[Closed] I prefer road riding to mountain biking

Don't declare it for all the world yet mate!

Personally, my affinity for road riding ebbs and flows.

get a [s]cross[/s] gravel bike.

[runs for exit]

I know what you're saying but the good bits on a mountain bike are so much better than the good bits on a road bike that there's no way in hell I would ever say road biking is better.

Who cares ride bikes and enjoy it

This week I have ridden a road bike, a cross bike a SS and now off out on the FS Not sure what I will ride at the weekend.

+1 to what junkyard says. Riding any bike is better than being part of a traffic jam.

Yeah, as long as you're out there spinning those pedals and loving it, you are doing a great thing! 😉

Nothing to see here people. Move along.

+1 for most of the OP and the reasons. MTB is all about quality not quantity for us now, I'd rather ride my road bike than drive 30 mins to ride the Chilterns (heresy for my riding mates, I know), so it's either road or "worthwhile" trips to FoD, Wales (usually for long weekends), the Downs etc. Usually have a big MTB holiday every year (Morocco, Turkey, India etc) so it's still our "first love" but the combination of convenience and genuine enjoyment swings the majority of our riding onto the road.

I've got a 3-day weekend coming up with the missus (very rare, she had to take leave to make it work) and it's CX race saturday, 80 mile road ride sunday, and possibly MTB monday IF it stays dry.

I don't.

+1 for Junkyard

They're all good,just get out & enjoy the cycling!

get out *points to the door* you're not welcome here, leave your baggies & peaked helmet at the door. 😉

It's all good. I'm slightly addicted to doing the sort of distances on a road bike that just aren't possible on a mountain bike. I've hardly ridden off-road in about eight years: aside from liking the road, MTBing is much, much harder to fit in around kids.

I do kind of miss traffic-free riding, though (even though most of my road riding is at about 6am when there's not too much traffic about). A cross/gravel/whatever bike is a wonderful n+1 to have 🙂

They are both ace!

Had a lovely ride on local roads yesterday. Off to Penmachno for some off road fun today.

If I absolutely had to give one up though, it'd be mtb. Mostly because we have loads of great local roads but uninspiring trails.

Who cares ride bikes and enjoy it

This week I have ridden a road bike, a cross bike a SS and now off out on the FS Not sure what I will ride at the weekend.

I care because I simply don't have the opportunities to ride as much as you have this week, so I put a lot more pressure on myself to make those rare rides count.

MTBing is much, much harder to fit in around kids.

This. If I lived on Whistler Mountain I'm quite sure I'd be mountain biking as much if not more than road riding, but location and circumstance mean road riding gets the nod most of the time.

get out *points to the door* you're not welcome here, leave your baggies & peaked helmet at the door.

*ahem* says the man who prompted this thought process in my head by giving me a choice tonight 😉 😆

Both good for different reasons and I get training benefits from each discipline which help with the other.

If I do one more than the other for whatever reason, when I go back to the other discipline I remember how good it is. We've managed quite a nice balance this year which has been great.

Get a fast hardtail (xc 29er), best of both worlds, with some fast rolling tyres they're pretty good on road, I set off at 5.30pm Wednesday night, did 20 miles finishing in the dark, mixed back lanes & bridleways/cheeky woods ride, was ideal, and never felt the bike was the limiting factor on the road sections.

Get a fast hardtail (xc 29er)

Funnily enough this has crossed my mind. A few years back I had a light, rigid, geared MTB alongside a road bike and a full susser. I always said to myself that if I could only keep [u]one[/u] bike, that would have been it. I took it everywhere and it was fun everywhere. Granted I was very much a wheels on the ground rider then 😉

Or a CX bike?

Or a CX bike?

Probably a good choice for "one bike to rule them all". The fact is my mountain biking and road riding has diverged more and more, with my mountain biking in the last year or so more focused on the more technical end of the spectrum than "old skool" XC; "one bike" isn't as practical an option as it once was.

calling Binners to the forum!!...bring yer Bombers with you!!

To really enjoy mountain biking, you have to be skilled/brave/fast; funnily enough, most mountain bike riders aren't. Hence, pootling along at a "fast" 16mph average on a road bike will make much more sense to them.

Don't get an CX bike they really don't cut it for proper offroad. However a decent hardtail 29er will cope with pretty much everything offroad, while being acceptable to ride onroad to the trail.

