Why Off-Road Riding?

Grant Thornhill has a big question to ask, why do people go Off-Road Cycling? We don’t know why he is asking as its pretty obvious why most people go mountain biking, fresh air, exercise and to get away from it all and to enjoy the country side, we think it’s a bit obvious, but we give him our thoughts on why anyway

Question: Why do people love to ride off-road so much, what are the various reasons why and how does it benefit society as a whole?

Hi Grant,
A strange question, but we will do our best (as usual) to say what we think.

Mountain Biking gets you away from the traffic and hustle and bustle of the city and gets you into the fresh air of the country side. Now you are probably thinking that you can also do this on a road bike, well you can, except on a road bike you have to stick to the roads and there maybe less traffic out there in the sticks, but there is traffic.

When you are Off-Road cycling, out in the mountains you are at one with the countryside, in the hills or on forest tracks you can come across many varied riding conditions which can test you’re riding skills, dry paths, boulder tracks, muddy or grassy sections, all are fun and can be exciting. Jumps, technical bends and corners will test your bike handling ability and nerve; hard climbs will test your strength and endurance. The whole experience of an off-road bike ride can test your body and mind to its fullness, while exercising most of the muscle groups. The problem could be if you are on your own and have an accident and then if no one knows where you are then things could get nasty!

You ask “how does it benefit society as a whole?” well, all cycling gets people exercising, which is healthy thus saving money on health bills, bikes don’t use fuels so they don’t cause fumes or erode the atmosphere, off road bikes don’t need roads which is also better for the land. They can cause land erosion if ridden over the same paths regularly, but this can also be caused by walkers.

Mountain biking is a good thing for all, for people’s health, the atmosphere and the land, like all outdoor exercise it should be encouraged.