the Adventure Lifestyle magazine

All angst is immediately forgotten as you tip your wheel downward and descend in a euphoric rush of diving turns, exotic plant life and vigorous waves to baffled farmers. A gaggle of grinning children sur· round you at the bottom. As they walk with you to the local hostel, you ask if they can lead you to other trails in the morning. Mountain bikes are perhaps the ultimate land-based exploration tool-and there is still much of the world that has yet to be ridden. There are two basic forms of mountain bike travel: mountain bike touring and mountain bike exploration. Like road bike touring, mountain bike touring uses the bike as a travel vehicle, usually along a predetermined route. Unlike road bikes, however, mountain bikes allow easy passage over rugged terrain and through locales with unde- veloped road systems. Mountain bike exploration is less about getting from point A to point B and more about arriving at your destination, bike in hand, then finding and logging epic rides once you get there. Traditional cyclists often choose the former, while singletrack junkies usually opt for the latter. For most hardcore mountain bikers, exploration is what it's all about. Pick a destina· tion, buy maps, hit local bike shops and seek so little mountain bike exploration has been done in these places, no one really knows which trails are ridable and which ones could turn into hell trips. Most don't even show up on maps. This is the intrepid mountain biker's arena of choice for true frontier-style exploration. All of South America is a mountain bike traveler's paradise, and many countries now have guiding operations. Chile and certain areas of Ecuador and Peru are the established outposts, while Bolivia is the continent's next frontier. In North America, Colorado, Utah and British Columbia are all well known for their superlative riding. Colorado has the best sin- gletrack, Utah the best unearthly terrain and British Columbia the most technically challenging wilderness rides. The Yukon and Alaska are still relatively undiscovered as moun- MOUNTAIN BIKES ARE THE ULTIMATE LAND-BASED EXPLORATION TOOL AND THERE IS STILL MUCH OF THE WORLD THAT HAS YET TO BE RIDDEN. out the best trails. Drink deep of adventure and the land's forgotten crevices. Pavement eventually leads to ,dirt-this is the first step. Then you find a rough jeep track or an overgrown footpath, and before you know it you're scrambling up rocky hillsides, discovering white-knuck- le singletrack, hidden waterfalls, itinerant wisemen. In terms of where to mountain bike the world over, the options are truly limitless. Italy, with its unending singletrack, spec- tacular scenery and rich cycling heritage, is one of the premier moun· tain bike destinations in Europe. Austria and Norway have prominent mountain bike cultures and equally good riding. Experienced riders and those willing to pay for all-inclusive tours are increasingly being drawn to Asia and South America. In Asia, it's hard not to fixate on the Himalayas. There is a burgeoning mountain bike culture in Nepal supported by several outfitters based in Kathmandu. Mongolia, Vietnam and the Kashmir region of India are emerging as culturally rich destinations for hardy riders who crave the challenges of trailblazing. Mongolia, which has lots of dirt roads winding through beautiful, rugged countryside, has less technical riding. Dirt-road touring also abounds in Vietnam and Kashmir, but the real draw for adventure riders in these areas is their abundance of unridden, unexplored, off-road trails. Because tain bike destinations, but with formidable mountains and rugged, uncharted terrain, they are prime targets for serious back- country exploration. Although Africa does not have much ir)frastructure for mountain biking, Morocco is the exception. Several outfits in Marrakech offer jeep road tours, while those willing to go it on their own in the Atlas Mountains will be rewarded with incredible desert singletrack. New Zealand is also a rising star, with friendly people, tons of guides and some of the most beautiful trails in the world. The general rule of thumb for mountain biking is this: If there's ground, you can ride. Touring is more flexible than backcoun- try exploration, as it requires only dirt roads. Explorers usually seek mountains, although mountains do not necessarily guarantee good riding. Make sure the area not only has plenty of trails but that they are open to bikes. There are a host of ecological and social impacts in every area that mountain bikers must be sensitive to. Do your research beforehand by contacting local parks authorities or environ- mental agencies to find out if the land is protected or particularly eco- logically sensitive, who has jurisdiction over it and what its intended use is. You don't want to be the knothead tourist damaging the envi- . ronment or compounding local conflicts. A bicycle is a machine-simple and beautifully efficient, but a machine nonetheless-and machines can break. Bringing a bike makes a trip more complicated, but for the patient and determined, the logistical headaches are more than offset by the joy and wonder of exploring a new world on two wheels.-Aaron Teasdale

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