The Mountain Bike Thread

Lotsa new midrange $1k to $2k stuff out there, and it should get even better when the pandemic purchasers find out those bikes don't ride themselves and are just taking up space next to their unused Peloton!

Maybe gas prices will give it a bit of a reprieve, but I'm seeing fewer MAMILs out there on the road than during the height of the pandemic (even accounting for seasonality).
MAMIL ??
 
such a krusty take.

im sure we would all rather still be using cantilever breaks and single butted cromoly and innertubes in 26" tires

same with double taper fly lines
Hey!! I still have my Western Flyer from the 60's... still works. Why give up trailing edge, or antiquated tech if it gets the job done?

Edit: Ok I see others have also pretty much covered this. Me and my big mouf.....🙂
 
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Reading through this, just realized I've got quite the collection of antiquity here as far as bikes. The aforementioned Western Flyer from Western Auto, a Peugeot 12 speed road tourer, a Takara 14 speed that was my brothers, and a Mongoose that belonged to my late (2nd) brother.

So, seems I need to update.
Riding for me would be street/ light trail, grocery getting, urban fishing (we sit between 6 lowland south King lakes)

Any recommendations for a bike for an overweight, shot up backed 64 year old?

Obliviously, riding erect is preferred, that crouched over thing won't cut it for me.
 
Middle Aged Men in Lycra

Big meme in bicycle racing world.....portly MAMILs thinking a $10K bike will offset 40 lbs of blubber, old age, and lack of training. Roughly analogous to the hedge fund manager with $150K of exotic flyfishing gear who flyfishes twice a year....and is completely outfished by an experienced 10 year old equipped with an ancient Eagleclaw flyrod.

Us fat-asses on mountainbikes can better hide such deficits with less revealing mtb attire.
 
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Many years ago my wife got us both 10 speeds to ride. They both got sold quick.. If I need a bike to ride, I'll buy one with out any gears to use with big tires.
 
Middle Aged Men in Lycra

Big meme in bicycle racing world.....portly MAMILs thinking a $10K bike will offset 40 lbs of blubber, old age, and lack of training. Roughly analogous to the hedge fund manager with $150K of exotic flyfishing gear who flyfishes twice a year....and is completely outfished by an experienced 10 year old equipped with an ancient Eagleclaw flyrod.

Us fat-asses on mountainbikes can better hide such deficits with less revealing mtb attire.
Ahhh ok. Analogous to the old Middle Aged Overweight European Man in Speedo.

In both cases, YUK !!!
 
so is gravel riding just riding on dirt roads and trails, and trail riding is on whatever contraption that is in the post above?
 
so is gravel riding just riding on dirt roads and trails, and trail riding is on whatever contraption that is in the post above?
its more of a description of the bike then the riding done on it.

where you take it is just up to rider skill and what risks they are after.

"trail" bikes are generally full suspension mountain bikes with geometrey that is decent at climbing and descending. meduim suspension travel (more then cross country race bike, less then a downhill race bike)

"gravel" bikes are generally fully rigid bikes (road bikes) with geometrey that makes them more stable and fit bigger tires
 
its more of a description of the bike then the riding done on it.

where you take it is just up to rider skill and what risks they are after.

"trail" bikes are generally full suspension mountain bikes with geometrey that is decent at climbing and descending. meduim suspension travel (more then cross country race bike, less then a downhill race bike)

"gravel" bikes are generally fully rigid bikes (road bikes) with geometrey that makes them more stable and fit bigger tires
That's just ridiculous. That's like having a boat for the river, the lake, the small lake, and the sound. Or like having a dry fly rod, a nymphing rod, an indicator rod, and a spey rod. Preposterous.
 
Before you shell out the cash, make sure that you double check the ebike legality of whatever trails you are going to be riding. Different cities have different rules for "in town" trails (gravel paths) and for the different classes of ebikes. In WA, forest trails are closed unless specifically opened to ebikes.

Got an email about this today
 
One of the reasons I got into MTB is because it is ironically safer than road biking.

On a MTB, you are far more likely to hurt yourself. However, broken or dislocated bones are the worst that can (usually) happen. On a road bike, you are less likely to hurt yourself. However, you are FAR more likely to die.
that is total bull!!!!! i have about a 1/4 million street miles on motorcycles. how to survive without accidents is totally up to the rider. the first rule is, 'you are totally invisible'. no matter what you wear, you will not be seen. rule two, 'you yield to everyone no matter the circumstance'. the light is green so you proceed and get clobbered, a violation of rule number two. and i could carry on but the bottom line is it is up to the rider in each and every circumstance. get cocky and get hit, that simple.
 
that is total bull!!!!! i have about a 1/4 million street miles on motorcycles. how to survive without accidents is totally up to the rider. the first rule is, 'you are totally invisible'. no matter what you wear, you will not be seen. rule two, 'you yield to everyone no matter the circumstance'. the light is green so you proceed and get clobbered, a violation of rule number two. and i could carry on but the bottom line is it is up to the rider in each and every circumstance. get cocky and get hit, that simple.
I agree that the guidelines you give are smart. Motorcyclists and road bicyclists should heed them well because they will always lose the battle with a 2 ton steel beast.

I tend to disagree with the "bullshit" part, because on the trail one generally does not have those moving 2 ton objects to contend with.
 
that is total bull!!!!! i have about a 1/4 million street miles on motorcycles. how to survive without accidents is totally up to the rider. the first rule is, 'you are totally invisible'. no matter what you wear, you will not be seen. rule two, 'you yield to everyone no matter the circumstance'. the light is green so you proceed and get clobbered, a violation of rule number two. and i could carry on but the bottom line is it is up to the rider in each and every circumstance. get cocky and get hit, that simple.

The statistics on this are clear. It doesn't take a genius to see why what I wrote is accurate. Changing the behavior of one of the cohorts is a useless argument. For example, you could say mountain biking is still vastly more safe than road biking, if you only ride on gravel roads.
 
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Its total BS when the topic is pedal power bikes and you inject MOTORcycle comparisons.

Stay in your own lane. 😊
two wheels are still two wheels whether you are pedaling or twisting the wrist. my simple rules of he road kept he safe, coast to coast and border to border for decades. enough said, do your thing and be safe...
 
I used to commute from north seattle or edmunds down to pier 54 for work. Did it for years. Got hit 3 times. You have to be alert and defensive. And like someone said, assume they don't see you. I take the same approach when driving the MG. Logged thousands of miles training with no issues. However, on a ride I wasn't on, a gal from our club got her head taken off and splattered across the group by a driver passing another vehicle, caught her with the mirror. Be safe out there.
 
Middle Aged Men in Lycra

Big meme in bicycle racing world.....portly MAMILs thinking a $10K bike will offset 40 lbs of blubber, old age, and lack of training. Roughly analogous to the hedge fund manager with $150K of exotic flyfishing gear who flyfishes twice a year....and is completely outfished by an experienced 10 year old equipped with an ancient Eagleclaw flyrod.

Us fat-asses on mountainbikes can better hide such deficits with less revealing mtb attire.
I resemble that remark! Except it's more like 15lbs of blubber post-pandemic. My bike cost more than most of the cars I drove until not that far back but my waders smell like egg-cure-goo so I feel there's a balance to be had. My wonderful spouse is a MAWIL with a very nice gravel bike but she's actually in shape.

 
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