Recreational mountain biking survey for university project

[snowy92]

Hi everyone,

My name is Hamish Snow and I’m currently conducting research into recreational mountain biking for my final yeah project for my degree in Industrial Design at the Queensland University of Technology. As an avid rider myself, my aim is to gain insights from as many other riders as possible to assist in the development and design of a new product or system specifically for mountain bikers.

So if you have a spare moment and feel like being a champion, could you please fill out the following survey and either post your responses in the thread below or PM me. Any information you would be willing to provide (which, if reported, will be done completely anonymously) would be highly beneficial to my project and greatly appreciated. I can also post up the final results of my project once completed if anyone's interested.

Thank you for your time.

Participant information

Gender:
Age:

Questions

General

1. What are the main motivations behind why you mountain bike? Have they changed from when you first began riding to now?

2. For you personally, do you feel there are any specific aspects that contribute to good or bad experiences while riding?

3. In your opinion, what are the positive and negative aspects of riding alone and riding with friends or as part of a group?

Safety

1. Is your safety and wellbeing a major concern when riding? I.e. do you try and challenge your limits every time you go riding, or do you ride conservatively considering the implications of an accident?

2. If you or a fellow rider has even been/was involved in a serious accident, do you feel you were/would be adequately prepared to deal with the situation? (Considering First Aid training, available equipment, limited access to emergency or communication services etc.)

Time Constraints

1. Do you consider the amount of time you spend riding each week adequate, or if given the opportunity, would you prefer to ride more?

2. Currently, what are the main influences that impact on how often you go riding each week? (Work, family commitments, etc.)

3. For you personally, is the length of a ride (time or distance) relevant to how worthwhile it is? I.e. can a short ride be just as enjoyable and a long session in the saddle? Why?

Location/Distances

1. In the area/s or trails you enjoy riding the most, what elements contribute most to your appreciation? (Trail design, close proximity to home, built yourself etc.)

2. In general, do you find greater satisfaction in riding familiar trails or somewhere new? What are the reasons behind this?

3. How do you gain access to trails predominantly (e.g. by car, public transport, ride there yourself)? Are there any associated difficulties with this method?

Equipment

1. Do failures or breakages of equipment ever disrupt/halt you ride? What are the most common issues you encounter?

2. In general, do you feel you are equipped well enough to overcome a problem while on the trail? (Tools carried, knowledge for diagnosing and fixing issues etc.)

3. With regards to caring for your equipment (e.g. regular cleaning and servicing, replacing worn components etc.), do you believe this to be an important aspect of your riding ritual or do you take a more relaxed approach (considering time constraints, cost etc.)?

Additional comments:

 

[snowy92]

I know, it's another survey, but at least it's mountain bike related! If you've got a spare 5 minutes, any insight you'd willing to provide would be invaluable and greatly appreciated.

 

[David2406]

General

1. What are the main motivations behind why you mountain bike? Have they changed from when you first began riding to now?

Fitness was my first motivation, I needed to love some weight. Now I just love to ride

2. For you personally, do you feel there are any specific aspects that contribute to good or bad experiences while riding?

Wet weather.
Daylight - I have been caught in the bush a few times in the dark now that daylight savings has ended.

3. In your opinion, what are the positive and negative aspects of riding alone and riding with friends or as part of a group?

I find that with friends we seem to push ourselves a lot faster and harder. It is good to have mates that are interested in the sport though. Negative aspect could be different fitness and skill levels

Safety

1. Is your safety and wellbeing a major concern when riding? I.e. do you try and challenge your limits every time you go riding, or do you ride conservatively considering the implications of an accident?

I am starting to push myself a little harder now. I work for myself so I can't really afford to injure myself.

2. If you or a fellow rider has even been/was involved in a serious accident, do you feel you were/would be adequately prepared to deal with the situation? (Considering First Aid training, available equipment, limited access to emergency or communication services etc.)

I carry a phone with me but that is all that I have. Hopefully will never need to use it in an emergency

Time Constraints

1. Do you consider the amount of time you spend riding each week adequate, or if given the opportunity, would you prefer to ride more?

I would like to ride everyday, however with family commitmens I am riding for about an hour every second day.

2. Currently, what are the main influences that impact on how often you go riding each week? (Work, family commitments, etc.)

Family commitments and daylight hours

3. For you personally, is the length of a ride (time or distance) relevant to how worthwhile it is? I.e. can a short ride be just as enjoyable and a long session in the saddle? Why?

I like to ride for at least an hour, just gives me a good time to clear my head, get the blood pumping and start to feel it in my legs.

Location/Distances

1. In the area/s or trails you enjoy riding the most, what elements contribute most to your appreciation? (Trail design, close proximity to home, built yourself etc.)

I like to ride the trails close to home, I have only been into the sport for about 6 months now. I live in Camden and regularly ride the "Kessel Run" along the river and also Mt Annan Botanical Gardens.

