Are road bikes significantly faster than mountain bikes?
March 26, 2011 by pbik
Filed under Mountain bikes
are they fatser by a lot or just by a bit?
cuz im thinking of getting a good road bike i bike a bit and i have a mountain bike
im 13 are road bikes uncomfortable? if so will i get used to it?
Also will you have more, less or same endurance on road bikes than mountain bikes?
Lol Also which is better to get you fitter? road or mountain
Yes, road bicycles are meant for riding on the road whereas a mountain bike is for what it sounds like. . one is a tougher, heavier, thicker frame while the other is a lighter, rigid, fast frame.
A mountain bike might go. . maybe 10-15 mph (maybe 20 if i’m really booking it) while when on my road bike I can easily hit in the 30s.
They’re more about speed than about comfort so they can feel a little hard when starting out and not used to it, but you get used to it. It’s more about the position you’re in than the squishiness of the seat and all that (haha squishiness is a word! wouldn’t have though that).
It depends on how the cyclist trains, it can vary but I find that it’s a bit harder mountain biking than long distance road cycling. . but that’s just me.
Both are good exercise, I honestly don’t know which would get you in shape faster.
Road bikes are much more efficient then a mountain bike on the road. They do not have shocks to absorb pedaling energy and are liter. The smaller high pressure tires have much less rolling resistance then knobby tires.
I am just as comfortable on my road bike as my mountain bike. Getting the correct size bike is the key. Endorance depends on how you ride the bike, pedaling with a high cadence and a lite pressure will allow you to go farther then a slow cadence and mashing on the pedals.
Fitness is determined by the way you train not the bike.
Road bikes are faster but mountain bike are balanced . Road bike tires are thinner with no shocks and the bicycle weight is 8-15 pounds so little resistance . Mountain bike are rugged weighing 25-50 pounds I ride with that bike on trails and road bicyclist usually pass me because they have an advantage not because of endurance or strength
it’s the bicycle build for but a mountain bike is harder to go flat or to bend up as easily .
road bikes are significantly faster than MTBs. if you look at their gear set, road bikes have large pedal cogs, anything from 40T and up, whereas MTBs only have 20Ts and 30Ts, rarely over a 40. this gearing allows the rider to apply more grunt per push of the pedal, resulting in a faster speed. MTBs dont need the higher gear set because mountin biking isnt smooth riding, so trying to use higher gears would be near impossible in most cases.
road bikes are definitely weird to a mountain biker, its a very different riding position, but after a while it will click and feel natural.
i’m a MTB-er myself, so i cant really tell u much about road biking. however, i have ridden both and i can tell you im much more tired after riding a MTB, because MTB-ing isnt just riding on flat and smooth paths. trails curve, sometimes have rocks or other obsticles that u need to get over, so it doesnt just work ur legs, u can work ur arms and torso as well. plus MTBs are more fun (in my opinion)
I’ve been riding a hybrid the past few years, and finally broke down and bought a really nice road bike on Saturday. I rode it 32 miles yesterday as part of a charity ride where most people were on mountain or hybrid bikes. I can honestly say that I flew past those folks, especially going up hill.
I would say it does feel a little odd at first to ride a road bike, but this bike fits me so much better than my hybrid that I actually felt more comfortable. You have much better maneuverability, and can turn much tighter and faster on a road bike too.
As for which gets you fit faster, I think it comes down to the fact that you can go faster and therefore farther on a road bike, and are doing less work than riding a slower, heavier bike, which you would ride less time. I think it’s more the amount of time you ride that really counts and not so much which bike you are on. I was just as tired after 20 miles on my new bike as I am on my hybrid, due to riding harder, so I think you can split the difference on that one.
At your age, you may still have a good amount of growing to do, so maybe start with a used road bike, see if you like riding or not, and then get a new, better one when you are older.
I’m assuming you’re comparing a road bike vs mountain bike on road. They’re faster because of several differences:
1. wheel size.
2. Tires are narrow with low rolling resistance, while a mountain bike they are wider with knobbies to help with traction off road, which makes them slower on roads.
3. Gearing is different.
4. Body posture is different.