First trail ride.

solidsneek

Hey guys!

Yesterday I went up to sandwell valley and hit the easier trail of the two now from what I understand these aren't great rides but I am relatively new. I normally do around 20-30 mile a week on the road but I have a MTB for a reason. I thought I was somewhat fit enough but this was another level I felt physically sick I was that tired. I didn't eat before I left which was a mistake and it was early. I enjoyed it though and didn't do too bad at first although I did go the wrong way a couple of times.

cooldad

The 3km one? Which is the only one they mention here.

http://www.sandwell.gov.uk/info/200248/ ... ell_valley

whyamihere

There is only one trail, but there's lots of options (blue/red/black).

Just so you know, in terms of difficulty, the 'black' sections are similar to blue/reds elsewhere. To be honest, the hardest bit is probably the short rocky climb near the start. Build up slowly though, the laps are short enough that you can try different lines each run through.

scoi

Off road miles are harder than on road. The rough terrain makes each pedal stroke move you forward less than on roads. Take it slower than you think you can on the uphills. The first time I planned a 15km route at Woburn after a few years off I headed home after 3km.

Most beginners use a hard gear with a low cadence, this burns through muscles quickly, switch to the granny ring and keep fast easy rotations and you'll go longer.

rockmonkeysc

Granny ring uses no less energy though. A lot of people find it much easier to stay in a higher gear and get it over with quicker. That's part of the reason why single ring gear set ups have become so popular.

The Rookie

Spinning higher cadences uses more energy but does fatigue you less, both well proven and documented. Whether that is easier or harder is subjective!

Angus Young

RockmonkeySC wrote:

Granny ring uses no less energy though. A lot of people find it much easier to stay in a higher gear and get it over with quicker. That's part of the reason why single ring gear set ups have become so popular.

The Rookie wrote:

Spinning higher cadences uses more energy but does fatigue you less, both well proven and documented. Whether that is easier or harder is subjective!

I find spinning in low gear drains my legs. And I don't seem to be getting anywhere as a reward.

The Rookie

We're all different, also 'what you find' may not actually be what is happening, there is a good reason that cadences in the TdF have gone from circa 55rpm pre Armstring to circa 90rpm now and it because it fatigues the muscles less, so they can produce more power (via less torque) for longer. It does use more fuel (carb's and O2) though.

kajjal

Mountain biking is very different to road biking it is more like circuit training where as road biking is more controlled endurance. Also in mountain biking you have to concentrate harder on the trail and there is a lot more bike handling involved. Try to maintain road bike speeds off road will kill you due to the extra grip of the big knobbly tyres and the trail not being like a smooth straight road.

I do both as you get the benefit of to different types of cycling.

The Rookie

Nothing to do with your cadence though.....

Angus Young

The Rookie wrote:

It does use more fuel (carb's and O2) though.

That's an interesting comment. Rarely am I well fuelled - I eat O.K. but not with an eye on physical exertion. And I have asthma which means my O2 levels are not spectacular. It always feels as if my lungs are one size too small for my body. Maybe this explains why I find 'spinning' particularly draining.

ben@31

Coming from road cycling, I find mtb uses a surprising amount of balance, weight shifting and handling.
I still get tired on a mtb but have hardly moved anywhere.
The way I picture gearing is to imagine how many inches the bike rolls forwards with each revolution of the cranks... granny rings require less leg muscle force but will only move you 18.8 inches for each revolution of the crank. In the big gears, the back wheel rolls 94.7 inches with each 360 degree rotation of the cranks.

Going uphill, lower gears doesn't make it overall easier, you're just substituting more cardio for less brute force.