I think an XC race hardtail would be the bike to rule them all. And with a dropper post you could ride 99% of what you do on the full sus (just a bit slower).

I've riden velodrome, road and MTB so far this week. Away visiting the parents and may not manage a ride this weekend, going to try and sneak the kiddie trailer in the boot and see what I can do with minimal traffic.

To really enjoy mountain biking, you have to be skilled/brave/fast; funnily enough, most mountain bike riders aren't. Hence, pootling along at a "fast" 16mph average on a road bike will make much more sense to them.

unsure if blatant troll or twit 🙂

Don't get me wrong, this is not me falling out of love with mountain biking. This is me choosing to spend my rare 2 hours of riding opportunity by riding 2 hours on my road bike instead of 1 hour off-road on my mountain bike and 1 hour getting to and from the good stuff. Anyway, it's all been said before blah blah blah 😆

it's the convenience

Ready meals of biking. I'm out. 😀

unsure if blatant troll or twit

😀 It's a summary of my cycling "career"

Bez - Member

unsure if blatant troll or twit

that's David doing his finest work of late.

and, as ever, it relies on a grain of truth.

I wouldn't ride if it involved having to put bike in car and drive somewhere so I just use the best bike for the surroundings I live in.

This means a bit of road and a lot of off road. I have at times strayed to only road but quickly got bored.

Depends where you live.

I'm right next to Ashton Court & Leigh Woods in Bristol. They're lower ranking trail centres, but that's all that I need at the moment! I can be out and back in around an hour; perfect for work-from-home days or evening rides.

If it weren't for their proximity, I'd "mountain bike" only a handful of times per year over the last few years - but thankfully it's much more often.

It sounds like you prefer convenient/accessible riding, not road riding per se.

Depends where you live.

Indeed. When I lived in Manchester, a quick two hour blast was only possible on the road. Now I'm in the hills, it's just as easy to jump on the MTB. Excluding commuting I probably split the time 50/50 and whether I do one or the other depends on what I can be bothered with, weather etc at the time. If it's sunny/dry then the MTB wins, if raining then usually the road bike.

It sounds like you prefer convenient/accessible riding, not road riding per se.

semantics 🙂

I prefer road riding [i]because[/i] it is more convenient/accessible. I like driving up and down the country if there's good riding at the end of the journey, if only I had the opportunity to do it more often. If I had no other responsibilities I'd be boring all of you on here about my latest weekend away mountain biking up and down this beautiful land.

Conversely I've rarely driven anywhere to road ride. The road riding on my doorstep is so good.

Not sure what I will ride at the weekend.

I do....fnar fnar....

I think you tend to get more cross over from MTB to Road, rather than Road to MTB.

I know a few Road Only cyclist at work.....They're missing out on soooo much.

Most of my riding is on my cross....but I do get a little tingle and quite a bit or urge when I'm getting the full bouncer out....

It isn't semantics though, is it? Where I live I'm off the tarmac within two minutes and on proper singletrack in less than ten. Conversely the roads around here are pretty busy so I don't think I could really enjoy road riding here. Move me to somewhere without local trails and with quieter roads and things would be very different.

There's some lovely roads pretty much from my doorstep. Bugger all by way of trails really without a 30 minute drive.

I [i]think[/i] I still prefer mountain biking but increasingly road riding is my default option due to time constraints.

It's come to my attention recently that I prefer sitting on my arse to either road or mountain biking.
I wish it were not true but it's kind of getting that way!

De gustibus non disputandum est.

It isn't semantics though, is it?

<puts on best panto voice>

"Oh yes it is!"

OK, I'll do it. I'll forego the road ride tonight. I will ride my squidger 30 minutes on (admittedly pretty) roads to get to some good off-road. I'll let you know how I get on 🙂

I will ride my squidger 30 minutes on (admittedly pretty) roads to get to some good off-road.

why not put bike in car, drive there and back and get an extra 40 mins or so off road riding within the same overall time window ?

OK, so this is where we came in at the beginning. I could do that, of course I could, but as a spoilt brat who expects quality experiences from his doorstep, I'd feel like I was short-changing myself by losing ANY riding time in the car as the Sun goes down. If it was light until 11pm that's probably what I'd be doing though.

PS getting bike rack on the car and other bike/car related faffing also loses me valuable daylight riding hours.

