Cross country mountain biking is cross country at its finest. It beats anything else I've ever done to get across the country! Unlike free riders and downhill bikers who use cars or ski lifts to get to where the want to be, cross country riders work to get to the top of the mountain to really deserve and enjoy the reward of coming down. As such, cross country bikes are designed for longer distance and not as much for jumping obstacles. This is reflected in a design that typically allows much less travel, my bike has 5", and is very light. It is versatile and handles most types of terrain. It was designed for speed, to be light and to climb really well. The geometry is also different compared to the other types of bikes.

Cross country bikes come in two basic flavors:

• hard tails with no suspension at the back and a 4 to 5" suspension in the front. You have an option between 26" rims and 29" rims.
• full suspension that includes a rear suspension on top of the front suspension.

The weight difference between free ride bikes and cross country bikes are considerable. You'll be extremely hard pressed to find a bike that weighs more than 24 pounds, and even that weight can be heavy. Free ride bikes weigh close to 40 pounds, which makes the difference in weight pretty signifficant.

If you've never tried cross country mountain biking, you'll probably find it to be a break from the ordinary. Even though this type of biking involves trails, it's normally the type of terrain that beginners wouldn't want to ride. Involving hills and rough terrain, cross country biking offers quite the rush. For mountain bikers everywhere, cross country is the way to go. It offers you a new assortment of bikes, new areas to bike, and a new twist to mountain biking as you know it. If you've been looking for a mountain biking rush, cross country mountain biking is what you need to be experiencing.