Why all the MTBs?

[cycling_jedi]

Blademun's sig says...

Gameing, Anime and Bicycling...what more do you need from life?

what more? ummm.... how about a dictionary? Or spelling book...(hint:first word)


I am just being a wise ass...

 

[Fritodog]

Commute to work '90 Schwinn MTB. No shocks, they'd break. I named it the
Locomotive. Anything less than big knobbies would last a day ( I know) and
when I leave for work ( no desk job ) I expect to get there, not play mechanic
on the way as I have seen so many others. When I get home and can chose
my routes, out comes the Roadie. I don't even carry a lock on it, it goes where I go. There's a time for the Jeep and a time for the Porsche, but in a pinch,
the Jeep can go anywhere.

 

[PartisanRanger]

I go to class and everywhere else on campus on my old Specialized MTB so I don't have to use my cycling shoes (my roadie has clipless pedals) and it's just more comfortable for everyday errands.

 

[ScottMartin]

People ride MTB over Roadies for the same reason they drive Hummers over family sedans.....

They look cooler and tougher... a status symbol.

The irony is that the majority of people that own a mtb with nice shocks and expensive features will never ride it off road as they are intended just as the people who drive Hummers will never drive them off road, or even in inclement weather, as they were intended.

A few years ago, I read in Bicycling magazine (it might have been the now-defunct Bicycle Guide) some interesting stats about what kind of bikes people ride. While I can't remember the exact stats, I remember that something like 70 percent of the bikes sold in the USA are mountain bikes, and that the majority of people who ride mountain bikes never or rarely ride them off road.

I once worked with a guy who rode a mountain bike exclusively (I'm strictly a roadie), and he claimed that he could keep up with me on the road if he rode his mountain bike and I rode my road bike. At that time, I wasn't a regular rider, but I decided to prove a point to him (in a friendly way; we got along real well together). We went on a road ride one day, and he learned that mountain bikes were not the equal of road bikes on paved roads. I easily outrode him (coasting downhill was an eye-opener for him), even though he rode far more frequently at that time than I did; he was in better shape than me. He simply could not easily keep up with me, and we both agreed the difference was the bike.

I don't like 'em. Compared to road bikes, MTBs are heavy and inefficient and are not the best choice for road riding. While "a Jeep can go anywhere," if the road is your route for getting there, then a road bike is a better choice.

MTBs appear to be the SUV of the bike world, and in the USA at least, people like their SUVs. It doesn't seem to matter that on the road, a road bike will get you there faster and more efficiently than an MTB, or that MTBs are not necessarily safer than road bikes (safety on a bike is what you make it). Americans like their beefy vehicles, and an MTB is just another beefy vehicle; it suggests strength and power, and that's what Americans like. MTBs aren't necessarily cheaper than road bikes, and most MTB owners don't take full advantage of their off-road versatility. The real practical value of an MTB only comes through on non-paved surfaces, like gravel roads and dirt trails, where a road bike should not venture. If most people don't ride their MTBs off the road, they won't really get their money's worth out of their MTBs, so they might as well buy a road bike (even a heavy tourer is better than the lightest MTB).

I don't like MTBs because for me they have no value. But who am I to fault the guy on an MTB riding on city streets? At least he's out there on a bike of some kind and not sitting there with a beer in one hand, a pot belly between his head and feet, and the TV tuned to a football game where he decries the guy who fumbled the ball, who at least is out there playing the game and not sitting on the couch ... .

MTB or road bike, it's better to ride than to not ride.

Happy riding, whatever you ride

Scott

 

[Scotty_Dog]

(snipped for brevity)

I don't like 'em.

I don't like MTBs because for me they have no value.

This is really all you needed to say, because the rest of your long-winded post is complete drivel. I'm amazed at your resentment toward a different style of bike other than your own.

 

[Fritodog]

Scott:

1. I prefer to ride my road bike, after work and on the weekends it's all
I ride.
2. I would love to ride it to work (be a lot quicker and easier on me)
but the politicians in the three suburbs and the section of Chicago
I traverse on the way have ignored my requests to spend the required
millions it would take to repave them.
3. I personally don't know anybody who in thier wildest dreams thinks
an MTB could keep up with a road bike.
4. Around here I have seen women in heels test riding Cannondales
that are destined for a hook in the garage. But when a person looking
for TRANSPORTATION wanders into a shop, MTB's look durable, and
generally sell for less (not talking about the guy who needs a bike
for K2) than the Road bikes on display. And you can still walk into
Wal-Mart and for two and a half bills get a functional bike for the
average Joe.
5. If you followed me to work on a road bike, you would have to travel
so slow to keep it in one piece, it wouldn't be fun anyway.
6. My next project is going to be a fixed gear because I had one years
ago and it was a ball - but would not be much fun trying to do with
my other bikes. Different worlds.

V/R
FD

 

[ScottMartin]

This is really all you needed to say, because the rest of your long-winded post is complete drivel. I'm amazed at your resentment toward a different style of bike other than your own.

Thanks for your input Scotty Dog. You must be an MTB rider who resents my opinion.

I don't resent MTBs or the people who ride them. Perhaps you should get your dictionary out and read the definition for "resent." And then reread the last five lines of my earlier comments.

My view is simple: Road bikes are better for road riding than MTBs. MTBs are better for off-road riding than road bikes. If you ride off road, you need an MTB. If your commute is the equivalent of an off-road ride (as Fritodog suggests his/hers is), you need an MTB or a road bike designed specifically for rough surfaces (a cross bike, for example). But if you're like most Americans who own bikes, you don't ride off the road, so a road bike would be a better choice. Without the specific need for an MTB, I don't understand why someone would choose the extra weight, lower gearing and more-compact geometry of an MTB over the more-efficient design of a road bike FOR ROAD USE.