Oh my God I'm so demanding!!! 😆

I don't think it's that I prefer road riding, it is simply that it is more convenient and easier to fit around the rest of my life. I have local trails, but they're 20mins trundling each way, or I can load up the motor and drive to swinley or further afield but it is all faff and time lost, vs getting your riding kit on, fill up you bottle and just go.

The ideal compromise at the minute is a CX/gravel bike I squeezed in 20miles this afternoon mostly on quiet roads linked up with some cheeky trails and some tow paths, further than the MTB would have taken me in the time, more off-road than the road bike could do.

getting bike rack on the car and other bike/car related faffing

You could optimise this, I'm sure.

Think it's a location thing really, personally riding on the road frightens the life out of me at times so I struggle to enjoy it. Rather be out of the hustle and bustles way in the sticks.

Each to their own though, whatever strikes your match.

I also moved from mountain to road due to being able to go on a ride without needing a two hour drive. The more I got into road riding the more I enjoyed it. A large part may be down to the clothing

I have to agree with the convenience thing. 99% of my riding is off road, but only because it's convenient and I'm off road 100yds from my front door with miles of trail to play on. If I had to drive to mtb then I think 99% of my riding would be road (assuming the road riding from my door was any good). All down to limited time and getting the most out of my 'me' time.

I was a dyed in the wool mtb'r for around 5 years and couldn't for the life of me fathom why ANYONE would prefer riding around boring roads with no features 🙄

Been mostly a sour faced roadie for last 10 years with the odd foray off road 😆

A good mtb ride beats a good road ride but it's much harder to get a good mtb ride than road. Easier to get out on the road bike too.

I think the OP lives near Leek and if you ask me it has some of the best road riding in the country. I spent a big chunk of the summer training for my Pyrenees holiday in the Staffordshire Moorlands and its fantastic on a road bike. There is good mountain biking locally but it's a slog to get to without getting in the car.

I've spent much more time on the road bike in the past six months and i'm a much better mountain biker for it. A year ago I was the slowest in my group now i'm the fastest but I usually stay at the back chatting on a group ride.

I think the OP lives near Leek

Argh! I'm being stalked 🙂 You are of course correct.

I can report that I did, in fact, get out on the MTB tonight. It could not have been further removed from a road ride with plenty of hike-a-bike and techy riding/walking. It were grand 🙂

[url= https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5803/21894901145_aae0f9c265_k.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5803/21894901145_aae0f9c265_k.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/zmM6iB ]That was a nasty crash[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/stilltortoise/ ]stilltortoise[/url], on Flickr

[url= https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5646/21273691043_f0d068916c_k.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5646/21273691043_f0d068916c_k.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/ypTebB ]Cheeky[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/stilltortoise/ ]stilltortoise[/url], on Flickr

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Both are as good as each other.......the trouble comes when you I have is come Sunday one lot of mates want to go roadie and the other half fat biking???....the truma??.. 😀

TTh can only afford one decent bike, but I'm lucky in where I live on the edge of the Pennines, so an XC hard tail does it all for me.

There are no rules though, ride what you want, where you want.

I've just ridden the road bike and spent the entire time wishing I had got up earlier and got out on the MTB.

Apart from the satisfaction of a long ride it is a ****ing boring way to get fitness. Where's the feeling of speed and excitement? I never get in from a road ride and wish i was still riding unlike with the MTB where i wish I still was.

****ing mundane way to spend an afternoon.

'Road' riding is a necessity round here as there are no hills or trails for miles. About 1% of the riding I do is off road. However off road is what I look forward to and is my occasional treat. Also motivates me to at least keep a low Base level of fitness for the times I do manage to escape for the day.

You poor thing. Hopefully it'll wear off.

There's only crap mountain biking in my area. I tried organizing rides on a local forum but stone cold zero interest in going local.

Despite the crap mountain biking I'd still miss it going roadie.

For these situations, tune the bike for speed, high gears ie roadie cassette, fast rolling high pressure tyres - but not slicks you still want to do xc and ride down steps and drops.

...it is a **** boring way to get fitness. Where's the feeling of speed and excitement?

This could apply either way. Let's face it, it's not just the type of bike you're on that makes a ride good, bad or indifferent. The weather, the terrain, the company and what you had for dinner the night before can all make a difference to how enjoyable the ride is. A fast and twisty road descent is considerably more exciting for me than plodding along the side of a flat and muddy field.

