This past weekend, I hung up the suspension bikes to get out on my 29er rigid singlespeed. It had been awhile since I had ridden the one gear bike and even longer since I had forgone suspension on the dirt. A group of us decided it was a good idea to make this ride a theme and I was joined by two other riders all looking to dust the cobwebs off the spokes of their SS sleds. The day ended up being a 24 mile hammer through the woods without a single click of a gear on a sunny and 70 afternoon in the southeast United States.
In contrast, last weekend we all grabbed the larger suspension mountain bikes and headed up to a trail to do some drops, jumps and rock tech…the exact opposite of the ride this past weekend all within a 7 day period…and that got me thinking…
There Is No “Right Way” To Mountain Bike
Mountain biking is about the only sport I can think of that offers this kind of diversity to such a wide range of people around the world. Anyone who knows how to ride a bike can find a segment of mountain biking and call it their own. Furthermore, there is no right or wrong way (from a style standpoint) to ride your bike.
The crew here at Bike198 is friends with riders across the globe that vary in preferences due to a number of factors. Much of your “right way” to ride is dependent upon your surrounding landscapes and availability of parts and bikes. For those that have an abundance of different landscapes like in California, you have the ability to choose which area of mountain biking you are going to call home.
Even if you decide to call suspension-less SS your ride of choice this year, that same rider might change their preferences over time and bring themselves over to the tech/drop side of riding. As abilities increase and technology continues to make different riding styles easier to accomplish on the trail, we are seeing riders that have ridden a certain type of mountain bikes and trails start to venture over to other disciplines as bikes allow riders to tackle varying terrain with greater ease. The emergence of the 5.5″, light trailbike and 4.5″ travel 29er has also brought more technical abilities to riders who never saw themselves on 33+ pound mountain bikes of years past. With very capable bikes in the sub 30 pound range, more riders are throwing their leg over a bike that can take technical riding and drops than ever before. Among our location in the southeast, I have seen riders jump back and forth between the DH/FR end to XC racing…enjoying the aspects of both equally…just different. In my opinion, the second best part of riding is the ability to change the story as you go along as there is no perfect solution for all riders over time.
As we look at the different styles and preferences, there is no “right way” to mountain bike. There are plenty of different preferences and tastes…but at the end of the day…we are all just mountain bikers. We might enjoy the sport in different ways with different equipment, but no matter whether you are riding a 10 inch travel downhill rig or a rigid singlespeed…you are still a mountain biker and that story can change and adapt with time as you absorb yourself into this culture that we call home.