Mountain bikes and road bikes provide riders with many desirable features, the trick is to narrow those features down and match them to what suits your riding style best. For many riders, the versatility offered by mountain bikes, in taking them from parks to roads, makes these bikes a popular choice.
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The most important thing to know about mountain bikes is it that you do not need a mountain to enjoy riding one. They have wide tyres with thick, intricately carved grooves that form patterns to keep you upright, on the trail or off. The tyres push through dirt and roll over asphalt, easily. The side knobs on tyres help riders to steer and to turn without losing their balance.
In the past, many people shied away from mountain bikes because they feared that the bikes weighed too much and that they would be difficult to carry or maneuver. Today, improvements in technology have led to bikes that are much lighter, but still sturdy enough to survive the rigors of the trail and the pavement. Bike makers commonly use aluminum or carbon to create lightweight, versatile frames.
Mountain bikes let riders sit in a more comfortable position than they experience on road spinning bike supplier bikes. Road bikes are about speed and speed is about overcoming aerodynamic drag. Road bike riders must lower their heads and chests in order to cut through the air. Road bike riders have to find a way to keep their heads down but still keep their eyes up to see where they are going. Many people do not find this riding style natural or comfortable for any length of time.
Mountain bikes also take advantage of technology to reduce some of the bumps that riders experience. Taking your bike off-road is one of the primary advantages of a mountain bicycle over a road bike. Bicycle makers build suspension systems into their bikes to soak up the jarring impact of bouncing over uneven surfaces. They allow riders to relax and not have to keep their bodies constantly braced to withstand bone-rattling jolts. Suspension systems reduce the wear and tear on bikers' bodies meaning that they can go for longer rides on more occasions.
If speed on the open road is your sole motivation for purchasing a bike, then choose a road bike. If you want the experience of riding through forests, over logs, down embankments and still be able to ride over the pavement, then a mountain bike is for you.
Purists reckon they're for cheaters, but an electric mountain bicycle can easily turn a bike trip around and make it far more exciting and enduring. Speed, torque and higher energy levels for you to enjoy yourself can't be a bad thing, right?
For me, I love the feeling you get taking a bike down a hill at speed; the hard slog to get up again on the other side is a challenge (great - I like challenges!) but it can wear a bit as the hours go on.
Now, suppose you had a powerful battery to support you, you could keep going even longer, faster and with more energy to enjoy the scenery and excitement around you. And turning the power off is only a button away, if you like. You have the choice.
You could use the power-assist mode to get you to and from your favourite mountain biking routes and use the power-assist on the way home instead of perhaps taking the car, when you're tired (or exhausted!). They're more practical, cheaper and much more energy efficient.
Like a car, getting an electric bike wet isn't a problem - but like in a car, once you're up to your axles in water it's a bad idea to continue. There are a couple of precautions you can take to avoid water damage.
An electric mountain bike has four main components that need to be protected; the motor, the battery, the controller and the connecting leads. These should all be waterproofed somehow, either by the factory that made it, or by DIY means.
If you wrap some of the components in plastic (silicon or electrical tape works well) to preserve the parts without obstructing the moving parts or stopping you from getting at the parts if you need to check it over. The waterproof coating will keep everyday damp from riding out.
Electric mountain bikes should also be rugged enough to keep their electrical components safe when travelling across rocks and off-road tracks. A good rule of thumb is to have a mountain bike that is a shade better equipped than you need, just in case something goes wrong. Try also to have standardized parts (like chain links) made by a big brand which are easily (and affordably) replaced. That's worth a lot!