Mountain biking is a great way to get into shape, have fun, and explore the outdoors. However, there are some myths about mountain biking that unfortunately keep people from trying it out. In this post, we will debunk the most common mountain bike myths.
1. Mountain biking is only for experienced cyclists
One of the best things about mountain biking is that almost anyone can do it. If you’re able to ride a road bike, you will be able to ride a mountain bike, and it isn’t necessary that you be an experienced cyclist before getting into mountain biking. In fact, many people get their start in mountain biking after not having ridden a bike since they were a kid.
One of the beautiful things about the sport of mountain biking is that it is accessible to a wide variety of skill levels, from complete novices to advanced riders. Will a complete novice be sending their bike off of large jumps, or down extremely technical descents? Probably not. But that certainly doesn’t mean its not something they can work towards in their mountain biking journey.
Trail choice
What trails you choose to ride will make a big difference in how doable mountain biking is for you as an inexperienced rider. Thankfully relatively easy, beginner friendly trails tend to be in abundance in most areas. That is not to say that some of these beginner friendly trails don’t have more technical features for mountain bikers to push themselves on, but riders often will have a choice of going around those features they don’t quite feel ready for yet.
How to improve your mountain bike skills
The best way to improve so you can hit more trails and technical features is to get out and ride! Gaining experience on different trails of varying difficulties will be the best way to level up your skillset.
If you are a new rider or considering getting into mountain biking and looking for tips to help you along your MTB improvement journey, check out 8 Mountain Bike Tips for Beginners.
2. Mountain biking is too dangerous
Mountain biking being “too dangerous” can be a common belief that prevents people from getting started in the sport. While mountain bikers can certainly get themselves into some dangerous situations, that doesn’t mean the sport is too dangerous for the average person to consider. The truth is, mountain biking will be as risk free or as dangerous as you, the rider, choose to make it.
Trail and feature choice
Obviously what trails you choose to ride will make a big difference in how safe or dangerous mountain biking is for you. Are you brand new to the sport and heading straight to the biggest jumps and drops in your area? That might not be the safest idea.
And if you do happen to fall and hurt yourself as a brand new rider hitting large jumps and drops, does that mean the entire sport of mountain biking is too dangerous? Of course not!
The wide variety of mountain biking trails available means there are trails for everyone, and if you are brand new to the sport its probably best to get comfortable on your mountain bike on trails that will allow you to keep your wheels on the ground for the most part in the early going. As you get more comfortable you can start hitting smaller features and working your way up.
Riding within your limits
Riding within your limits is key to making the sport of mountain biking not “too dangerous” for you. This means starting out on trails you are comfortable on, but also riding trails at speeds that you are able to handle, and slowly working your way up to riding faster and hitting features such as drops and jumps.
Keep in mind that you as the rider control how safe or dangerous your ride is. If getting your bike airborne sounds appealing to you, start out with small jumps, and don’t ride these alone if you can avoid it. The best way to learn is to keep hitting familiar jumps over and over and slowly adding speed.
If you want to hit a jump or other technical feature that is new to you, it is best to ride it with someone who has hit it before and can demonstrate the appropriate speed to hit it with, and also point out things to look out for.
Protective equipment
Another way to improve your safety on the trails is wearing the appropriate protective equipment. Obviously, you are going to want to wear a well-fitting helmet that meets one of the CSA, EN, ASTM, CPSC or Snell B90/B95 certifications. If you plan on riding on the wild side, you might even want to get yourself a full-face helmet, however, if you’re just starting out a half shell will probably work just fine.
On top of wearing a helmet, you may want to get other protective gear like MTB gloves, elbow pads and knee pads. You know better than anyone how stable you feel on your bike, and if you feel like you’re likely to take some falls, you will be happy to be wearing the extra protective gear. Another added benefit of wearing protective equipment is it will make you feel safer on the trails and add to your confidence, which could help you to improve on your skills faster.
For more information on protective equipment and other accessories that can improve your mountain bike experience, check out Accessories to Make Your Mountain Biking Experience Better.
3. Mountain biking is expensive
Many people considering getting into mountain biking might want to get started but feel the sport is too expensive for them. The fact of the matter is that mountain biking can often be as expensive or inexpensive as you choose for it to be. The largest expense for any rider is the purchase of their bike.
Mountain bike choice
What mountain bike you choose to ride will greatly impact how expensive the sport is for you. It is true that some mountain bikes come with hefty price tags, but if you’re new to the sport or just thinking about getting started, that doesn’t have to be the case for you.
There are many capable mountain bikes that can work great for anyone from beginners to experienced mountain bikers that are a reasonable price. They won’t have huge travel on the suspension, and may not have all of the bells and whistles of more advanced mountain bikes, but they can certainly handle many trails and allow riders to have fun and get into the sport.
We at The Apex Adventurer have looked into some of the best options for bikes for newer riders that come in at a reasonable price – check out Best Beginner Mountain Bikes in 2022.
