Mountain bike safety is a very important topic that you should consider before you go out and eat up the single-track. There are many tactics you can consider using when trying to increase your mountain bike safety.
Remember though, mountain bike safety starts with you and you using your common sense when riding on the trails. If you don’t think you can do something that is dangerous, then don’t do it for right now. Work your way up to being able to do things with increased mountain bike safety in mind.
Mountain Bike Safety : Helmets and Padding
Any time you get on your mountain bike whether riding the single-track or riding around the blog, mountain bike safety always starts with wearing a helmet. If you don’t wear a helmet, you increase your chances of dying from mountain biking.
Most people killed on a bicycle die from some form of head injury and they weren’t wearing a helmet when it happened. Increase mountain bike safety by going out and buying a decent helmet. You can usually go to most retail stores that sell bicycling products and get a decent helmet for a decent price that will give you a decent chance of survival due to a crash where your head impact is involved.
As far as pads go, this is really up to you. If you plan to ride on single-tracks that are highly technical or even downhill for the most part, you might consider extra padding. You can purchase knee pads, shoulder pads, elbow pads and other pads as well.
Not a lot of riders worry about pads on the less technical single-track trails but wearing them will increase your mountain bike safety nonetheless. When wearing extra padding, be sure to pay attention to temperatures for the day you ride as that extra padding will make you hotter.
Mountain Bike Safety : Apparel
When it comes to apparel, you see a variety of different fashion statements concerning mountain bikers. Many mountain bikers wear lose mountain biking apparel while other wear compression-type apparel. It often recommend that you consider wearing spandex apparel when mountain biking. Spandex and compression apparel increases your mountain bike safety in many ways as it has health benefits in muscle recovery and tight clothing will not easily get snagged on trees, limbs and other debris that might be along your mountain bike trail.
Mountain Bike Safety : Energy
Be sure to keep your energy up when mountain biking. Mountain bike safety doesn’t just involve protection gear and clothing, you also need to make sure you are getting plenty of water and eating snacks that you give you fuel to finish your ride. Mountain biking usually takes a lot more energy than other cycling disciplines so it is very important for mountain bike safety to stay hydrated and fueled for your ride.
Lastly, if you are able to, always ride with a friend. If you get into trouble mountain biking, a friend can be there to help you. Thank you for reading my article on mountain bike safety. I hope this article has helped you increase your awareness of mountain bike safety. Please support me for writing this article by sharing it with other cyclists and especially on your favorite social media websites.
Your turn to comment, my friend!
What mountain bike safety advice do you take when riding in a single-track technical environment? Is there any additional mountain bike safety tips that you would add to this article if you could?
Great article on bike maintenance.