considering mountain biking

Hi,
I'm considering buying a Mountain bike. I have no experience riding, and
definitely would start at the low price range. I first looked at the
discount store bikes but now I'm now looking at the Specialized Hard
Rock XC for $290. I walk some of the local trails (ex. Wild Azalea Trail
in Alexandria, La)and thought it would be a good sport to start, for
fitness and fun. I consider myself in fair shape, I walk 3 miles five to
ten times a week at about 14 minutes average per mile.
I have several questions. (1) I'm 50 years old, is that too old to start
recreational Mountain Biking? (2) I had a herniated disc about a year
ago and have had some arthritis problems, I was wondering how much
jarring there is and are crashes inevitable? (3) What does the XC stand
for in Mountain Biking?
Thanks for your time,
Steve

Steve wrote:

Hi,
I'm considering buying a Mountain bike. I have no experience riding, and
definitely would start at the low price range. I first looked at the
discount store bikes but now I'm now looking at the Specialized Hard
Rock XC for $290. I walk some of the local trails (ex. Wild Azalea Trail
in Alexandria, La)and thought it would be a good sport to start, for
fitness and fun. I consider myself in fair shape, I walk 3 miles five to
ten times a week at about 14 minutes average per mile.
I have several questions. (1) I'm 50 years old, is that too old to start
recreational Mountain Biking? (2) I had a herniated disc about a year
ago and have had some arthritis problems, I was wondering how much
jarring there is and are crashes inevitable? (3) What does the XC stand
for in Mountain Biking?
Thanks for your time,
Steve


Hey Steve,

50 years old, eh... dang, that's pretty old, but then again, we have
several geezers (Sorni, Baker... etc.) here that ride ;-)

Seriously, 50 is nothing. And starting at 50 is no big deal; I'm 38 and
just started a few years ago.

--
Slacker

On 2004-05-29, Steve penned:
Hi,
I'm considering buying a Mountain bike. I have no experience riding, and
definitely would start at the low price range. I first looked at the
discount store bikes but now I'm now looking at the Specialized Hard
Rock XC for $290. I walk some of the local trails (ex. Wild Azalea Trail
in Alexandria, La)and thought it would be a good sport to start, for
fitness and fun. I consider myself in fair shape, I walk 3 miles five to
ten times a week at about 14 minutes average per mile.
I have several questions. (1) I'm 50 years old, is that too old to start
recreational Mountain Biking? (2) I had a herniated disc about a year
ago and have had some arthritis problems, I was wondering how much
jarring there is and are crashes inevitable? (3) What does the XC stand
for in Mountain Biking?
Thanks for your time,

Hi, Steve!

I just started mountain biking last year, and I'm having a great time.

To answer your questions:

1) No! Jeez, don't put one foot in your coffin before you're ready to
go! You're only as young as you feel and all that jazz. If it looks
like fun, go for it.

2) This really depends on the trails you ride, the bike you get, and ...
well, I have a feeling crashes are inevitable, but there's one guy who
posts to this ng (sorry, can't remember the name) who has to avoid
crashes for medical reasons and seems to do a decent job of it. Of
course, it will dictate the types of trails you should be riding.

Trails you ride. People take mountain bikes on everything from flat
dirt roads to ... well, just about anything you can imagine. It's up to
you to choose trails with which you feel reasonably comfortable. Also,
no one's surgically attaching you to the bike. If you're not
comfortable with biking something, walk it.

The bike you get. As I understand it, jarring goes down as you progress
from a fully rigid bike to hardtail (front suspension, no rear) to full
suspension (both front and rear). The trouble is, it's going to be
awfully hard to find a full suspension worth buying at your price range.
In fact, I think I've heard a rule of thumb that you wouldn't want to
buy a full suspension less than $1500 or so. I don't know enough about
bikes to verify this statement, to be honest.

3) Cross country, oddly enough.

There's a mountain bike buying guide out there ... lemme dig it up ...

http://bbauer.gomen.org/newbike/


--
monique

"The people who run record companies now wouldn't know a song if it flew up
their nose and died." -- David Crosby, on PBS Frontline

On Sat, 29 May 2004 16:56:23 -0500, Steve wrote:

I'm considering buying a Mountain bike. I have no experience riding, and
definitely would start at the low price range. I first looked at the
discount store bikes but now I'm now looking at the Specialized Hard
Rock XC for $290. I walk some of the local trails (ex. Wild Azalea Trail
in Alexandria, La)and thought it would be a good sport to start, for
fitness and fun. I consider myself in fair shape, I walk 3 miles five to
ten times a week at about 14 minutes average per mile. I have several
questions. (1) I'm 50 years old, is that too old to start recreational
Mountain Biking? (2) I had a herniated disc about a year ago and have
had some arthritis problems, I was wondering how much jarring there is
and are crashes inevitable? (3) What does the XC stand for in Mountain
Biking?

the easy one first ... XC is "cross-country" and matches sort of general
recreational riding. some up, some down. the racers go fast, but (we)
recreational riders might do the same terrain slower.

crashes ... i think that word implies some speed and you don't have to go
fast. you can be conservative. you don't have to ride anything you don't
feel comfortable with. get off and push the bike past it.

jarring ... that depends on your trails. i have no idea what a herniated
disk is like though ... maybe someone here is riding with one.

i'd guess that you would enjoy a bike ... and find trails that are fun for
you.

fwiw, i'm 46. i started years ago, but i think you could start now. if
you are like me it might take a little longer to develop the skills than
it did ten years ago ... but it beats the alternative.

