Are MTBs losing out to road bikes

Kowalski675

Bikes don't have reverse. Well, Goldwings do, but that's cheating.

bennett_346

I'm getting bored, can we talk about motorbikes?

Kowalski675

bennett_346 wrote:

I'm getting bored, can we talk about motorbikes?

And you don't see the amusing irony that you, Njee and Chunkers were the ones who introduced the subject of motorcycles to this thread? Hoisted by your own petard there, I think, well done...

rgliniany

Kowalski675 wrote:

bennett_346 wrote:

I'm getting bored, can we talk about motorbikes?

And you don't see the amusing irony that you, Njee and Chunkers were the ones who introduced the subject of motorcycles to this thread? Hoisted by your own petard there, I think, well done...

they might have introduced it.... you dont have to perpetuate it.....

and i dont think mtb's are losing out to road bikes... it will just be a cyclical trend..... mtb's will pick up again once the craze of road bikes dies down again.....

Chunkers1980

Nope.

Kowalski675

rgliniany wrote:

Kowalski675 wrote:

bennett_346 wrote:

I'm getting bored, can we talk about motorbikes?

And you don't see the amusing irony that you, Njee and Chunkers were the ones who introduced the subject of motorcycles to this thread? Hoisted by your own petard there, I think, well done...

they might have introduced it.... you dont have to perpetuate it.....

But they make it so easy, it's like they want to be shot down...

junglist_matty

cooldad wrote:

You missed this bit, selectively or not

cooldad wrote:

And that's half an hour outside central London.

Indeed, and that's just my point; MTB'ing for the majority is simply not as accessible. You have to drive/train a MTB for half an hour (at least for many) to get to somewhere decent to ride, not everyone has hours they can waste simply driving around just to go for a ride.

pesky_jones

junglist_matty wrote:

...And gone are the days kids could rock up to a small bit of local woodland and ride some jumps built by the older kids or rip down a short DH track with a few berms... They all get bulldozed as soon as they are discovered, trail centres and bridleways are the only places you can happily get away with riding an MTB these days.

Plus he missed this bit, selectively or not. Kids can't drive

cooldad

Pesky Jones wrote:

junglist_matty wrote:

...And gone are the days kids could rock up to a small bit of local woodland and ride some jumps built by the older kids or rip down a short DH track with a few berms... They all get bulldozed as soon as they are discovered, trail centres and bridleways are the only places you can happily get away with riding an MTB these days.

Plus he missed this bit, selectively or not. Kids can't drive

But they don't just get bulldozed. Again plenty of bits that kids can ride to, and plenty of sneaky stuff being built. Unless they are real, actual inner city kids, there will be something within riding distance (mostly).

I came across this within a few hundred meters of a local estate a while back. Well hidden, but must have taken a lot of work, and apparently been there for ages - still not bulldozed.

rockmonkeysc

There are loads of unofficial trails and jump spots.
My local spot is technically illegal but there are 30+ downhill trails and its been going for years. I know of several unofficial jump spots as well as big freeride lines in quarries.
Flattening trails costs a lot so it rarely happens
Wild building is still alive and well.

Kowalski675

There's an old abandonded quarry not far from here where people have been building some jumps etc. Apparently been like that for ages and nobody seems to mind:

lighty89

Got a roadie last year, loved riding it, although it can get boring - joined a club and didn't fancy spending all my day sat in a cafe drinking coffee and eating cake.

Went out to cannock chase Sunday, completely forgot how much more FUN MTB is....

Prowlus

When I visited my local Evans last week on a quest fo find a new long term full susser , i saw so at least 10 people purchase either road , cyclecross or hybrid bikes . Almost nobody gave a glance of the very few mtb hardtails or even the 3 full sussers on the shop floor except me .
When I eventually bought my camber comp after passing on the poorly specced norc fluids, one person who had a racer commented on why would I spend £1500 on a heavy aluminuim bike that looked like a chav's ride ( it was black with green stripes) when i could have bought a lightweight carbon roubaix?
I told him I like offroad aswell as road ( i do use a pinnacle dolomite roadie with clipless) and he said there aren't any trails around North London (i beg to differ) . He added that his ride was elegent like a ferrari unlike mine but i interjected that mine can actually handle the local potholes .
I think mtbs are having an image problem right now having most of the general,public viewing them as the ride of the local youth oik (think spesh hardrock) whilst racers echo thevspirit of team gb

cooldad

I bet there'll be a load of lightly used road bikes being sold over the next few years as people clear out their sheds.

Kowalski675

Prowlus wrote:

When I visited my local Evans last week on a quest fo find a new long term full susser , i saw so at least 10 people purchase either road , cyclocross or hybrid bikes .

Now they are a bunch of freaks...

Kowalski675

cooldad wrote:

I bet there'll be a load of lightly used road bikes being sold over the next few years as people clear out their sheds.

Just steer clear of the lightly used lycra they're flogging with them. :?

drummer_boy

I got a CX bike for Winter commuting, as I can stick road tyres on it and fly along. Also I use it now on my canal towpath route home.

In fact, for everything apart for downhill riding the CX bike takes in it's stride, and is generally a faster and lighter ride.

Having said that I did 8hrs in the saddle yesterday on canal towpaths on my MTB,and fixed 3 punctures along the way!! So I still use it.

