We’ve all given and taken our fair share of awful advice in this sport, however here are ten of the worst advice for MTB we’ve ever seen!
1. Don’t bother taking it to a shop…
Often heard from wanna be mechanics, cheapskates and people who have been doing their own bike maintenance for years. Knowing your way around a bike is brilliant, but learn when something is beyond your ability and pay a pro to fix it.
2. The cheap parts are just as good as the expensive ones…
If this was true they would be expensive too. While some parts are unnecessarily pricy and others are good but affordable, generally its buy cheap buy twice. Look for quality parts and the money should take care of itself.
3. If you hit it hard enough you won’t even notice…
This just isn’t true. While some obstacles on the trail will melt away under your tyres at speed, you can’t say its true of all of them. Some obstacles require skill that some people just don’t have no matter how hard you hit it.
4. Just hang off the back and you’ll be fine…
Similar to the above advice, this is only true of really steep stuff. Hanging off the back seriously shifts your balance on the bike and makes cornering and manoeuvring much harder than it needs to be.
5. Its just a short ride, no need to take anything…
OK, there may be no need to take your whole pack, but for gods sake take the essentials with you! Saddle bags are ideal for short rides as you can stick a multitool, an inner tube, CO2 and a first aid kit in. It may only be a short ride but accidents and mechanicals can happen at any time.
6.There’s plenty of life in that [part]…
If you’re starting to question it, then it is probably on its way out. You may not need to change it straight away, but definitely start thinking about getting a replacement.
7. It may be listed as a black but its really easy…
Trails are listed according to certain criteria and just because you don’t think it will be difficult doesn’t mean everyone else will.
8. You don’t really need those gears…
I’m guilty of this one after finding out the beauty that is 1×10. Everyone is individual and wants certain things out of their bike, it isn’t up to you to tell someone to change from 3×9 to 1×10 because they don’t really need all those gears.
9. You don’t really need a front brake…
Yep, we’ve actually heard this one quiet recently and its completely bonkers. Front brakes help you to control the bike, cut your speed faster and when used well it can make turning much easier too. Always ride with both brakes… Unless of course you’re a dirt jumper then this is invalid.
10. Bikes don’t really need servicing…
Your bike is a finely tuned machine, but without servicing it loses the finely tuned bit. Regular servicing ensures that your bike runs as smoothly as possible. You can do this yourself or most bike shops will happily do it for you.
