 16mi ride with 2.7k of gain in 1:50 total time. 

    • I thought I had locked out the front and back for the climb but only the front. 
    • Them disk brakes are twitchy, especially the front!
    • Speaking of brakes, first thing I'm doing with a bike is switching the brakes over to "moto," with the front brake on the right vs left. This is how motorcycles are set up (front brake on right hand, back brake on right foot) and I have all of my other bicycles setup like this. As is, I had to mentally override 25+ yrs of moto and cycling braking reflexes. 
    • Gonna get real pedals and shoes. Running shoes suck for mtn biking. 

    All you mtn bikers need to get a on dirt bike at some point. MUCH better suspension, brakes, and tons more traction. The bike just floats over everything. That said, still very cool to get out in my mountains over lunch. Only saw one other guy on a nearly 2hr ride 

  • Rich- That Cannondale ends in 4 hrs and it's still cheap... Just Sayin'
  • Revisiting this old thread, as we head into the out/off-season.

    How does one know which frame/bike size to shop for, for a MTB?

    Ex, on a road bike, you can take an informal approach and throw your leg over the top tube. If your crotch touches the top tube, that's "generally" the right size frame.
    I'd like to go get a good used MTB (ex, online), so knowing how to size it would be great!

    Gracias!
  • In my experience, mtn bike sizing is much, much less important. Or rather, stuff like saddle height, stem length, rise, etc aren't nearly as important as on a road or tri bike. In fact, one item on the to-purchase list is one of these pop-up-and-down seatposts that you control from the handlebars.

    I'm a medium...or at least I have a medium bike and it fits. I gotta imagine that you're a large? 

  • Scott - Not to get too personal, but how tall are you and what is your inseam? I'm 5'11" with a 30" inseam, and for the past several years I have ridden medium bikes, both Niner and Gary Fischer (although a change in frame sponsors from Niner to Intense and Vassago means I get to sell my old Niners and get new bikes!!). I could ride a large in some brands, but prefer the medium and a little longer stem if necessary, as long as I can get enough seat posts.
  • 6'1" with a 32" inseam (mostly torso length), about 210lbs right now.
  • I'm with Rich -- a large should fit you pretty well.
  • @Scott- I'm also 6-1" with a 32" inseam and I ride an XL. I'm sure a Large would also work for me. Like others said above, dialing in the exact size is WAY less important on a mountain bike. When I look at my bike just sitting there in the garage, it looks MASSIVE, but when I get on it and go on a trail, it just disappears underneath me and I don't even think about it.
  • As another 6"1" guy with a 32" inseam that's looking to get a new mtn bike, I also am finding this information invaluable. Thanks guys.
Sign In or Register to comment.