Enhance Your Riding Experience With Specialized Mountain Bikes
By:Trevor Mulholland
They say brand name doesn’t matter, but in the real world, it clearly does. Brand names are like a summary of the virtues of the products being sold, and more often than not, the more famous brands are the ones that have proven themselves to be most worth the public attention and clamor; their performance is well worth the buzz. This is how you know you can’t go wrong with brand names. Your riding experience can be greatly enhanced with brand name bikes like Trek, Giant, and Specialized mountain bikes.
Each brand comes with its unique set of virtues. Consumers rank these bikes among themselves for ease of use, speed, design, and other factors, often in combination. Specialized mountain bikes, for example, are known for their superior maneuverability. The first production mountain bike ever made was the Stumpjumper from this manufacturer, and since then it has only ever grown stronger in the market. The Specialized Stumpjumper’s agility and ease of handling continues to improve through the years.
Trek mountain bikes, on the other hand, are known for their lightness. Lightness gives a mountain bike a remarkable advantage, as lightness also defines speed and ease of use. Also, lightness is one thing you would want from something you’re going to be carrying, when you’re not riding it! Weight is not its only advantage, however. Trek is a manufacturer of high-end bikes that perform excellently in many ways.
Giant bikes are true to their name: they are big on the market, and big on the trail. They don’t make any bones about being one of the more established brands in the market, and it shows on the bold, streamlined designs of their bikes. One disadvantage though is that some of their more high-end bikes may be heavier. And why? It is all about the fear.
Higher-end Giant bikes are fitted with the Maestro suspension system – and as experts know, suspension makes the bike. Maestro is a dual suspension system formulated by the manufacturer of Giant bikes, and as dual suspension systems go, they also tend to be a bit on the heavy side. Not too heavy for a good run through the trail, though!
If you’re looking for good bikes, branded bikes are the first you should look into. However, if you’re looking for cheap bikes, you may wish to look elsewhere. But be warned – you will be getting what you pay for. The more famous a brand is, the more expensive it usually is, and that means more work and effort is put into creating a bike that is one-of-a-kind and uniquely enjoyable.
The way people create a “buzz” around the most popular bikes in the market is proof not only of the prominence of these bikes, but also of their high standards. Specialized mountain bikes stand as evidence.
YETI 303 RDH BIKE 2009 – $ 4700.00 Why struggle with spec’ing out your own DH bike? Yeti has taken the guesswork out and created a complete bike with components specified to mesh perfectly with their 303-R frame. With a whopping 8″ of suspension travel, its ready for everything from your local race circuit to World Cup level DH.
Custom hydroformed 7005 tubing
Custom sealed bearing pivots
Low standover height
Open, unobstructed design for easy access to all shock adjustments
Agile and flickable, active under braking, and powerful cornering
COMPONENT SPECIFICATIONS Fox 40 RC2 dual crown fork Cane Creek S3 headset Truvativ Hussefelt 38T single ring crank with e.13 SRS Chainguide SRAM X.9 mid-cage rear derailleur SRAM X.7 Trigger shifters SRAM PG-970 11-26T cassette Mavic Deetrax wheelset Maxxis Minion 2.5 tires Avid Elixir hydraulic disc brakes, 203mm rotors Truvativ Hussefelt 31.8mm bar and stem ODI Hardcore grips Yeti / SDG Saddle Truvativ XR Doubleclamp seatpost
The Mongoose Teocali Mountain Bike line of bikes are for those riders who like to conquer the entire mountain from that killer climb to the flowing singletrack descents this smooth pedaling all mountain bike can help you ride the entire mountain. The Teocali Elite is a strong and agile all mountain bike that will get you to the top of the mountain, and can get back down to the bottom with no problem.
The bicycle, bike or cycle is a human-powered vehicle that is driven by foot pedals. It has a basic frame with two wheels attached to it, one after the other. Almost 1.4 billion people in the world use this vehicle, and is obviously one of the most popular and cost-effective vehicles in use today. Not only is it an important and popular means of transport, but also an effective recreational tool. It has several uses such as police and military applications, courier services and cycling sports as well as adult fitness equipment.
Introduced in the 19th century in Europe, bicycle has a host of innovators and inventors credited to its name. The bicycle is supposed to originate from the human-powered vehicle called Draisines. This was introduced to the people in Paris in 1818 by German Baron Karl von Drais. Kirkpatrick MacMillan made an upgrade to this vehicle by adding a mechanical crank drive that as used to drive the vehicle. Thus, the modern `bicycle` came into being.
The French inventors Pierre Michaux and Pierre Lallement designed a high-seated and big front-wheeled bicycle (ordinary bicycle, as it was formally called) that wasn`t much preferred as of its bad weight distribution. The dwarf ordinary bicycle mended these faults but the front oversized wheel remained a problem to be solved. J.K. Starley`s 1885 Rover was the first modern bicycle in its true sense with even wheels and a proper seat.
The modern bicycle has many parts. They may be jotted down as follows.
Frame – Every bicycle today has a `diamond` frame, where the front triangle consists of the head tube, top tube, down tube and seat tube. The rear triangle consists of the seat tube and chain stays as well as seat stays. The basic of bicycle frames is to have high strength yet low weight so as to optimize the energy of the rider to the fullest. Women`s bicycles generally have a step-through frame. This defines that the top tube is absent as it allows the rider (usually a woman) to mount and dismount in a dignified way while wearing a skirt or dress.
Drivetrain – The pedals which rotate the arms of the mechanical crank and chain rings and the brackets, all are elements of the drivetrain. They are used for gears and other related functions in the bicycle.
Handlebars – The handlebars are one of the most important parts of a bicycle. Upright handlebars are used in normal bicycles while dropped handlebars are used in racing and mountaineering bicycles. The latter are used because they give aerodynamic steering and speed to the biker.
Saddles – The saddles are varying depending on the journey and preference of the rider. Cushioned ones are usually used for short journeys while narrower ones are meant to give more space for leg swings.
Brakes – Modern bicycle brakes are usually rim brakes that use friction pads to de-intensify speed. There are also internal hub brakes that have friction pads within the hubs that halt a speeding bicycle. Disc brakes are used on mountain, racing etc bicycles that need braking to be immediate and accurate.
Suspension – A bicycle has suspension to guard itself from the hard roads and also provide comfort to the rider who has to face the rough road.
Wheels – Wheels are necessary for a bicycle to run and reach its destination. Sizes, shapes and powerful wheels vary as per the rider`s needs and choice.
Cities such as Lyon, Barcelona and Paris have used bicycling schemes to good effect. The journey of the bicycle with the human race has been long and important, and will continue to lengthen as long as the human race still exists!
A new national track series aims to rally the best of the best – tracks and racers – for a chance to be named ATRA’s National Champion. The American Track Racing Association (ATRA) National Championship Series includes 11 events across the country.
New collegiate time trial rules were in effect as the Southeast Collegiate Cycling Conference began its season with a race in sunny Gainesville, Florida, on Saturday and Sunday.
Southeast Collegiate Cycling Conference
Gainesville, Florida, Feb 6-7, 2010
Time Trial Results | Click for: Criterium Results
Mens A
Mens B
Mens C
Womens A
Womens B
Mens A | Click to return to top of page
1. Ben Zawacki Clemson in 0:19:52
2. Spencer Beamer Furman in 0:20:16
3. Kyle Rohan Florida in 0:20:30
4. Shawn Gravois Florida in [...]