Monty Dog

My most recent bike purchases have been: + CX bike - 26" MTB + road bike + CX bike + road bike + 29" MTB + 29+ MTB. Present count is 3x road bikes, 2x CX bikes, 2x MTB. It's all about having the right tool for the job.

delete_my_account

My most recent bike purchases have been: + CX bike - 26" MTB + road bike + CX bike + road bike + 29" MTB + 29+ MTB. Present count is 3x road bikes, 2x CX bikes, 2x MTB. It's all about having the right tool for the job.

I understand having multiple MTBs because there are loads of types but a road bike's a road bike, surely?

Chunkers1980

My limited knowledge says there are ones you'd like to ride all day and others that you wouldn't

njee20

Most roadies will have a winter/training bike and a 'nice' bike.

There are differences - some are more upright, some are more aero etc, but generally people will gravitate towards one or t'other - if folk like an aggressive racey position they're unlikely to also want a different bike with a very upright position.

markhewitt1978

njee20 wrote:

Most roadies will have a winter/training bike and a 'nice' bike.

Many will, a lot won't. I don't have the space for two bikes.

njee20

Look harder!

rockmonkeysc

markhewitt1978 wrote:

njee20 wrote:

Most roadies will have a winter/training bike and a 'nice' bike.

Many will, a lot won't. I don't have the space for two bikes.

I have one road bike. It is used for commuting and as a target for abuse and hate. I really don't understand the appeal of road cycling. It's like mountain biking but with none of the fun and far more dangerous.

Prowlus

I just came back from Richmond park testing my camber and almost everyone there was using a roadbike even on dirt single track which I found unusual , i even actually outran one as he was attempting to ride an uneven surface . When i reached pembroke lodge , alot of the cyclists were again starring at my rig commenting on how big my wheels are compared to theirs . They were a bit shocked that my wheels are supposed to be the same size as theirs 8)

njee20

You seem to spend a lot of your time riding inappropriate bikes around Richmond Park, and finding weird roadies who have never seen a mountain bike. IMO, few of these exist, and I don't know where you're finding them.

That said, I did have a gent on a road bike comment how small my chainring was and how large my cassette was recently. But he was clearly a moron.

Prowlus

njee20 wrote:

You seem to spend a lot of your time riding inappropriate bikes around Richmond Park, and finding weird roadies who have never seen a mountain bike. IMO, few of these exist, and I don't know where you're finding them.
.

Its probably they were ppl who have caught on to the trend of buying a road bike thanks to wiggins , pendleton etc as opposed to hard core riders .
Those ones are too much into their sleek new carbon "ferraris" to pay any attention to anything else and when something like my "ranger rover evoque" is presented to them .
Btw why would my rig be inappropriate for Richmond? There are mountain bike singletrack sections around there perfect for shakedown cruises for newly purchased xc types plus I need to save up for a new cycle rack . I'm a bit worried about hitching a longer and bigger wheeled 29er on a saris bones behind my hatchback

rockmonkeysc

Prowlus wrote:

njee20 wrote:

You seem to spend a lot of your time riding inappropriate bikes around Richmond Park, and finding weird roadies who have never seen a mountain bike. IMO, few of these exist, and I don't know where you're finding them.
.

Its probably they were ppl who have caught on to the trend of buying a road bike thanks to wiggins , pendleton etc as opposed to hard core riders .
Those ones are too much into their sleek new carbon "ferraris" to pay any attention to anything else and when something like my "ranger rover evoque" is presented to them .
Btw why would my rig be inappropriate for Richmond? There are mountain bike singletrack sections around there perfect for shakedown cruises for newly purchased xc types plus I need to save up for a new cycle rack . I'm a bit worried about hitching a longer and bigger wheeled 29er on a saris bones behind my hatchback

Uou compare your bike to a Range Rover Evoque? Is it a completely useless sack of sh1t which was designed by a team lead by Victoria Beckham and completely hopeless off road? Does everyone who sees you riding it think you must be a right tw@?

Prowlus

RockmonkeySC wrote:

Prowlus wrote:

njee20 wrote:

You seem to spend a lot of your time riding inappropriate bikes around Richmond Park, and finding weird roadies who have never seen a mountain bike. IMO, few of these exist, and I don't know where you're finding them.
.

Its probably they were ppl who have caught on to the trend of buying a road bike thanks to wiggins , pendleton etc as opposed to hard core riders .
Those ones are too much into their sleek new carbon "ferraris" to pay any attention to anything else and when something like my "ranger rover evoque" is presented to them .
Btw why would my rig be inappropriate for Richmond? There are mountain bike singletrack sections around there perfect for shakedown cruises for newly purchased xc types plus I need to save up for a new cycle rack . I'm a bit worried about hitching a longer and bigger wheeled 29er on a saris bones behind my hatchback

Uou compare your bike to a Range Rover Evoque? Is it a completely useless sack of sh1t which was designed by a team lead by Victoria Beckham and completely hopeless off road? Does everyone who sees you riding it think you must be a right tw@?

So what should i compare it too ? A mercedes g-wagon? I'm just saying my rig combines both style and functionality as opposed to road rigs which are speed and beauty combined

rockmonkeysc

G Wagon is another big city w@nkers 4x4. You won't ever see one outside the M25.