Mountain Bikes

Double diamond black and black describes how beastly the mountain bike riding trails of the Nevis Range AonachMor descent and the Witch’s Trail of Leanachan Forest are.

Spectators, MTB riders and non-riders will all appreciate how the world class mountain bike riders of the World Cup, including world champion Sam Hill, conquer the geomorphological demands of these trails to compete for the World titles.

Trail Grading

With the Nissan UCI Mountain Bike World Cup 08 event presented by Shimano and three other major MTB events this summer season, the Nevis Range and Leanachan Forest’s black graded Scottish trails will be well worn by the MTB field.

The AonachMor descent, the Nevis Range downhill track and Witch’s Trail cross country course in Leanachan Forest are accessible to visiting riders in training at all other times in the 2008 summer season (until mid September), open 10.15am to 4pm weekdays and weekends.

Visiting riders and their companions should note what a black grading means before setting out on the Mountain Bike World Cup courses.

Riding a good-quality mountain bike with suspension, body armour and full-face helmet are essentials.

Richard Moore and Andy McCandlish in Bike Scotland Trails Guide (pocket mountains ltd) define the black trail grading in Scotland as:

• Black – severe: “suitable for expert riders with a high level of fitness and stamina on good-quality mountain bikes with front suspension. Extended steep sections; large steps and drop-offs. Varied but always challenging surface with prolonged rocky/loose sections.”
• ‘Double diamond’ black – very severe:“suitable for technically expert riders with jumping ability on good-quality mountain bikes (dual suspension system). Extreme exposure/risk; severe drops and steep inclines; may include ‘downhill’-style sections, very narrow gaps and North Shore”.

Nevis Range MTB Downhill AonachMor Descent Scotland

Serious mountain bike riders will have heard of the monster Nevis Range descent - 550 metres in 2.6 kilometres - down the AonachMor Downhill Track constructed for the first Mountain Bike World Cup in Fort William.

The Official Programme(Mellor Media, £2) sets out the course as Out to Lunch, Stepping Stones, Long Drop, Cantilever, Bog,Trotter, Bus Stop, Pin Ball, Snakes & Ladders, Slab 1, Disco Hips Kicker, Man Trap, Steps, Arthur, Switch Back, The Stairs, Big Woody, Got Wood?, Rootu, Into the Groove, The Dark Place, Hip Replacement, Motorway, Navara Jump and Wall.

Mountain Bike World Cup spectators can expect finishing times of less than 4 minutes for what is considered the toughest downhill course in the world.

The Witch’s Trail Leanachan Forest

Constructed for the 2003 Mountain Bike World Cup in Fort William, Leanachan Forest’s cross country course The Witch’s Trail is designed for racing and outdoor spectacle.

Course highlights include singletrack climbing before fast jumping and berms, The Berminator, forest roads and the Big Up steep climb to the Lazy K singletrack.

The highest point of the course in Leanachan Forest is Blue Crane and the 15 kilometres demands includes Cackle, Nessie, Ridge Run, Cauld-Run, Rock n Roll and Hole in the Wall.

With two months to go before the Beijing Olympics, visitors to the Nissan UCI Mountain Bike World Cup 08 event presented by Shimano can watch riders challenge their MTB training in the AonachMor Downhill Track and Witch’s Trail Cross Country courses in the Nevis Range and Leanachan Forest.

Since the first mass-produced mountain bike was created in the early 80’s, mountain bike technology has moved on considerably.

Key mountain bike parts, however, remain consistent and, once familiar with them, most regular mountain bikers can carry out essential bike maintenance at home.

Key Mountain Bike Parts

Bottom Bracket

This essential bicycle component forms part of the bike frame and houses the axle which attaches to the pedal crank. Without it, the pedals won’t turn.

Crank

The crank connects the bottom bracket axle with the pedal. Cranks come in sets with two cranks (one for each pedal) and a set of chain rings or sprockets through which the chain passes.

Cassette

The cassette is the term for a cluster of chain rings used on a rear wheel. It attaches to a (freewheel) hub and the chain passes through it.

Hub

The hub is the central and integral part of the wheel.

