I remember the day I first discovered mountain bikes- I was riding a local woodland on a totally inappropriate 24in wheel ‘all terrain bicycle’. Far from capable of handling all terrain- it had shamefully weak steel rims, skinny uni-crown forks and big bull-horn handlebars.
I knew it wasn’t the best bike, but when a real mountain biker started talking to me, he told me my bike was more of a mountain bike than my friends as it had cantilever brakes- rather than the flimsy calliper brakes they were sporting.
From that second, my bike was the best- it was a mountain bike.
I started reading the magazines, getting my parents to take me to races and working in bike shops. And it feels like yesterday I was just there. Today I’m staggered in the technology that’s developed so fast, and the riding styles and abilities of the many different people I’ve met.
There’s surely no other industry that’s grown so fast and far in such a short period of time- just 20 years has seen bikes change from adapted touring bikes with cast off road bike products, to fully suspended machines made from exotic frame materials, capable of tackling terrain you can barely walk on.
Many riding styles and genres have also developed- from XC, Enduro and DH to 4X, Dirt Jumping and Slopestyle- not to mention Trials and Freeride.
Take a look at some riding footage on YouTube from just a few years ago and you’ll be astonished how fast things have moved on. It’s a very exciting time to be riding mountain bikes- they’re more fashionable than they’ve ever been and are only getting more popular. The world needs greener people- and mountain bikes are an incredible way of covering a lot of ground and seeing the world we live in.
Where a few years ago calling oneself a mountain biker would conjure up images of lurid lycra and pointless prancing around the countryside, mountain biking is holding it’s head high today.
Mountain biking has people like Olympic Athlete like Oli Beckinsale; Downhill World Champion Steve Peat and Ex-World Champion Trials rider Martyn Ashton.
They’re all incredibly talented and interesting people- and seeing them do what they do just makes me want to ride more. Bring on the next 20 years…
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