Cycling Jedi mad a valid point about MTBs, one with which I agree, and I expanded on it. I'm glad I gave you something to rant about.

Scott

 

[ScottMartin]

Scott:

1. I prefer to ride my road bike, after work and on the weekends it's all
I ride.

Can’t argue with that!

2. I would love to ride it to work (be a lot quicker and easier on me)
but the politicians in the three suburbs and the section of Chicago
I traverse on the way have ignored my requests to spend the required
millions it would take to repave them.

Are your roads so bad that you’d ruin a road bike just in the course of normal riding?

3. I personally don't know anybody who in thier wildest dreams thinks an MTB could keep up with a road bike.

I’ve known several MTB riders who did think they could keep up with a roadie. It came as a surprise to them to learn they can’t.

4. Around here I have seen women in heels test riding Cannondales
that are destined for a hook in the garage.

A case of people looking for a status symbol. Not the best rationale for choosing a bike.

But when a person looking for TRANSPORTATION wanders into a shop, MTB's look durable, and generally sell for less (not talking about the guy who needs a bike for K2) than the Road bikes on display.

Yes, MTBs are durable, and they have to be. But for road use, they’re overkill.

As for cost, the recent shopping I’ve done tells me I can get a decent road bike (not a racing style) for less than $500. I didn’t really see any difference between the prices of road bikes or those of MTBs (but I didn’t shop at Wal-Mart).

And you can still walk into Wal-Mart and for two and a half bills get a functional bike for the average Joe.

Functional but not the best quality. And you don’t get the post-sale service you get at your LBS. And you can’t guarantee the bike was put together well, and if you’re the average Joe, you’ll only find out once something fails, like your brakes. While you’re in Wal-Mart looking at bikes, you’ll be lucky to find an employee who is knowledgeable enough to “talk bikes” with you if you have questions. And Wal-Mart doesn’t allow test rides. You get what you pay for.

5. If you followed me to work on a road bike, you would have to travel so slow to keep it in one piece, it wouldn't be fun anyway.

OK, you’ve sold me. It sounds like you NEED an MTB.

6. My next project is going to be a fixed gear because I had one years
ago and it was a ball - but would not be much fun trying to do with
my other bikes. Different worlds.

What made a fixed-gear fun?

Scott

 

[Fritodog]

Scott:

I was in one of the dozen bike shops in the area, and a "portly" gent looking
for a bike to lose weight pointed at my road bike and said "I wish I could ride
one of those, but the seat would kill me". Despite the fact there were at least
2 dozen seats hanging on the wall, he was buying a bike based on the seat
it came with. I flipped the lever on my seat, popped it off and said "presto
chango" He got the idea. This shop by the way loves to sell MTB's. Probably
they want the return business after they realize they bought the wrong bike.

RE: Fixed gear. Why not? Looking for another new project. All used parts,
don't need another road bike, enjoy pain, etc.

V/R
FD (a male)

 

[cyclist45]

testing..done.

honestly speaking, i don't have my own bike...i rent them for a fee..around 10+. sometimes i get a mountain bike...sometimes i get a hybrid. if you live in singapore, you can try the changi road route...in ECP. that is enough for those to assume that the distance is 1/4 of the actual tour de france race.

however, i would like to ask a question...

can bar ends really add another handlebar? because if they can, i think i will opt for upright and drop handlebars for the add on.

 

[bikeguy]

Well, I just got an MTB for riding during the winter (I ride competitively on a road bike, TT and road races) because road bikes stink for riding on ice and gravel which tends to puncture the tires quite often. I used to ride a MTB exclusively when I was younger and I can say that the number of flats is far fewer with thick knobby tires, so that's a good reason right there to use one if you're just a regular commuter. You can also easily flat when jumping curbs or hitting them with a road bike, you have to master the art of jumping that front wheel over the curb. I'm still waiting for the road tire that is relatively puncture proof - on second thought, better not.

-Bikeguy

 

[benkoostra]

I grew up in Montana and never rode a road bike until last year ~at least not a good one. I had a steel lugged bomber in the 70's, but it didn't go over curbs well

Having said that, I am a road bike convert. The MTB just takes up room and collects dust these days.

 

[dougadam]

My reason is that they are more comfortable to ride.

 

[webbhost]

In my case i used to think a mountain bike was "really good."

Thats until i discovered the power of a proper road bike... never went back to mountain bike since, but i do have it locked away in the shed.

 

[Rockslayer]

Quite simply-
Pavement, road, commuting etc.. Road bike or even hybrid.
Offroad riding ... MTB
If you were only allowed to have one bike.. MTB you can ride pavement and offroad. Try riding offroad with a roadbike.

 

[webbhost]

Quite simply-
Pavement, road, commuting etc.. Road bike or even hybrid.
Offroad riding ... MTB
If you were only allowed to have one bike.. MTB you can ride pavement and offroad. Try riding offroad with a roadbike.

possible... if you are prepared to go 5 mph and go home with a face full of mud

 

[xxamr_corpxx]

I'm about to buy a mountain bike for the purposes of commuting instead of using my roadies. Here's why :

1. The clearance on my road bike is so minimal I can't add mudguards. The weather here is unpredictable and the weather service is bad.

2. Less sexy, so less chance of being stolen.

3. For short trips in my nice pants, the chainguard keeps them nice and clean.

 

[lehowe0]

I concur with those who stated "less flats" as the reason.
I got rid of the knobby tires pretty quick (too much rolling resistence).

I would ride my road bike in town more often, but flats are a big problem with it. Also, the mtb deals with pot holes and curbs a lot better.