It has an axle, which attaches to the forks on the front wheel, an outer shell, which attaches to the wheel spokes and bearings, which connect the axle to the hub shell allowing it to rotate freely.

Derailleur

This unusually named bike part is essentially a mechanism allowing the chain to shift from one chain ring to another thereby changing gear on a multi-speed bicycle.

Front and rear derailleurs are different as the rear one has pulleys.

Hanger

This term describes the gear hanger and should not be confused with the old fashioned American synonym for “bottom bracket.” The gear hanger is a metal dropout, which attaches to the frame and the rear derailleur.

On most modern frames the hanger is separate from the frame as it is easily bent if the derailleur hits a rock.

Headset

The headset is the part connecting the bike frame to the front fork allowing it to turn for steering. It consists of four sections secured in place by a washer and a lock nut in a star shape, which requires a special tool if replacing one headset for another.

Stem

The stem connects the handlebars to the steerer section of the front fork.

Adjusting the size and head angle of a stem can make a significant difference to riding position and is the bike part most often upgraded to maximize bike comfort.

SPD’s

SPD stands for Shimano Pedalling Dynamics and is the abbreviation used to describe Shimano branded clipless pedals, used by a large proportion of mountain bikers.

Quick Release (QR)

QR describes the mechanism used on wheels and seat posts to quickly undo or “release” wheels from the hub or to quickly lower or raise a seatpost for better fit.

Good quality quick release mechanisms should always be used to maximize safety.

Mountain Bike Equipment

Once familiar with the jargon for mountain bike components, riders can negotiate upgrades to a bike purchase more easily and also carry out their own bike maintenance with confidence.

With roots dating all the way back to the 19th century, the sport of mountain biking has been evolving and gaining in popularity ever since the first custom-made off-road bikes started to emerge in the 1970s.

By the mid-1990s, mountain biking had exploded onto the cycling scene and quickly evolved into a full-fledged sport. With more and more people venturing off the paved roads every year, the sport of mountain biking is constantly growing.

More and more people are turning to cycling as an eco-friendly, healthy and relatively cheap form of transport, especially for commuting. As a result, electric bicycles are gaining in popularity as they offer a virtually sweat-free ride and extra help for those who struggle with hills.

But what if you need some extra power when cycling on steep hills off-road? This article looks at what electric mountain bikes are currently available.

The Troodos mountains forest park in Cyprus covers an area of 93 sq km and is an outdoor lover’s paradise for walking, skiing and mountain biking. The area is home to 10 nature trails suitable for hiking and mountain biking.

While many trails are too exhausting for the average rider due to grueling, intense gradients, the 12km long Atalante trail offers a spectacular technical singletrack experience with only 50m of total altitude variation.

Modern mountain bikes are robust and with proper servicing will give years of trouble-free riding. Out on the trail, however, things can still go wrong and it is impossible to carry all the necessary tools to solve every potential problem.

Some issues will render the bike unrideable, others less useable or less safe to ride, whilst many problems can be easily fixed. An appreciation of the most likely scenarios and how to fix them is therefore useful.

Most mountain bike tour companies provide a suggested kit list for their cycling holidays specific to the destination and time of year.

For a first time cycling holiday off-road, comfort and safety should be a high priority so consider these essential items rather than rushing out to buy everything on the list.

Most modern mountain bikes have derailleur gears. These bike gears operate by shifting the bike chain up and down a cassette of cogs on the rear wheel, each cog offering a different gear ratio.

The name gives away the method; the derailleur arm simply “de-rails” the chain from one cog to the next.

Fifteen years ago, downhill and cross country bikes dominated the sport of mountain biking. When a rider decided to buy a mountain bike, there were two styles to choose from. Today the sport is far more popular and complex.

New types and crossbreeds of bikes offer more diverse options. Mountain bikes are designed for extremely different applications and perform best for specific riding styles. Here’s a look at the types of mountain bikes.

Tall guys over 6’4” or 193 cm need a larger than average bike but also one that is capable of coping with the heavier weight of a big man weighing, in most cases, well over 200 lb.

While many mainstream brands like Specialized and Fisher make larger frame big mountain bikes up to 24” in some models, a big frame is not the only thing to consider when looking for bikes for tall men.