Are Mountain Bikers Real Cyclist

The other day while resting on ride a man pulled up next to me and told me that he thinks that only roadies are real cyclist and that mountain bikers are not. I didn't believe him and still think that Mountain Bikers are real cyclist. But he got me thinking of what other people think of mountain bikers.

 

I guess it's how you look at it and what world you live in. To say a mountain biker isn't a cyclist, I don't know. I think then I'd have to ask how about a Recumbent Rider or someone who rides a Trike, I guess were not Cyclist either. IMO if you can pedal it and you like it then do it. I enjoy them all and I don't ride with blinders.
Ric

 

Hmmm... to me, cyclist = someone who rides a bike.

Ok, maybe not including "derro's" (is that an aussie slang word? perhaps it is...) who ride shonky bmx's or road bikes with the bars rotated so the brakes are at the top, who ride around with no shirt and a cigarette.

But mountain bikers? of course they're cyclists.

 

There are those 24 hr. MTB marathon rides, correct That would equate to the "endurance" aspect of road biking. I commuted everywhere on a mountainbike w/ slicks through rain, sleet, snow, 100 F heat, inconsiderate motorist's, ect, ect...for 3.5 yrs. Maybe it should be worded: "Are fair weather cyclist's really cyclist's"

 

Or maybe; "Are people who don't dress up in gaudy lycra jumpsuits and get together to talk about how their cadance is 3rpm faster than last "season"" real cyclists?

 

Is there a poll in the MTB section asking if roadies are real?

 

Just had a MTB rider ask why roadies are so stupid. They put a bottle on the bike and all that drag. Why dont they use backpack waterbags? Told him to ask the guys in the TDF.

 

If your out there logging the miles in and working out those leggs your a cyclist in book. I think there different levels of a cyclist though. You have your extreme cyclist like Lance Armstrong and then the not so extreme cyclist that are out there just cause they like it. It doesn't matter what type of rider they are just as long as they ride.

 

Yes I believe the TDF guys do set the standard in cycling. Had a roadie tell me that if it's not used in the Tour it probley doesn't work.
As far as MTB riders being cyclist - Yea there cyclist but most live in there own little world, as do most riders.

 

I drop the "poser" roadies many times on my $126.00 Schwinn MTB some are just A- holes others are cool. The funniest roadies are the ones who see me in their mirror and they try to keep ahead of me, then when I catch them they all of the sudden turn off from their route. One guy I caught up with turned off the same way I was turning off and then makes a U turn when he realized that I was going in the same direction.

 

Off course they are.....if it was'nt for MTB's i wouldn't be a roadie atm...

 

Good point

 

Mountian bikers are BIKERS, not cyclists. I am both a roadie and a mountian biker, but I have been mountian bikeing for much longer than I have been riding roads. I never refered to myself as a "cyclist" when on a mountian bike.

 

According to Webster a cyclist is one who rides a cycle.

They also say a cycle is a bicycle, tricycle or motorcycle.

Most of my friends who are mountain bikers first and road bikers second are better climbers than those who are the other way around or not mountain bikers at all. For what that's worth.

 

Anyone who rides a bike, whether it's a racing bike, road, BMX, mountain, cyclo-cross, cruiser or chopper, they're all cyclists. Why anyone would denegrate a fellow cyclist, of any stripe, is beyond me. Who cares what they ride: THAT they ride is what matters.

 

Ask John Tomac, one of the most decorated MTB racers of all time. He did some time with team 7-Eleven racing in Europe. There are plenty of guys in the pro peleton that began as off-road racers. I have done both types of riding and prefer the road, but I certainly respect MTB'ers as well.

 

I ride a mountain bike because half of my commute has to be on the gravel shoulder.



I don’t think of myself as a mountain biker, though.

 

I dont really care if I will be considered a cyclist or not. Im riding my road and mountain bikes because I love to ride them! I think that's the bottom line

 

thats why God gave us fists...just for this type of occasion.

last time i looked in the mirror there definitely a reflection there...i am as real as one could be...

 

I consider myself a cyclist. I may be slow or fast, talented or not, I love riding my bikes. I dont care what others may say, if they passed me or Im stupid looking. I wouldnt care because I am enjoying my ride. I am not cycling for them, Im cycling for myself. You dont ride to be called a cyclist. Your a cyclist because you love to ride