The term mountain biking includes many different styles. The range is from gentle types such as cross country where you ride up and down the hills, and cyclo cross, which is a combination between mountain biking and road biking, to more 'extreme' styles. Downhill biking is one of the more extreme types and it is also one of the most popular forms of mountain biking.
In downhill mountain biking as the name implies, you only ride down the hills. The bike and the biker get transported up to the top by a lift and then begin the thrilling ride down. What you're aiming for is to get to the bottom of the hill as fast as possible, managing to pass all the obstacles. The conditions can be pretty extreme including jumps that can be up to twelve meters long, dropping three meters and all kinds of tough situations that can appear on a mountain slope.
The people that are into downhill mountain biking are those that are looking for a good challenge, that long for the adrenaline pumping experience and don't mind a few bruises. It's for those that like to be on the risky, thrilling side of life.
The downhill bike is heavier than other mountain bikes to be able to fit the conditions. It weighs somewhere between forty and fifty pounds so forget about pedaling uphill once you're out there. Once you've begun your race, there's only one way to go and that's down. The bike has to be able to put up with extreme conditions so it is equipped with front and rear suspension and heavy tubing. For the biker, it's necessary to use full saftety gear with a proper helmet, goggles, a body suit plus knee and hand pads. You can expect to have some close contact with the dirt even if you are a professional downhill biker.
There are many ways to improve you skills, the most important one is of course to practice, and then to practice a bit more and a bit more. There are tons of DVDs, books and sites on the internet where you can share ideas and tricks and watch stunts performed by professionals. That's a great part of your learning, and you can bring that with you when you're actually out on the hill. The only way to fully master it though, is to learn by the experience.
Even though downhill mountain biking is somewhat a risky sport, it's well worth to go for it, being able to give you an experience out of the ordinary, both fun and exciting.
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Jason Storm is an adventure sport enthusiast, he's part of the extreme sport community at SackUpSports