I've rarely if ever been disappointed by a road ride; they're all good. I have had quite a few MTB rides that haven't met expectations though. So back to my OP, I guess I've realised that if I want a guaranteed enjoyable ride, road is the best bet.

A fast and twisty road descent is considerably more exciting for me than plodding along the side of a flat and muddy field.

That's a pish argument. Of course a road descent is going to be more fun than a flat field, it's apples and oranges innit?. You're basing your preferences on your locality, which is fine and totally understandable, but your locality is the defining part of this story.

If you lived somewhere that had better mountain biking, would you feel the same?.

That's a pish argument

Yes, yes it is, but it wasn't meant to be an argument. I was just responding to JoeFM's question "where's the speed and excitement?" in relation to road cycling. I'm not naive enough to try and argue that road is better than MTB or vice versa. I love them both and [i]my[/i] circumstances mean I lean to one more often than the other. I do struggle to comprehend roadies who hate MTB and MTBers who hate road though. Some of the reasons I've heard given from people who don't like road riding suggest they've never had the opportunity to ride somewhere good.

This thread isn't the first (and probably won't be the last 😆 ) road vs MTB thread I've contributed to, but I've always maintained that (my) locality is a huge influence on the riding I choose and prefer to do. Even moving 12 miles south from Buxton (my home town) to Leek changed the the riding I choose to do. This is down to a number of factors but way up near the top was the quality of what was on my doorstep.

If you lived somewhere that had better mountain biking, would you feel the same?.

Nope, as I admitted further up the thread.

I've not read any of the above but I denoted you are weird from your op, go see someone loser!

That's a pish argument
Yes, yes it is, but it wasn't meant to be an argument. I was just responding to JoeFM's question "where's the speed and excitement?" in relation to road cycling. I'm not naive enough to try and argue that road is better than MTB or vice versa. I love them both and my circumstances mean I lean to one more often than the other. I do struggle to comprehend roadies who hate MTB and MTBers who hate road though. Some of the reasons I've heard given from people who don't like road riding suggest they've never had the opportunity to ride somewhere good.

This thread isn't the first (and probably won't be the last ) road vs MTB thread I've contributed to, but I've always maintained that (my) locality is a huge influence on the riding I choose and prefer to do. Even moving 12 miles south from Buxton (my home town) to Leek changed the the riding I choose to do. This is down to a number of factors but way up near the top was the quality of what was on my doorstep.

If you lived somewhere that had better mountain biking, would you feel the same?.
Nope, as I admitted further up the thread.

POSTED 40 MINUTES AGO # REPORT-POST

Fair do's, as ever I couldn't be arsed reading all that shit!. 😆

The problem is, riding a bike that is really really specialized in a certain area.

Road bike is a Ferrari, full suss is a Landrover.

For me, a nice 29er hardtail MTB with fast(ish) XC tyres on is a good compromise. I can ride to the trails in about 40 mins, ride the trails, hit road anytime with little worries, likewise mud, singletrack, rock etc.

I don't think of myself and a 'mountain biker'. rather a 'cyclist'.

XC / trail hardtails with lock out forks means almost anything is kinda fun, ok you aren't gonna be the fastest, but you aren't gonna suffer either. Most bikes are too specialized IMHO, unless you are doing well racing in that genre.

Pick the compromise that means you can cycle from your front door and have a good ride.

For me, a nice 29er hardtail MTB with fast(ish) XC tyres on is a good compromise

Pretty much what I do (slight difference being 26, SS, rigid) with the tyres being key. I use semi slick XC tyres as knobbly tyres too squirmy and slow on the road and just compromise the grip a little off road (while still being very fast rolling).

If I am tired I will increase road ratio, if not then as much in favour of off road as possible. The point is I am not limited where I ride and can change route during the ride. When I used a road bike I just had to ride past all the lanes taking me towards off road routes and look at them longingly.

I enjoy both road riding, and mountain biking, its all good

I have both available on my doorstep (ok, the MTB trails are 2 miles up the road!)

I'll spend mornings before work going mountain biking as the roads around NW London become very congested with motor vehicles

On weekends the roads are much quieter and its easy to enjoy road biking locally, or taking long loops into Surrey or out of NW London into Hertfordshire