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    Mountain Biking

    Advice for Beginner

    Newbie here.

    I used to be an avid biker back in my high school years (I’m 35 now). I’ve decided to re-ignite that passion I once had and pulled the trigger on a bike to get me started. I found a Santa Cruz Highball CC within my budget. Ideally I wanted a trail bike but I’m 6’7 and my options are slim for buying used.

    Anyways. My town had built these really awesome trails pretty much down the road from me and that’s what inspired me to get back into it. So I was looking for some good tips and advice on handling trails and any suggestions for accessories or equipment I should invest in. Thanks 🙏

    by Retro-man91

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    12 Comments

    2. sickysickybrah on

      i think you’ll quickly find out that it’s just like riding a bike 😎👍

    4. Tricks_ on

      Dropper post, a real game changer

      A bell for when you ride alone on trails (keeps animals and hikers in check)

      Are the tires already tubeless?

      Bigger diameter grips might be more comfortable with your height.

      You might want to get started with flat pedals for the first few months depending on you skills.

      I find a rear blinking red light gives me some peace when i have to ride on the road for a mile or two.

    8. Dramatic-Search-2248 on

      If your a heavier dude, down the line, look at heavier casing tyres, but, yeah a dropper would be great. Check your frame takes an internal or external dropper cable routing

    10. sanjuro_kurosawa on

      This is a guess because the photo is angled and you’re not on the bike, but the saddle to bar drop seems excessive.

      Now of course you are really tall and an XXL is not available. However, I’d try to raise the bars as much as possible, with a higher rise stem and riser bars. Also I might get a longer stem which has some drawbacks.

      I point out the giant racer, Steve Peat at 6’3″, one of the tallest riders. Note with his 5010, which is a tiny bit smaller than your bike, his bars are close to the height of the saddle.

      [https://www.vitalmtb.com/features/Steve-Peats-Santa-Cruz-5010c,1696](https://www.vitalmtb.com/features/Steve-Peats-Santa-Cruz-5010c,1696)

      Besides general fit, accommodating your torso lean, arm reach and possibly even knees touching the bar; the lower your bars are under the saddle, the more forward and down our center of gravity is. On a descent, that could be a problem.

      I

    11. saaggy_peneer on

      check out the local trails on Trailforks and use Komoot to navigate them. both free

      start easy. you don’t need to ride every feature. don’t be afraid to walk the hard ones the first couple of times

      try a local skills park if there’s one in your area to practice skinnies and drops w low consequences

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