Mountain Biking Maryland
How much weight will a mountain bike hold?
My brother who is overweight has been looking in to bikeing as a way too loose weight. We live near the Great Allegheny Passage in Maryland which is a great new trail that I ride often. The trail itself is very even, little grade with a packed gravel covering on 70% of the trail, blacktop on the rest. My brother just weighed in at 401lbs., he is overweight but does not look that heavy as he is pretty muscular especialy in his legs. The beefiest looking bike I have found in his price range is a Mongoose Blackcomb with 26″ 36-spoke black anodized alloy rims. What I need to know is will this bike hold him on the trail whith it’s easy even ride.
I think your brother will have a hard time riding the Mongoose Blackcomb, because its rear suspension is way too bouncy. With his weight, it will bounce too much and absorb all his pedaling power, which means he will have trouble getting up hills and slow going on flat ground.
For your brother’s particular weight, you probably want to look for a hardtail mountain bike made with a steel frame– Steel frames in general are the most rugged. You might also want to get stronger 26″ mountain bike wheel rims for him, such as those wth triple-laced spokes.
Good luck.
Mountain Biking Bethesda Maryland
