When it comes to mountain biking, your equipment is almost as important as your skill level and fitness level. If you are out of shape then it will be much harder to ride your bike and if you have the wrong equipment then the same thing applies.

One thing that will make a difference in your riding abilities that many people tend to overlook are your pedals. After all, your pedals are what connect your legs to your bike so it’s important to have the right ones for your riding style and comfort level. Now you may think that a pedal is just a pedal but there has been a lot of research and development that has gone into the design of mountain bike pedals. And with that said you can only imagine how many different styles there are to choose from.

The first thing you need to decide is if you want to use a flat or platform pedal or a clipless pedal. Platform pedals are what you would normally think of when picturing a pedal and are where you basically put your foot right down on the pedal to pedal the bike. Clipless pedals are the type where you clip the bottom of your shoe into a special clip that secures them to the pedal. I know you are asking yourself why they are called clipless when you clip them to your pedal. It’s because when the toe clip pedals were popular they were considered to be clipped in type pedals and therefore when you didn’t use the toe clip but rather attached them to the bottom of your shoe they were considered clipless. Now let’s talk about the pros and cons of each type of pedal.

Mountain bikes these days are getting more and more advanced to accommodate the more aggressive riding styles and trails that people are taking advantage of. These newer bikes handle much better thanks to better geometry and take the bumps better thanks to improved suspension components. And with these advancements come more speed and when you go faster you need to make sure you can stop. This is where disk brakes come into play. Disks brakes are not an entirely new feature on mountain bikes but at the same time have not been around for too long compared to how long mountain bikes themselves have been around.

Disk brakes have replaced the older style "V brakes" where the pads squeezed on to the rims to stop the bike. This worked pretty well but it was easy for these brakes to come out of adjustment and if the pads weren't sitting on the rims just right they didn't work all that good. Disk brakes have been on cars and motorcycles for many years and now that same technology has been applied to bicycles and its works pretty much the same way. Disk brakes offer much improved braking for today's more aggressive riding styles.

Disk brakes work by squeezing brake pads against a brake rotor to stop the wheel from moving. There are rotors on both the front and rear wheels and you apply brake pressure with the brake levers on the handlebars. And just like with a car or motorcycle, the harder you squeeze, the harder you stop.

Over the past 10 years, mountain biking has become more popular than ever with many more people partaking in the activity than ever before. It seems that everywhere you go there is someone with a bike rack on their car hauling their bike to the next ride destination. And with the growing popularity of mountain biking came the increased numbers of manufacturers and types of bikes along with the price ranges.

Now you really have to do your homework when it comes to choosing a new mountain bike so you don’t get stuck with something that doesn't suit your riding style or the trails you will be riding on. And you also need to make sure you get one that can take the punishment you plan on dishing out without breaking the bank.

The first thing to consider will be your riding style. There are many types of trails and riding styles including cross country, all mountain, free ride and downhill among others. Cross country is the most basic type of riding where there are easy flowing trails without anything too crazy such as jumps, drops or rock gardens. All mountain riding is more dramatic with steeper downhills and more technical riding such as rocky terrain and maybe some small jumps. Free ride involves more jumps and obstacles as well as bike parks where there are custom made trails to test your skills. Then of course downhill riding is where you most likely get shuttled to the top of a steep mountain and ride down it as fast as you can while taking on whatever gets in your way.

When it comes to things like playing sports or doing many other physical activities it’s very important to protect yourself from injury so you can continue to play the sports you love. Many people don’t take this into consideration and end up not being able to do their activities because of temporary and sometimes even permanent injuries. When it comes to mountain biking there is more to protecting yourself than just slapping on a helmet and hitting the trails. You need to make sure you have the right equipment and that it’s in working order and fits properly.

The most important piece of safety equipment will be your helmet since it protects your head. This is one area you don’t want to skimp on price or use a damaged piece of equipment. There are many brands of helmets out there with different price points. When making your helmet purchase be sure to get the right type and stick with a well-known brand to avoid buying something that may not do the job. It’s also a good idea to look up reviews to see what other people think of the helmet.

With mountain biking more popular than ever and bikes being more popular than ever it makes sense to have a safe way to transport your prized possession around without having to worry about it falling off or getting scratched up. There are many types of bike racks or bike carriers as they are also called that you can buy to transport your bike to your riding destination. But when it comes to choosing the right one for you there are many things you need to consider. The first thing to consider would be what type of bike rack you want to use and this will be based on how you want to carry your bike and what type of car you will be carrying it on. There are 3 main types of bike racks on the market today to choose from; roof rack, hitch mount and trunk mount.

Roof rack carriers are mounted on the roof of the car and can use the existing factory roof rails, attach to your cars rain gutters or even attach to a bare roof that has no built in connection points. Some cars even come with a track system that allows you to mount racks to them. Some roof racks will let you put the bike on the rack without taking off a wheel while others require you to take off the front wheel to use the fork as a mounting point. Then of course you have to store the wheel someplace as well. The main problem with a roof rack is that you have to lift the bike up on the roof which can be a problem if the bike is heavy or if the roof is really high… or of course of you are really weak! They can also be noisy if you don’t have a fearing to block the wind and the of course you need to be careful not to pull into the garage with your bike on top of your car. One benefit is that you can usually lock them to the car so you never have to remove them when not in use. Many come with built in locks to lock the bike to the rack as well. One disadvantage is that most of the time you are stuck with a 2 bike limit.

When it comes to mountain biking you need to think of your bike as part of your body when it comes to taking care of it so you should be sure that it’s always working at its best. For many people their bike makes them the rider that they are so if it’s not up to par, your riding will not be up to par.

There are several things on a mountain bike that need to be maintained and some need attention on a regular basis while others are more of an as needed type of maintenance. For example one thing that you should always do is to make sure that your chain is clean and properly oiled. If it’s full of dirt and dry then you will have shifting problems and possible gear slipping issues as well. Plus a dirty chain can negatively affect the rest of the drive train.