Cross country mountain biking is cross country at its finest. Where free riders and downhill bikers use four wheel bikes and ski lifts to get them to their destination, cross country bikers get to the top of the mountain by the ride. Though free riding is very popular, the life vein of the sport has always been cross country biking.
Just as cross country riders are a different breed, the bikes they ride are as well. The cross country bike is completely different in many ways from other types of mountain riding bikes. The premise for cross country riders is speed. Everything about their bikes revolve with the idea of making the bikes faster and faster.
Bikes used in cross country mountain biking can be fully rigid frame, hardtails, or even full suspension frames. Through the years, the cross over to full suspension has become very popular.
The weight difference between free ride bikes and cross country bikes are considerable. You’ll be extremely hard pressed to find a bike that weighs more than 24 pounds, and even that weight can be heavy. Free ride bkes weigh close to 40 pounds, which makes the difference in weight pretty close.
If you’ve...