Can You Ride A Mountain Bike On The Road

But the faster you go and the rougher you ride the more you need a quality mountain bike.

Can you ride a mountain bike on the road. Suspension tires gearing and position. Riders convert mountain bikes because it s their only bike or to try their first granfondo road group ride gravel grinder or simply to commute. Firstly you should adjust your seat and handlebar height. If it s fast and smooth a road bike will do the trick.

You can turn your favorite. Ride the bike that you have there s no reason not to. Keep in mind your mountain bike is heavier so it is a little more difficult to pedal especially uphill and will be slower than your typical road bike. To make your mountain bike better for riding on the road you need to reduce the factors that make your bike suitable off road.

It s not like there is anything inherently dangerous or unsafe about riding a mountain bike on the road. If you get a mountain bike that has a suspension lockout you can actually lock out suspension travel so it acts like a bike with no suspension as in road bike. That said over time if you continue to ride on the road you ll notice s. Now you can see that riding a mountain bike on the road is entirely possible and that there are also a few tips to help make it easier on yourself.

If it s slow and a bit rougher hybrid or cyclo cross might do the trick. If you do not identify as a cyclist and yet ride a bike with any regularity it is likely a basic mountain bike and it is likely used primarily on the road and in the neighborhood because there is the perception that mountain bikes are stronger safer more stable more comfortable and have better traction. A road bike is going to be a better option if you are going to do a good bit of road riding but you can outfit your mountain bike in a way to make it pretty comparable. There are some minor changes that you can make to your mountain bike that will make it better for riding on the road.

Let s get one thing straight a mountain bike is designed and built for going off road and on the other side of the coin road bikes are totally designed for yep you guessed it riding on the road and you can get a full rundown on the different types of mountain bikes in my recent post mountain bike history and mountain bike types. What i would do is lockout the rear suspension entirely like a hard tail bike and leave 3 4 inches of suspension travel in the front end so it will absorb surface irregularity like potholes. The first step to choosing the right bike for you is to be realistic about what you ll be riding. These small changes will allow your ride to be more comfortable and even a bit safer.

The idea stemmed from local pro racer brian schworm.