Hitting Kickers

Save MTB weight for racing

Wednesday, 08. 20. 2008  –  Category: Mountain biking

I’m entering my first mountain bike race in a month and have started to think about working on technique and whether I can make my bike a bit lighter.

I ride a Specialized Hardrock, which is fairly low end and not really built for racing I suspect.

I mostly use it for cycling to work and don’t take it off road very much. We be interesting to see how it stands up.

So, I’ve been reading around which has helped me compile this list of tips for how to make a mountain bike lighter for racing.

• Lose some weight yourself. Its not just the bike’s weight you should worry about. Shedding a few KG’s off your own spare tyre will pay dividends too.
• Remove all unnecessary items such as light and lock fittings, reflectors and water bottle holder (if not using).
• Replace the cheaper non-moving components - such as saddles, seat post and handlebar - with lightweight alternatives.

Seems like option 1 could be the most effective, unless you want to spend some money.