Few additional costs
One of the great things about mountain biking is that there is normally little cost associated with the sport beyond the cost of the bike and any equipment you wear such as a helmet, gloves, or other protective equipment.
There are many great trail systems that you can access free of charge, and many riders will do just that and enjoy all or most of their riding on trails that are free. If you compare MTB to other organized sports or even something like a gym membership, the costs of MTB are not too high – think about your bike purchase as a membership that gives you access to ride free trails for as long as your bike is in working order (likely several years).
How to reduce costs associated with MTB
Another cost to think about with mountain biking is the cost of maintaining your bike. As a general rule of thumb, the more expensive the bike, the more expensive the maintenance. Part of this is because more expensive full suspension bikes will need to have extra maintenance on things like the rear shock that won’t come into play on more beginner-friendly rides.
You can reduce these costs by learning how to do most maintenance yourself. Bike toolkits can be purchased relatively cheaply, and will allow you to do many of the tasks you would otherwise need to pay a bike shop to do for you. This can be a great way to reduce your costs associated with mountain biking.
Another way to reduce MTB costs is to do most of your riding on free trails. Just because there is no cost associated with a trail system doesn’t mean that it won’t be just as much fun as a paid bike park.
4. Mountain biking is hard
The sport of mountain biking can be difficult, but that comes down to how challenging of trails and features you choose to ride, and also how aggressively you ride.
Choose your own difficulty
An awesome thing about the sport of mountain biking is the amount of choice riders have when choosing which trails to ride. Depending on where you are located, you could have anything from steep mountain descents, trails along cliffs, and large drops and jumps, to casual and relatively flat cross country trails.
The beauty of mountain biking is you can make it as difficult or as easy as you want. Even within a single trail, there can be difficult features to hit, but you as the rider have the choice of whether to hit the feature, or to simply ride or walk your bike past the feature.
Rewarding to see improvement
If mountain biking didn’t have any difficulty to it, it would not be nearly as rewarding. When you go riding regularly on the same trails, you will get the amazing experience of seeing yourself improve. Maybe its improvement in the time it takes you to ride a certain trail, or maybe you were able to hit a feature like a drop or jump that you had previously been too intimidated by.
Whatever it is you like to do on your mountain bike, if you get out and hit the trails regularly, you WILL see improvement, and that will just make the MTB experience that much more fun for you and it will make you want to go ride that much more.
5. Mountain biking isn’t fun
It is hard to believe anyone saying mountain biking isn’t fun has given the sport a fair chance.
Trails for every preference
The variety in trails available to riders means there is something for just about everyone in the sport of mountain biking. Do you like challenging yourself physically with a mix of climbs and descents? There are trails for that.
Do you love riding trails with lots of twists, turns, and berms that demand precise handling? You will find that too.
Some might think that the sport of mountain biking could get boring after a while, but there are always more technical, more advanced, more difficult trails to keep pushing yourself, which makes MTB very fun, and as we mentioned above, rewarding.
Exploring nature
Another fun aspect of mountain biking is that it lets you explore nature while you ride. There are MTB trails in the mountains, through deep forests, around picturesque lakes, and everywhere in between. Mountain bike riders often get to enjoy some beautiful views that they would never have seen had they not been involved in the sport.
When riding your bike deep into nature there is also the potential for animal sightings, which are always exciting. Being able to explore nature through mountain biking is one of many Benefits of Mountain Biking.
6. You have to be fit to mountain bike
Having to be fit to start mountain biking is one of the myths that keeps people from getting into the sport. If you are not fit but thinking of starting MTB, you likely won’t be the best or fastest rider when first starting out, but that doesn’t mean you can’t improve a lot and have lots of fun along the way.
Trails for all fitness levels
If you find mountain biking to be intimidating because you are not as fit as you’d like to be, fear not – you can still ride and have lots of fun doing it. That’s because there are so many different trails available to riders. You can start out on flat trails that don’t involve lots of climbs. And don’t get discouraged if you have to walk your bike for some sections of trail, that is normal and common amongst mountain bikers.
Another option is to just ride your bike around on the road on flat predictable ground until you feel both your fitness level and comfort level have improved. Then you can take it to the trails where the real fun begins!
It’s great exercise
If you aren’t happy with your current level of fitness, we can’t think of a better way to improve than to hop on your mountain bike and hit the trails. Mountain biking provides a great, varied workout with differing levels of intensity. There are difficult climbs, but also more relaxed, meandering cross country trails and descents that allow you to just have a lighter workout if that’s what you’re after.
A benefit of getting fit through mountain biking is that its a lot of fun – its easy to stay motivated when your main reason to exercise is to do something you love to do, as opposed to dragging yourself to the gym to do repetitive exercises.
Conclusion
Hopefully you now understand that mountain biking is a sport that mostly anyone can get into, that its a great way to spend time, have fun and improve your fitness. It would be a shame to not get your start in the sport because of myths you have heard about it. As many mountain bikers will tell you, getting into MTB can be one of the best things you’ll ever do. Ready to try mountain biking? Here are some tips to help you get started safely and have fun!