Best mountain biking books according to redditors
We found 24 Reddit comments discussing the best mountain biking books. We ranked the 9 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the top 20.
We found 24 Reddit comments discussing the best mountain biking books. We ranked the 9 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the top 20.
I submit Mastering Mountain Bike Skills as a complimentary book.
One book to keep your bike in shape and another to help you get the most out of it.
I highly recommend getting Mastering Mountain Bike Skills.
Give the Time Crunch method a shot. It's targeted at people with only 6-8 hours per week. Though I train a bit more than that now, I'm happy with the results going through the program myself.
get this book for everything you could ever want to know about bike control
http://www.amazon.com/Mastering-Mountain-Skills-Brian-Lopes/dp/0736056246
i wish i had started learning how to wheelie, manual, bunny hop and jump earlier (I still am learning to manual and bunny hop). sounds scary, but i'm talking, like, 1 inch off the ground jumps is all you need to learn in the beginning to really learn better control over your bike, which translates to better control at other points on a trail and being more comfortable moving around in the cockpit. it's by no means the only factor in bike control, but it helps a lot
i've been riding for a little over a year, and i just wanted to hit the singletrack as often as I could, so i skipped spending time learning those things early on- i just sat in my saddle on the ride up and then got out of it on the way down, but it took me a long time to get used to moving around and feeling comfortable in the cockpit, which i would have learned earlier if i had started learning the stuff i mentioned earlier on. the more comfortable you are moving around on your bike, the more comfortable you will be pushing your bike's limits as you progress
I highly recommend the book in the side-bar it goes over lots of little tips like this about weight distribution, when to brake, lean, etc. The book is really a great help in learning to ride safely while pushing your abilities.
Read this book. It's over there on the sidebar even. There's good stuff in there. Don't target fixate - trees are not magnetic, you should not run into them. Have fun! Oh, and don't wear spandex.
I bought this book a few years ago. It is the best hiking book I have found for the Black Hills. However it doesn't list some of the stuff in town like Hansen Larsen or Skyline Drive. I have also used this web site which is run by the local runners club which has a few good maps.
Edit: And you might stop in at a forest service station and get an official Black Hills National Forest trail map. Those are well worth the money.
Bay Area Bike Rides Deck: 50 Rides for Mountain, Road, and Casual Cyclists https://www.amazon.com/dp/0811865266/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_95lmDbB9GTS1W
You're using your muscles differently that you are use to as well. Your road riding style is constant effort for long distances, where mountain biking is a lot of peak effort for short distances alternating with constant effort on the flats and lower pedaling effort on the downs.
You probably do some of the same things climbing and descending on the road, just not as pronounced as leaning forward on climbs and back on descents. Then there is turning which involves a lot of body movement on the MTB.
Generally I sit on extended climbs, but stand on short steep climbs since they usually follow a fast, short down and I'm already in the "attack" position.
If you haven't already, check out the book by Lee McCormick and Brian Lopes, Mastering Mountain Bike Skills. It's a pretty good read and helped me improve my mountain biking skills.
I'll always recommend the West coast for beautiful scenery, wonderful sunsets, quiet access roads (the b roads that usually loop round along the coast, only used by cars visiting houses or whatever along the route so very quiet, while most trafic follows the main road inland). Mull is stunning, especially around loch Na keal, my favourite island although they're pretty much all great. How long are you thinking of going?
And yea, midges are annoying but only when there's no wind. Take a midge net and long sleeves and you'll be fine.
Oh finally, this book is just amazing:https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bike-Scotland-Book-Two/dp/0955082285
I've ridden pretty much every ride in it and they're all wonderful. Mostly day rides but you can easily stich them up into a tour
This trail book is a great little resource for Arizona trails:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0966476980?pc_redir=1395745505&robot_redir=1
The author of this book (and a good dude) goes by SquirrelCutter on a lot of biking forums, he got that name after a squirrel tried to dash through his front wheel once.
You might want to grab a copy of this:
https://www.amazon.com/Mountain-Biking-Arizona-Trail-Guide/dp/0966476999/ref=pd_sbs_14_t_0?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=ZJE91KCV8KSNRZ23KTCZ
They also sell this guidebook at every REI in the Phoenix area.
Trail 100 is my favorite and varies from very easy to moderately technical.
This is a pretty popular local guidebook. I've used his hiking book extensively.
You might consider hiking up Cathedral Rock, too. It's spectacular.
It depends on if I'm in a base phase, a build phase, or if it's during the race season. Also depends on what type of fitness I'm trying to build.
If I was you I would probably go for something like 3x12min w/ 5 min rest between intervals at about 85-94% of threshold.
I would suggest spending a little money on some quality materials from experts who know what they're talking about and then figuring out what works best for you.
A good place to start would be a book like the Time Crunched Cyclist, https://www.amazon.com/Time-Crunched-Cyclist-Race-Winning-Fitness-Athlete/dp/1937715507/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_t_0?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=S2HW84QKST567NVKRWP0
Prioritizing your end goals with regards to cycling and lifting can help you figure balance:
Searching through /r/velo, /r/velodrome and /r/bicycling may help you more.
I just bought Wendler 5/3/1/ after doing some Googling for a 2-day program to allow for more recovery time between the gym and training rides.
You can find said options listed from the book here: https://www.t-nation.com/training/effective-training-for-busy-men. I can't say if this is optimal for you our anyone else, but information is free.
I also ordered a copy of The Time Crunched Cyclist because training for six intense hours a week sounds great.
Alternatively, look into track cycling if you want to focus on gym performance. http://upupup.aboc.com.au
Make sure you eat and sleep enough!! That is paramount.
http://www.amazon.com/Fat-Tire-Tales-Trails-Mountain/dp/0966476980
Get this book. Now.
You should definitely get this book if you are moving to AZ -- Fat Tire Tales & Trails. It's a really great reference to have for all trails in AZ and the guy that wrote it is from Flagstaff. It's been great and I have used it for riding in Phoenix, Tucson and Flagstaff (so far).
There are plenty of trails that are accessible with your car. Your WRX is plenty capable up here in my opinion, unless you want to get into more serious off-roading. Many of the dirt roads are in decent shape as well. This book is indispensable for finding trails and you can pick up a copy on Amazon or in town.
I just moved here recently myself and would love to hit some trails (or routes for that matter). Shoot me a PM when you get to town and we can sort it out!
Nope, just have this.
This. Try leaning forward more to give the front tire more traction. Also, if you are on your front brake at all it will cause it to lose traction and slide. Plus, you should buy this:Mastering Mountain Bike Skills It has all the answers to your questions.
I'm can't be bothered to argue this in-depth.
Dead-lifting static weight provides an insight into what I'm saying. You crouch in order to initiate the movement, right? Well, on a bike, you need limbs/back bent or you can't ride well.
Can you imagine surfing standing bolt upright? No way, doesn't make sense. For one thing, you'd be right at the end of your range of movement, and you're be unable to adapt to sudden forces. For another thing, the taller you're standing, the "tippier" you are. You're much less stable.
Actually, we're not talking about "slouching". Look at the legs of someone on a snowboard or doing martial arts. They stand under tension.
Can you link me a photo that demonstrates the correct riding position, as you see it?
Anyhow if you're really not comprehending this basic point, I'd recommend either this book, or this other book, or this video. If I don't convince you I would urge you to see what the experts have to say on the subject. If what I have to say comes as a surprise to you, I guarantee 100% you'll up your game with any of those instructional sources.
To make things easy here it is.