Bicycling Tips, Guides, News and Videos

Bicycling is an outdoor sport.  And chances are, you do most of your riding in the daytime.  Play it safe and save your skin.  Exposure to the sun’s rays cause burns, wrinkles and skin cancer.  Don’t take chances.

• Ride early in the morning, or ride in the evening to avoid the most direct sun. The hours from 10am until 2pm tend to be the most dangerous.  Check the UV Index forecast in your area (try weather.com ) to find out just how bad it will get. Read the rest of this entry »

The Chattahoochee National Forest near Dahlonega offers some of the finest mountain biking to be found in Georgia. Two trails originating in the Chattahoochee National Forest in the Nimblewill area offer a range of difficulty and beautiful scenery. Detailed information concerning these trails and the future plans can be obtained from the Chattahoochee National Forest Visitors Center on Memorial Drive in Dahlonega.

How to Get There

These trails are reached off of Forest Service Rd. 28-1 between the Nimblewill Road and the Frank D. Merrill Army Ranger Camp. The directions will be given from both ends. Read the rest of this entry »

If you’re excited about daylight savings then you’re probably itching for the upcoming weekend camping trips. I’m talking about filling the coffee mug after work then rapidly packing the car and heading out of town. But 15 minutes after you leave your house, you find yourself back at home putting your bike on the rack.

Hopefully, after another walk through the house, the garage and the bathroom, you find yourself, your friends and your bike firmly attached to the transport mechanism. Another 15 minutes passes, while you are driving, you become worried that you forgot something. However, this time, you’re not going back. You’re not even going to voice concern. Quietly, you slip into a meditative state and drive. Meanwhile, you mountain bike shoes lie on the top of your car.

Read the rest of this entry »

With the season running from May through October, Whistler’s moderate climate makes for great riding. Five fresh lakes and clean mountain streams also break up rides, enticing visitors for an afternoon dip.

For speed merchants, both recreational and serious, Whistler’s mountain bike season is packed with leg-burning, endo-filled action. Starting the first week in May and ending late in September, there is at least one race a week scheduled to pit pro against pro or even family members against one another. Read the rest of this entry »

Whistler, located about a one-hour drive from Vancouver, British Columbia, is known for being one of the top ski resorts in North America, while the Chateau Whistler Resort has an international reputation for its services and amenities. Its internationally acclaimed golf courses have been designed by some of the top pros in the business, and Ross Rebagliati helped put it on the map by bringing home the gold in snowboarding. Just getting there by car is a pleasure, for the road winds along a spectacular coastline, with mountains and forests on one side, and the sea on the other. Read the rest of this entry »

Start with your bike shop. The vast majority of bike shop workers are cyclists themselves. They’ll be more than happy to point you in the right direction. But be honest with them about what type of riding you want to do and what your fitness level is. There are plenty of horror stories about people getting stuck on death rides because they allowed themselves to get in over their heads.

Shops may have maps of local routes, including bike paths, bike lanes, and bike trails. You can also find trail guides and books at the shop. These range from nothing more than a stapled collection of photo-copied hand-drawn maps, to professionally done route guides with computer-generated maps which cost up to $20. Read the rest of this entry »

Cycling, and especially mountain biking, is one of the only sports that the whole family can do on the same level, on the same “field,” with the same equipment. For your kids, it’s a natural transition from BMX. For you, it’s a way to get involved with something that your kids are doing that isn’t just standing on the sidelines.

There’s no doubt that BMX is fun, fast, and furious. There’s just something about thrashing around at high speed, dicing through the corners, whether you’re at the track or at the dirt lot at the end of the street. You won’t find us bad-mouthing BMX, not now, not ever. Read the rest of this entry »

What to Wear and Bring
Wearing comfortable clothes and having a few items handy will greatly enhance your Spinning program experience. Here’s a quick checklist:

• Wear padded biking shorts (which are more comfortable than a standard pair of shorts).
• Wear a moisture-wicking shirt and socks.
• Wear stiff-soled shoes aerobic/running shoes are too soft and flexible or cycling shoes with cleats(call beforehand to see if you’ll need to bring your own clipless pedals).
• Bring a water bottle to keep your body hydrated.
• Drink water before, during, and after your workout.
• Bring a towel for wiping off perspiration during your ride. Read the rest of this entry »

The rear derailleur is one of the most complex parts on a bicycle, but adjustments to it are fairly simple. Just a few informed twists of the limit screws and some cable tension tuning and you’re away to the races. Most rear derailleurs on MTBs are either SRAM or Shimano and of the 9 speed variety.

Here’s how to treat them just right. Read the rest of this entry »

Nothing can make an MTBer feel more helpless than not being able to service their own bike.

One area that needs TLC more often than not, is the bike’s transmission. What’s that noise? What are all those cables and adjustment screws for? How do they all work? Where do I start? Your MTB guide is here to help.

The first part of a bike’s transmission that tends to get a little screwy is the front derailleur, so this my friends is where we’ll begin… Read the rest of this entry »

One thing you’ve got to know about MTBing is that it’s not just about going fast. One of the most neglected skills of the sport is braking and, truth be told, learning to do it effectively can turn an average rider into a great one.

At no time during a ride is braking more critical than when the trail turns downhill. All you need to become an expert on the downside are the following tips (and some steady nerves!). Read the rest of this entry »

There are many nuances to safe bicycle riding in urban areas that you never encounter driving an automobile. Safe cycling requires more concentration, skill and forethought than driving your car. However, as a cyclist there is no reason that you cannot successfully “share” the roadway with motorists on a daily basis.

There are cyclists who have been riding for 15 years, and as much as 20,000 miles per year in city traffic without one serious incident with an auto. These safety records are not the result of luck, but from constant concentration on roadway traffic conditions and positioning themselves correctly under the circumstances. Read the rest of this entry »

Magura rim brakes are what is known as a “closed” hydraulic system. What this means is the system is sealed and does not have an overflow or expansion reservoir type master cylinder like you see on disc brakes – this type of system (most commonly found in cars and motorcycles) is known as an “open” hydraulic system.

To better understand why your Maguras do certain things here is a little overview on how they work…

With Magura rim brakes you have a lever with a tiny master cylinder. Attached to the lever is a brake line which leads to a pair of slave cylinders. The line enters one slave cylinder and then a second line leaves the slave cylinder and crosses over (known as the crossover line) to the other slave cylinder. This brake assembly is full of Magura hydraulic fluid. Read the rest of this entry »

This is not meant as a complete guide to brake installation. You must read your manual. These are just tips we find make the job go easier.

Tip #1 – Remove tires so that you can see clearly that the pads are as square to the rim as possible. No toe-in needed with these babies.

Read the rest of this entry »

The Company

The town: Bad Urach, Germany. The person: Gustav Magenwirth. The date: 1893. Gustav, an inventive engineer, combines MAGenwitrh (his last name) with Bad URAch (his town) and creates a company called MAGURA. (Pronounced MAGOOOOORA – not MagYouRa).

His new company named, Gustav set out to design hydraulic pumps, kerosene engines, and hydrostatic mechanical equipment. Today, 108 years later, Magura are parts-suppliers to such prestigious companies as BMW, Bosch, and Mercedes, to name a few. With such a solid history, it was no surprise that the MTB world sat up and took notice when in 1987, Magura took on designing bicycle brakes. Read the rest of this entry »