Mountain Bike Buying Guide

Mountain biking is an incredibly diverse sport. Mountain bikes now come in three main flavours. They are XC, Trail and Enduro.

XC – short for cross country, are quick race bikes. They will normally have 29” wheels and come with 100mm of suspension. If you are mainly going to be riding bridleways and natural trails in the South East of England, where our shops are, an XC bike will be the quickest and most efficient option.

Trail – these bikes are designed to be pedalled up and down hill and for use on bridleways and natural trails, but also at dedicated trail centres. They normally come with 130mm or 140mm of suspension travel and can have either 27.5” or 29” wheels, but 29” is quickly becoming the norm. Trail bikes are good all-rounders. They won’t be as fast as an XC bike on the flat but they can handle a lot more challenging terrain, and a few jumps. If you plan on taking your bike to trail centres in Wales, or to the Alps, then a trail bike may be your best option.

Enduro – enduro racing is a thing in and of itself but many people buy enduro bikes for ‘aggressive’ trail riding and uplift days at places like Bike Park Wales. This generally means challenging downhill trails with some big jumps. With around 160mm of suspension travel enduro bikes can take some big hits. They are designed to be efficient enough to pedal up hills but really come into their own when pointed downhill. You get enduro bikes in either 27.5” or 29” wheel sizes as well as mullet setups of 29 at the front and 27.5 at the back.

Men’s and women’s mountain bikes

Nearly all the mountain bikes we sell are now unisex. All of the big brands have gradually stopped doing dedicated men’s and women’s bikes over the last few years. Instead they are focussed on producing bikes in a bigger range of sizes. So, for instance, the Trek Marlin 5 is a unisex bike that now comes in sizes from XXS to XXL large. This means it will fit riders from 4’ 5” to 6’ 5” and everything in between.

Read our full mountain bike buyers guide

Cannondale are not keen on rules. Cannondale think outside the box and it has led to some of the most innovative bikes ever made. They were one of the pioneers of aluminium and carbon bike frames and were one of the first brand to introduce these materials into both professional racing and production bikes. Leading to their famous 'Legalize My Cannondale' ad campaigns after their innovations took their bikes below the official weight limit for pro racing.

Cannondale have led the development of technology in mountain bike suspension for years and have unique suspension designs, such as the Lefty, which only they use. Cannondale‘s commitment to innovation means they do things their own way. When you buy a Cannondale bike you will be getting something a little bit special and different from everyone else.

Cannondale have won awards for the 2020 CAAD13 and SuperSix Evo Road Bikes. Despite the alloy frame, the CAAD13 competes with a carbon road bike on every level but the price. SuperSix EVO is an evolution of Cannondale’s classic race machine. Adding more aero profiling, and a system integrated design to reduce drag.

Cycles UK is one of the leading Cannondale dealers in Essex, Kent, Hertfordshire and London. We stock a wide range of Cannondale road, mountain and electric bikes online and in our stores.

Please note: Manufacturers can sometimes change the specification of the products from time to time.