I do both. I was a roadie/triathlete for so many years I thought I just might hate MTB. But I was hooked so hard when I started MTB that I hardly rode my roadie for months! I thought I'd even turned into a bonafide MTBer. But then recently got back onto my roadie to do a metric century and ride the 40km leg for a team in a triathlon and I'm a born again roadie! I supsect my loyalties will flip-flop for the rest of my life!

Ways to try? Hire a decent bike for a day or borrow a test bike (Specialized dealers do this) and get a friend to take you for a GENTLE ride! No gnarly stuff! Or maybe do a women's training course (somebody must run one locally).

What I love about the roadie: It is light, nimble, fast, sings along the road. I get a good workout with a nice constant level of effort and heart rate. It burns loads of calories. You travel vast distances in an efficient way. There is nothing so sweet as an early morning road ride on one of those breathtakingly gorgeous early autumn mornings.

What I don't like about the roadie: Nothing really. Maybe knowing what I've spent on mountain bikes since I bought my roadie I would spend a bit more next time and get one with more carbon and a little less harsh ride? Oh - and I didn't like how long it took me to get my seat issues sorted out on the roadie!

What I love about the MTB: The sheer adrenalin rush of going over obstacles! It is the closest thing I've ever found to downhill skiing for that rush! I enjoyed learning new skills and improving my bike handling (helped on the roadie too). I enjoy riding in the natural environment without the aggro that cars bring. MTB racing has been a revelation - so polite and friendly! And lastly I find MTB is a different facet of fitness. I am by nature a constant effort kind of a person. Wind me up and I'll just grind it out and keep on going (probably a TT sort of person). Having to ride in a peaks and troughs (like gun it now or fall off!) kind of environment is like doing a strength session. My heart rate is all over the place and overall I actually burn less calories than on the roadie (hour for hour) because I spend some of the time at the top of the hills scraping my lungs up off the ground and putting them back into my chest! It has improved my anaerobic capacity and my lactic threshold and my climbing ability immensely. My legs are MUCH tougher and this has made me enjoy the roadie even more too.

What I don't like about the MTB: Hills! They say there is no mountain biking without mountains and they are not kidding! And I don't like wet races where it all turns to mud. But it is all character-building, and yesterday I had a revelation about a hill I have always hated. Yesterday for the first time it actually didn't hurt!


In short..... try it. It's great fun and it'll make you a better roadie too!