What to Look for in an All-mountain Bike

Buying a mountain back to take to the trails adds extra twists to the process of making a good purchasing choice. Not only will you be looking for something comfortable and practical for your style of mountain biking, but something that is also going to be safe, highly durable and cost
�efficient as most of us don't have tons of money to spend on a top of the line custom built bike. What should you be looking for in an all-mountain bike that will suit all your needs?First you must identify what type of riding you will be doing the most of the time and focus the mountain bikes strengths towards that area. If you will rarely engage in extreme downhill riding or dirt jumping you can give a little in terms of frame and handlebar weight and material and fore-go steel which is heavy and prone to rusting. Steel is really only advisable on a cross country mountain bike for larger riders whom crom-oly isn't suggested. Most likely you will be riding cross country or sticking to fairly well worn trails most of the time in which a lighter frame will be most desirable. Carbon composites will do quite nicely for most mountain bikers being stronger than aluminum and saving money over titanium. The downside to aluminum and carbon composites is that they are more prone to stress and sudden breakage. It is advisable to look for is a bike which comes with a stress test rating.Now that you have an idea of what material frame and handlebars will fit your riding needs it is time to start fitting a bike to yourself. Just as you try on a pair of shoes you try on bike for fit and comfort as well. The frame should be proportionate to the size of your body. Too small of a frame and you will not only be uncomfortable, but you will not have much control over the bike. Too large a frame and the same holds true and you will appear as if the bike is controlling you. Improperly sized frames lead to more accidents and riding injuries than bumps in the trail do. The handlebars should be shoulder width with a wide grip so you can sit upright. Why this is important is it allows you better field vision and control of the bike over quickly changing terrain, an absolute essential on all mountain bikes.What to Look for in an All-mountain Bike

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