Mountain Bike Training Thread

[Ashy Larry]

I kinda let myself go since hunting season. Pregnant wife (great for your diet), followed by a newborn and all those delicious holidays in between. I still lifted some, and did a little on the stairmaster...but i ate like shit. A couple months ago i had a coworker that moved, and offered me his college campus-ridden Gary Fisher Wahoo for $20. I obliged, and proceeded to take it to the local bike shop for a tune up. $360 dollars later - brand new bike! (right?). The weather has been basically rain followed by rain and then topped with snow, but it finally has showed off some Spring type attributes. I took the opportunity to hit up a singletrack in my hood. Holy shit, i can safely i do not, in fact, still "have it." This thing is wearing my out. Not a beginner track by any means, but i am shocked out how whooped i get. Im gonna stick with this, mostly because i hate running and other forms of cardio besides weighted hikes.

Any other bikers want a dedicated thread to this most excellent lung buster?

 

[jmez]

I do some mountain biking when time allows. That isn't much. I do both long rides in the hills and I also do a lot of short hill sprints on the bike.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I do some mountain biking as time permits as well. Try to do a spin class in the gym 2-3 times a week to keep the cardio in great shape though. I find that it really helps the lung capacity which in turn makes hiking up steep hills much easier when my hiking training picks up.


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[Ashy Larry]

I did 13.5 miles on the local greenway today. Also scouting out some good holes for Saturday's trout opener. I dig the bike.

 

[Lawnboi]

Used to put 100 dirt miles in a week and last year didn't do much on the bike. This year I'm going to hit it hard again.

We currently are getting another 10 inches of snow. No way trails up by me are opening Before may. Sucks, I'm sick of the snow need some dirt.

I'll throw in some here from time to time, once the snow melts.

 

[Ashy Larry]

Granted I'm in the foothills, right below the Blue Ridge, but I don't see how 100 mile weeks are humanly possible on my local trails. That's pretty beast, man.

 

[Lawnboi]

Granted I'm in the foothills, right below the Blue Ridge, but I don't see how 100 mile weeks are humanly possible on my local trails. That's pretty beast, man.

Our local trails surely don't have the bigger verticals you may have, but are very punchy up down type trails. That 100 makes a week almost always counted a 30 mile gravel ride.

I actually just retired an old frame last year, the rear shock wasn't worth the work. Moved all the parts over to a hardtail, and then I just didn't ride like I should have, even though I moved to an area with a lot of really good trails.

This year will be different, if the trails ever open.

 

[krausejmk]

We have some nice trails around my house that I usually ride a 2-3 times a week. Usually ride about 10-15 miles each time.

 

[Brendan]

I'm very close to buying a mountain bike... Have trails right close to the house and am looking for lower impact workouts with a little more variety than road riding.

 

[Ridge Runner]

I'm very close to buying a mountain bike... Have trails right close to the house and am looking for lower impact workouts with a little more variety than road riding.

Only "lower impact" if you stay on the bike. Had way to many OTB's in the past. Fortunately have only had cuts and bruises and no permanent damage. Now I pretty much just climb and make sure my downhills are easier. At 50 I get passed on the downhills but still can beat most to the top.

 

[Ashy Larry]

Only "lower impact" if you stay on the bike. Had way to many OTB's in the past. Fortunately have only had cuts and bruises and no permanent damage. Now I pretty much just climb and make sure my downhills are easier. At 50 I get passed on the downhills but still can beat most to the top.

I found out pretty quick that most trails here are so rocky/rooty they seem more suited to larger tires than 26”. I take it pretty easy on the downhills. I’m in more for the workout than adrenaline.

 

[Brendan]

Consider what I'm putting it up against - riding roads around Boston, MA. I've gone down 3-4 times on the road and I think I'm safer in the woods with the caliber of driver we have around here.

Looking at a FS 29'er.

 

[Ashy Larry]

Put in 5 miles today. Local greenway beside a trout creek with a 2 mile single track loop branching off. Real flowy, smooth trail with long climbs followed by long downhills. Real fun track but short. Still got the blood flowing.

 

[sodaksooner]

I kind of have the bug again, so just did a bunch of work to mine...a 13 year old SC Heckler. I am way out of shape, but did a 5 mile shakedown of it last night. Added full xt 1 x 11 setup. Discovered the old SRAM brakes weren't happy any more so new brakes on the way today...xt's as well.

Believe it or not there is a lot of good mountain biking in the Tulsa and NW Arkansas area if you are not familiar with this part of the country.

Gotta be careful on the MTB as far as injury goes. Not necessarily low impact...lol. I always said at least when you are mountain biking you are in control of your destiny. On the road there are a lot more things that can hit you versus you hitting them. That being the case I am missing two ligaments in my left knee because of the mountain bike. I also have two fingers that are permanently swollen due to jamming them so hard.

 

[Tag_Soup]

Larry you and I are in a nearly identical family situation...except I have a full year of "my wife had a baby" weight to get rid of. I was on a positive track until I tore a meniscus in my knee. I have surgery in a week and hope to be back on the bike the following week. I opted for a fat bike in hopes to hunt off it at times on the ample logging roads in my area. I picked up a kid trailer and let me tell you, a 1 year old and a 7 year old sitting in that "sail" of a trailer behind a fat bike is quite the workout even on paved roads! Post surgery I will try to get on here and give some updates on my rehab rides if anyone is interested.

-Travis

 

[Ashy Larry]

I’ve been looking into those kid carriers for when little man gets a little bigger. For now I gotta get these lungs in shape for humping mtns after turkey.

 

[Vids]

I just bought a new bike in December to switch up my training. Great lung and leg workout, hopefully it translates to strong hiking this fall. Living in Denver, I'm spoiled with a lot of great mtb trails nearby and not much snow this winter. I'm a complete rookie, I hope to get better over this summer and eventually do an endurance race. Looking forward to the snow melting up high so I can explore some of the trails that are buried right now.

Similar to above, I'm also in it for the workout and take it easy on the downhills.

 

[Ashy Larry]

Good 5 miles after work on a super fun trail near my office. Probably gonna hit it often. ~9 miles in total but I had to split off early for a conference call. The bonus to this track is it’s encased by a walking path in a real ritzy part of town so the yoga pant speed walkers lurk about . Also my average pace according to Strava was 6.2mph which is by far the fastest for me yet.

 

[Ashy Larry]

Hit the same spot from yesterday again today, ~5 miles average 6.4mph so making improvements. My favorite trail I’ve ridden so far.

 

[jmez]

Consider what I'm putting it up against - riding roads around Boston, MA. I've gone down 3-4 times on the road and I think I'm safer in the woods with the caliber of driver we have around here.

Looking at a FS 29'er.

Have you ridden them much? My current bike is a 29er and I don't like it at all. If I could afford it I would get rid of it and go back to a 26. I hate the way the bike handles. The worse the trail, the more I dislike it. Feels like you need a parking lot to turn it around. You can't really throw it around and make quick moves when riding.