The Complete Guide to Mountain Biking

Chapter 1: What Is Mountain Biking and Why People Love It

Mountain biking is, at its most basic, riding a bicycle off paved roads. That's it. But the difference between a smooth, flat bike path and a mountain bike trail is the difference between a walk to the corner store and a hike through a national park. Trail riding is rougher, more interesting, and far more memorable, and it's the reason people end up obsessed with it.

Let's start with what a trail actually looks like. It's a path, usually between four and six feet wide, carved into a forest, mountain, or even a city park. It can be hard-packed dirt, loose gravel, exposed tree roots, or a mix of all of them. It can be flat, rolling, or - very often on your first few attempts - relentlessly uphill. There are obstacles: rocks that sit at tricky angles, logs that fell across the path, and narrow bridges over creeks. There are drops and bumps. And there are sections where the only thing between you and the bottom of the valley is a thin line of trees. That sounds scarier than it is, and you don't start on those sections anyway. But the point is this: a trail is not a road, and the bike you're on needs to be designed for it.

Here's what a satisfying session actually looks like. It's a Saturday morning, and you've put your bike on the back of your car, or on a rack,