On 2004-05-29, Socks penned:

crashes ... i think that word implies some speed and you don't have to
go fast. you can be conservative. you don't have to ride anything
you don't feel comfortable with. get off and push the bike past it.


Crashes happen when going fast; but you can fall at any speed, and going
slow probably makes it even more likely.

I don't know if Steve is trying to avoid any falling whatsoever, or just
the really nasty bruise and laceration type injuries.

--
monique

"The people who run record companies now wouldn't know a song if it flew up
their nose and died." -- David Crosby, on PBS Frontline

"Steve" wrote in message
...
Hi,
I'm considering buying a Mountain bike. I have no experience riding, and
definitely would start at the low price range. I first looked at the
discount store bikes but now I'm now looking at the Specialized Hard
Rock XC for $290.

Good for you. Stay away from those department store bikes, too.

I walk some of the local trails (ex. Wild Azalea Trail
in Alexandria, La)

I've ridden those trails. I certainly was not used to all that climbing.

(1) I'm 50 years old, is that too old to start
recreational Mountain Biking?

Never too old, however......

(2) I had a herniated disc about a year
ago and have had some arthritis problems, I was wondering how much
jarring there is and are crashes inevitable?

.....consult your doctor.

Not much jarring, but crashes can happen. About the worst thing to watch out
for at the WAT, are the huge roots that can knock you down on those fast
downhills. The rest of the trails is smooth, and not very technical (at
least where I rode).

(3) What does the XC stand for in Mountain Biking?
Thanks for your time,

Cross country, but I'm sure someone has answered that one already.

Good luck, Steve.

"Steve" wrote in message
...
Hi,
I'm considering buying a Mountain bike. I have no experience riding, and
definitely would start at the low price range. I first looked at the
discount store bikes but now I'm now looking at the Specialized Hard
Rock XC for $290.

I have several thousand miles on a similar bike. It'll do fine.

(1) I'm 50 years old, is that too old to start
recreational Mountain Biking?

You're only a coupla years older than me. You'll do fine.

Pete

"Slacker" wrote in message
...
Steve wrote:

Hi,
I'm considering buying a Mountain bike. I have no experience riding, and
definitely would start at the low price range. I first looked at the
discount store bikes but now I'm now looking at the Specialized Hard
Rock XC for $290. I walk some of the local trails (ex. Wild Azalea Trail
in Alexandria, La)and thought it would be a good sport to start, for
fitness and fun. I consider myself in fair shape, I walk 3 miles five to
ten times a week at about 14 minutes average per mile.
I have several questions. (1) I'm 50 years old, is that too old to start
recreational Mountain Biking? (2) I had a herniated disc about a year
ago and have had some arthritis problems, I was wondering how much
jarring there is and are crashes inevitable? (3) What does the XC stand
for in Mountain Biking?
Thanks for your time,
Steve


Hey Steve,

50 years old, eh... dang, that's pretty old, but then again, we have
several geezers (Sorni, Baker... etc.) here that ride ;-)

Seriously, 50 is nothing. And starting at 50 is no big deal; I'm 38 and
just started a few years ago.

--
Slacker

50 is geezing? Oh man, I'm 45. (don't worry. I saw the wink with my
bifocals.....)

Go for it Steve. From my own experience, mtb'ing loosens you up and makes
you want more.
It can certainly lead to rectal/cranial inversions from time to time no
matter what speed you are going. Believe me I speak from
experience.................................

Marty

On Sat, 29 May 2004 16:39:52 -0600, Monique Y. Mudama wrote:

On 2004-05-29, Socks penned:

crashes ... i think that word implies some speed and you don't have to
go fast. you can be conservative. you don't have to ride anything you
don't feel comfortable with. get off and push the bike past it.

Crashes happen when going fast; but you can fall at any speed, and going
slow probably makes it even more likely.

I don't know if Steve is trying to avoid any falling whatsoever, or just
the really nasty bruise and laceration type injuries.

there is no denying that injury is common in the sport/recreation. i've
broken a few things myself (hip, wrist, fingers on separate occasions.)

i take it easier now, and that was really what i was trying to get across.
we can develop low-speed skills(*) ... and what's a dab(**) among friends?

* - they make it sound harder than it is:

http://www.ehow.com/how_14109_track-stand-mountain.html

** - putting a foot down to steady yourself in a tricky section.

I started mountain biking 6 months ago at age 64 and I love it. I suggest
you check with your doctor regarding your back problem.

To reduce stress on your back get your butt off the seat and keep your knees
bent when you go over bumps.

(Optimistic 90 year old man says "I must be getting stronger. When I was 20
I couldn't bend it.")



"Steve" wrote in message
...
Hi,
I'm considering buying a Mountain bike. I have no experience riding, and
definitely would start at the low price range. I first looked at the
discount store bikes but now I'm now looking at the Specialized Hard
Rock XC for $290. I walk some of the local trails (ex. Wild Azalea Trail
in Alexandria, La)and thought it would be a good sport to start, for
fitness and fun. I consider myself in fair shape, I walk 3 miles five to
ten times a week at about 14 minutes average per mile.
I have several questions. (1) I'm 50 years old, is that too old to start
recreational Mountain Biking? (2) I had a herniated disc about a year
ago and have had some arthritis problems, I was wondering how much
jarring there is and are crashes inevitable? (3) What does the XC stand
for in Mountain Biking?
Thanks for your time,
Steve