In this article we will go over how Mountain biking requires different techniques and skill than Road biking. By the end of this article you’ll be able to know which might be the right choice for you and why. Are you ready to find out what’s what? keep reading…
What is it?
Mountain biking is a different form of biking that is used in riding through rough and steep terrains. Mountain biking can also be a very tough workout and has usually required different techniques and skills than road biking such as; learning to when to use both (left and right) breaks and how to use them properly, controlling your bike and keeping it steady regardless of the type of terrain.
Why should you try Mountain biking?
As mentioned previously. Mountain biking can give one a tough workout, and it even has the potential to develop leg/calf muscles if you ride often. Here are some specific points on some benefits of mountain biking:
- Reduce risk of injuring joints. Sports like running, jogging and etc. can put a lot of stress on your leg joints than sports like biking or mountain biking because there is less pressure on your joints when you sitting instead of standing up.
- Increase of coordination and muscle memory. Seriously, mountain biking has a great potential to increase your diligence and how fast you can react to different things. As you mountain bike, you may come across different challenges and obstacles that nature has to offer to you. When Mountain biking, there is always a fear of falling off or loosing control from your bike and injuring yourself really bad, the reality is… you will take a few hits but from taking those falls you will learn and progress more and more until you know how to deal with different challenges on the path.
- A proper body workout. Mountain biking is no joke, it’s you and your bike up against all the ups and downs in nature own “race track” … or at least that’s what we like to call it. But in all seriousness, mountain biking is completely free, just find a trail that suits you and make sure it’s open to the public otherwise it may be apart of a certain park’s membership and etc. Keep in mind that it’s not all about the “toughest trails or the steepest paths on the mountain” that will give you all the workout, it’s the simple sport of biking itself that can strengthen your core and abdominal muscles. So, no matter the intensity, keep biking!
Key differences between mountain biking & road biking
Mountain biking has more surprises along the ride and you will need to stay sharp on your turns, braking and will also have to make safe decisions quick. Mountain biking also requires more safety equipment in terms of need pads elbow pads and even gloves, to protect your skin and bones from getting really injured.
Road Biking on the other hand is more focused and less of a multi tasked sport. Usually road bikers that ride for exercise take a straight path or find a route that is less harsh and much easier in terms of riding for a long duration of time and keeping up with the same momentum and pace (depending on varying road conditions). Where mountain biking is ridden in short bursts with stop overs and sight-seeing depending on which scenic route you choose to take.
Summary
To summarize this whole topic, Mountain biking is basically more of a sport that keeps you on your toes and requires reflexes to be used in order to prevent yourself from getting you or other hurt. Mountain biking also has different level of intensity (different levels of trails) and so a lot of family’s use mountain biking as a way to enjoy forest trails that may be less harsh in terms of workout and fidelity of making mistakes. On the other hand, you have Road biking which may be more suited for people that are on a casual or even workout routine. Road biking is often used as a non-polluting vehicle that is healthy for the environment and easy to handle on most occasions. Road biking is also safer in terms of what type of surface you are riding on (mostly concrete) and has less things in the way to stop a biker from moving forward, or in other terms less challenging to overcome obstacles that are usually small for e.g. small rocks, little twigs/branches garbage and etc.
Conclusion
In conclusion, that is how mountain bikes are differentiated than road bikes, now you should know which one might be more suitable/enjoyable for you, or you may even want to try both just to know how what the real experience is like. The choice is yours! Just make sure to wear your helmet folks.
