UKC

I’m losing mine tomorrow in the Forest of Dean. Anything I need to think about as a converted roadie? I’ve packed some baggy shorts for over the Lycra.

Does road fitness translate to mtb fitness, or are the technical aspects more important?

In reply to Yanis Nayu:


Forget about such things. Go out and have some fun, get muddy, act like a kid and come home happy.

In reply to ChrisJD:

Ah, I intend to!

In reply to Yanis Nayu:
As a roady who started mountain biking i have a tip; don't tense up. MTB is about staying as loose as possible while just about maintaining enough control to point the bike in roughly the right direction. It's really tempting to cling on for dear life but the more you do the more bumpy it gets.

Have fun!

PS. I am outstandingly bad on a mountain bike so possibly ignore all that.

PPS. If you sit down the saddle will swiftly go where only customs officers dare to probe. Keep some vaseline handy.

In reply to Yanis Nayu:
From someone who has never really been much of a tarmac botherer and who has been off the mtb long enough to worry my virginity has grown back; but these are a few hopefully helpful tips.

- Relax.
- If you stare at the obstacle you will hit it; (trees, fence posts, the one rock in a field sized soft landing).
- You probably want to be in a lower gear than you think.
- Keep your weight back, especially when descending.
- Wet roots are a bugger unless you hit them straight on.

Have fun!

In reply to Greasy Prusiks:


+1
I'm a roadie but do a bit of mountain biking, my mates are all in to it and do the fast downhill stuff in Morzine every year whilst I hire a road bike!

The above advice is bang on though.....don't tense up and let the bike sort itself.....its amazing what good forks can take but you'll be fighting your instinct!

In reply to Yanis Nayu:

I was an obsessive mountain biker for 21 years until I went over to the cleaner, more subtle joys of the road. I was surprised at how much fitter I needed to be for the road; road cycling is far more demanding and goes on for longer periods of time. Also you can go straight from your front door and come home feeling completely beasted with no need to drive anywhere to ride.

In reply to Yanis Nayu:

If in doubt... flat out!

In reply to Yanis Nayu:

Well that was fun!

Thanks to everyone for the advice!

In reply to idiotproof (Buxton MC):
Second that, speed is your friend. Keep loose unless you have to wrestle it through some rough stuff.

In reply to Rigid Raider:


Um, surely it depends on how far and how hard you ride on a mountain bike. I regularly have full days out in the mountains on my bike, huge climbs, gruelling descents - I can barely hold the bars when I reach the bottom sometimes. Also, I'm lucky enough to be able to do this often from my front door..

In reply to Rigid Raider:


Sorry, I don't agree. I find they are a different type of fitness - the road is more passive churning-out-the-miles-sat-(mostly)-in-the-saddle endurance fitness, whereas mountain biking is a much more dynamic, explosive-in-and-out-of-the-saddle-full-body-battering-workout, because of the rough terrain and constant changes in direction and incline. They leave me feeling knackered in different ways.

In reply to Yanis Nayu:

Just keep a reserve of caution with any newfound enthusiasm. I had an accident 6wks after getting mine - and there are a lot of accidents out there otherwise which give testimony. But then I was foolish enough to be out at dusk - entering the tunnel of hazels didn't help either ...

Prob 5x more likely to have an accident - in comparison to roadbike; anyone know the stats ?

In reply to LastBoyScout:

I didn’t find it at all tiring in a leg or lung-burning sense, coming from a road background, but did feel generally tired and beat up at the end.

In reply to Yanis Nayu:

Others have given key tips on technique. In terms of fitness, I think the MTB requires much more dynamic use of power (obviously depends on route, terrain etc). Sometimes you just need that few seconds of all out effort to get up a steep section, or grind your way through sticky mud.
For my local routes down here in the SW, my rough rule of thumb is that 1 mile off road equates to 2 or 3 on road in terms of effort (again, the caveat is that route details can alter this dramatically, but it's a good overall average).
I love my road biking, but MTBing is the one to have me grinning like an eejit!
Enjoy!

N

In reply to Yanis Nayu:



Awesome!

In reply to Rigid Raider:
You don’t need to be ‘fitter for the road’, quite the opposite. It’s easy to go for a cruise along flat roads, take in the occasional hill, the occasional pub and the hours and miles just fly by. Unless your idea of mountain biking is canal towpaths and old railway lines (and nothing wrong with that) then you rarely get an easy mile. The hills take longer, and usually require more intense effort. And the descents are rarely free from effort (unless you just ride down fireroads).

Now of course you can make either activity as hard as you want, and likewise there is no reason why mountain bike rides shouldn’t start from your front door - most of mine do. Just because some people ride to a trail centre, ride for a hour and spend the rest of the day in the cafe, it doesn’t mean that’s how it has to be.

I will acknowledge that i’m generally higher up the leader boards on Strava when it’s a MTB segment, but I put that down to the fact that all roadies take drugs.....

In reply to Yanis Nayu:

If in doubt, get your weight back, you might still fall off put it will be funny rather than painful!

Where shin pads if you can, if you are used to using clips on the road and switching to flat pedals for your mountainbike ride you might find your shins a little vulnerable. Or just go clipped in...it's way more fun

Forest of Dean was where I first started, way before there was a trail center there, just a hut in the Car Park. It's proper luxury now!!

Have Fun

Covered with mud a and big smile. Leave Strava and that shite behind and go have fun.

The only downside to MTB is it makes road biking terribly, terribly dull.

In reply to SAF:





I did, thanks! 60 miles in the rain and wind on my road bike today seemed like purgatory in comparison.

In reply to Yanis Nayu:
The "Weight back" thing is not valid any more. Coaches now teach very bent arms so on the steep stuff you almost have your chin on the bars. This weights the front wheel which you need for braking and turning. It also means you can push down into the drops so your weight doesn't get flung forward, so you don't go over the bars. The current trend for long and slack geometry with wide bars and short stems helps with this. Check out the YouTube videos by Ben Cathro / Sick Skills to see how it's done.

BTW, I was doing it wrong for years, then a day with Ben opened my eyes. I'm still rubbish because I revert back to what I've been doing for 30 years, but at least I know why I'm rubbish!