Getting started in MTB?

moonangel12

What would you recommend for someone completely new to trail riding? I have grown up on a MTB, but mostly road riding on it with occasional wide, flat-ish “trails”... my dad has always done a combo of road and trail riding (and at 69 is losing weight and getting back into shape, hoping to join a club this year, so proud of him!). Where we live now I know of a couple places that offer trails, but am slightly intimidated. Not sure what I need to do to prep my mind and body for such a different riding experience. I throughly enjoy trail runs vs. road runs, but doing it on two wheels is a completely different ballgame! Normally I would just load up and give it a try, but the unknowns of this are scarier to me.

NorthCascades

Find a flat trail to start, you'll get now comfortable controlling the bike, then ease into steepness. And enjoy! 🙂

cwolfman13

Yup, start on a flat trail that is not a super narrow single track with obstacles. That's how I got my wife into it as we have a lot of those kind of trails in our village. After she was comfortable with that I took her on a single track near the river that is flat, but it can also be pretty narrow in some places and has some small obstacles like tree roots and such. I finally got her up into the mountain foothills trails that are a combination of a lot of things with different fingers of difficulty level. She's still not super comfortable, but she can ride the more beginner foothill trails and deal with some rock gardens and such as long as she's taking it relatively slowly.

HCAs85

Remember to look ahead.
I did an easy trail overall today, but it had steep descents with lots of loose rocks.
I tend to really tense up. So I just kept repeating "Where you look, is where the bike will go." And it works. At one point the back tyre was kicked way out sideways, but I just kept looking at where I wanted to go, and the bike followed.

Oh, take it slow, build your fitness gradually and have fun

NorthCascades

How comfortable are you on a bike to begin with? I don't mean your sit bones, I mean controlling it, shifting appropriately, etc.

There are a lot of different kinds of MTB, if you don't have one already renting is a great way to see how a hard tail or full suspension treats you, etc.

Do you have rails-to-trails nearby?

gearhead426hemi

Depending on where you live and what you really feel like your goals will be will make a difference in what type of bike to ride. The mountain biking community is full of great people and everyone will be really excited to help you along your way. I would suggest ride as many bikes as possible because they all with have a little different feel. Don't be surprised that once you buy a bike a year later you might change your mind completely. I started off on a hard tail because I never wanted to do anything with drops or jumps. One year later I was riding a Enduro and hitting bike parks and drops and obstacles I never thought I would even consider. Another thing I would recommend is try to find local bike clubs or shops that have group rides. It makes it a lot more enjoyable do ride with others. If you live in or near the PACNW I have a few groups that are full of amazing people with some of the best trails you will find. Best of luck!

moonangel12

Thanks everyone! I will have to research the area in more detail - there are a lot of hiking spots, and biking is popular (although not to the extent of the PNW in my limited experiences). I am on the east coast, I know Harper’s Ferry has some options, I just need to read up ahead of time so I can decide where to go. We did one hike last year that was a nice path through some farms and fields, it might be a good place to start (mixture of ground types while still smooth, some hill but not a lot)...

I have an old Cannondale. I switched out the tires for hybrids a couple years ago (for road and trainer use) so I can switch them out (might wait until after the Tri in April though). I tend to have the mindset of keeping it simple and not try out a bunch of options so I don’t know what I am missing that was my mindset when purchasing a kayak, my longarm (quilting machine), and a couple other hobby items... it goes against most all recommendations, I know, but my personality can tend toward discontent quite easily so I have found it keeps me from getting stuck in that cycle.

moonangel12

Looking ahead will be my problem, I will want to watch my tires! I am comfortable on a bike anywhere but on roads. I get nervous around auto traffic. I need to work on my balance skills. I used to be able to stay up at a stop, but have lost that skill entirely.

NorthCascades

You might be able to get away with the tires you have, depending what the trail is like. I used smooth road tires (28mm even) on dirt roads. They'll lose traction in mud and MTB tires are at home in the mud, but if you don't already have knobbies give what you've got a try.