How to Improve your Bike Before You Start a Mountain Cycling Tour

How to Improve your Bike Before You Start a Mountain Cycling Tour

When you are gearing up to go on a mountain cycling tour, you want to make sure that you and your bike are in the best shape possible so you can keep up with the tour. So how can you improve your bike? Well, we have some ideas that you can use, as we explore how to make your bike better before you go on a mountain cycling tour. Are you ready to learn with us?

Spin

Your bike’s rotation of the cranks is highly important in getting a good spin. Spinning is great because of its efficiency and the fact that it helps you keep traction on certain trail conditions. If you are someone who pedals in a square or has difficult strokes, you can be going off balance, which is not good for you or the bike.

With a good spin and cadence, you must be in the correct gear while pedaling in a circular motion. If you happen to be in a higher gear, it will be harder to get over objects or go uphill. On the other end of the spectrum, if you are in low gear, you can not only have jerky motions, but can spin out, which can be dangerous.

Ideally, you want to keep a certain rhythm, which is generally 70 to 100 RPM, you will see that it is easier to get over objects, go uphill, and overall have a better time cycling the mountains.

Wheels

Your wheels must be in good condition, with the tires well inflated, and having good tread. Generally, you will have a wheel size of 24, 26, 27.5 or 29 inches. MyOutdoorsLife has found that 26 inch and 27.5-inch wheels are more popular and better for maneuvering and quicker response. They are also better at going over terrain, which means you won’t be stuck in the mud.

24-inch wheels are generally for children’s mountain bikes and the 29-inch wheels are heavier and make it harder to accelerate as fast as the other wheels. But with the 29-inch wheels, you can cover more terrain once you find a rhythm. They also are great at gripping and have a higher attack angle.

Brakes

Having new brakes will improve the amount of control that you have over your bike. Be sure that you know how to use both brakes before you go on a mountain cycling tour, and be careful when you are going down a hill or around a corner and braking.

Braking should be done rarely and gently, as you don’t want to be too hard on the brakes. They will wear out over time. Plus, you do not want to go flying over the top of the bike or running into a tree. Before you go on a cycling tour, you should test out the brakes and make sure they are efficient enough for biking in the mountains.

If you are going down a hill, then you will want to go easy on the brakes as they can and do lock up. You will have to ease off the brake a little so they will ease up. This can mess with the control of your bike and tear up the trail as well.

Suspension

The suspension will need to be completely intact before a cycling tour. You should first know what type of suspension you have, either a hardtail, rigid, or full suspension system. The suspension will absorb shocks from the trail and make it more comfortable for you to ride and be in control of your bike.

Rigid suspensions mean there is any suspension features, but with the hardtail suspension, you will have a fork in the front part that absorbs impact and has fewer parts that move around. They are easy to maintain and have more transfer of power from the pedal to the tire.

The full suspension will absorb shock from the front and back and allows you to be comfortable with more traction. You do lose some energy going uphill, but a full suspension gives you more efficiency, especially on a mountain.

Pedals

What type of pedals do you use? You should find comfortable pedals that work for your skill level. This can give you better control, power transfer, and better grip. Platform pedals are made for beginners and those with less experience cycling on a mountain. They do help you learn technique and offer a smoother movement, but going downhill can get sticky.

Clipless pedals are great for those who are comfortable on the trail. They attach to your shoes and give you more control, but you do have to work harder in certain terrain. You should definitely practice with clipless pedals, especially as far as connecting and disconnecting on the pedal with your foot.

Maintenance

Are you hearing noises from your bike? Maybe some squeaks here and there? You should actively be maintaining your bike, especially before a big upcoming tour. Just doing basic maintenance only takes a couple of minutes and it will prevent you from an accident or your bike falling apart.

You should look at the bike and check for cracks, broken items or anything that is worn or rusty. If you are seeing any minor problems, you should fix them before going into the mountains, as they will only turn into big problems later.

Be sure the bike is adjusted to fit you perfectly, and that it is not too small or big as it will determine how much control you have over the bike.

Taking care of your mountain bike is highly important. Regular maintenance and a little knowledge can go a long way. But making improvements on your bike before a cycling tour will improve it so much, that it is worth doing so you can have a great time. Do you know what improvements you need to make? We hope you have learned a lot from this article!

Guest Post Author Bio:

Rebecca lives in USA, but loves hiking all over the world. Her favorite is Everest Base Camp Trek in Nepal. It usually takes 16 days, but she likes to slow down, enjoy mountains, company of other adventurers and take more pictures, so it took her 28 days last time. Another of her passion is the ocean, so all short and long hikes along the ocean shore bring a lot of joy. She also writes for HikingMastery.com