2. In general, do you find greater satisfaction in riding familiar trails or somewhere new? What are the reasons behind this?

I like riding familiar trails as I find that it gives me more confidence as I know what is around the next corner, knowing what sort of speed to hit a jump at, etc.

3. How do you gain access to trails predominantly (e.g. by car, public transport, ride there yourself)? Are there any associated difficulties with this method?

I either ride straight to the trail or I drive to a mates place and then we ride about 15minutes to the Mt Annan enduro track

Equipment

1. Do failures or breakages of equipment ever disrupt/halt you ride? What are the most common issues you encounter?

Flat tyres have been my only issue so far.

2. In general, do you feel you are equipped well enough to overcome a problem while on the trail? (Tools carried, knowledge for diagnosing and fixing issues etc.)

As I am only new in the sport, I know that I don't carry enough stuff with me. I have had to walk back home for 40 minutes pushing the bike with a flat. Still haven't got myelf a pump as yet.

3. With regards to caring for your equipment (e.g. regular cleaning and servicing, replacing worn components etc.), do you believe this to be an important aspect of your riding ritual or do you take a more relaxed approach (considering time constraints, cost etc.)?

Sorry still to new in the sport to know. I clean my bike when it looks dirty, still learning about the rest

 

[snowy92]

Thank you for the response mate, greatly appreciated.

 

[bikesarefun]

The high school kid put his in survey monkey. Way easier to complete for lazy farkers like me. Maybe you could do the same....

 

[andy]

Also would suggest using something like Survey Monkey.

 

[snowy92]

The high school kid put his in survey monkey. Way easier to complete for lazy farkers like me. Maybe you could do the same....

Also would suggest using something like Survey Monkey.

Ah of course, really should have thought of that sooner. I'll get right on it.

*Edit: Just tried putting in the questions to Survey Monkey and they only allow you 10 questions for free, and other sites don't even allow you to input questions that need written responses. Since I'm a poor uni student who can't afford to pay $250 for a yearly subscription for a survey generator that I only need to use once, I'm afraid this is my only option. Sorry for the inconvenience, if it's too much trouble, don't worry about it, it's only if you've got the time to spare.

 

[cleeshoy]

Participant information

Gender: M
Age: 34-39

Questions

General

1. What are the main motivations behind why you mountain bike? Have they changed from when you first began riding to now?

I simply love to ride my bike(s). Initially rode off road but have progress to both road and mountain bikes

2. For you personally, do you feel there are any specific aspects that contribute to good or bad experiences while riding?

re: mountain biking, decent singletrack is always nice, good company helps too.
re: road riding, A nice road surface lowers any vibrations on the hands. Riding in a larger group + little/no traffic makes me feel safer also

3. In your opinion, what are the positive and negative aspects of riding alone and riding with friends or as part of a group?

re: alone +ve - you can go as hard or slow as you want. You can ride wherever you wish.
re: alone -ve - if you have an accident you could be in trouble

re: group +ve - riding with mates of similar ability is awesome, beating them is even better
re: group -ve - riding with people of large varying ability can be frustrating. Larger groups means more stopping for mechanicals, toilet breaks, etc.

Safety

1. Is your safety and wellbeing a major concern when riding? I.e. do you try and challenge your limits every time you go riding, or do you ride conservatively considering the implications of an accident?

Yes it is certainly something I think about. I tend not to try new gnarley stuff if I am alone - I prefer to stick to trails I am familiar with. I might try and ride sections faster but always within what I deem "in control".


2. If you or a fellow rider has even been/was involved in a serious accident, do you feel you were/would be adequately prepared to deal with the situation? (Considering First Aid training, available equipment, limited access to emergency or communication services etc.)

not always. Will carry a first aid pack from time to time (depending on location) but if a super serious accident occurs, all I would have is a mobile phone and praying for reception

Time Constraints

1. Do you consider the amount of time you spend riding each week adequate, or if given the opportunity, would you prefer to ride more?

Would prefer to ride more but work commitments and weather can reduce my time on the bike

2. Currently, what are the main influences that impact on how often you go riding each week? (Work, family commitments, etc.)

not enough time due to work - I want more free time

3. For you personally, is the length of a ride (time or distance) relevant to how worthwhile it is? I.e. can a short ride be just as enjoyable and a long session in the saddle? Why?

I prefer to ride for at least an hour (unless racing a crit). Anything else I feel like I should go out and do more.



Location/Distances

1. In the area/s or trails you enjoy riding the most, what elements contribute most to your appreciation? (Trail design, close proximity to home, built yourself etc.)

I have some great singletrack/trails near my home - 5 mins and I am there. I love the proximity. Plus I have access to other great trails within 60 mins from my home. Also close to great road riding locations

2. In general, do you find greater satisfaction in riding familiar trails or somewhere new? What are the reasons behind this?

New trails is always exciting but I also love riding trails I have ridden previously - basically it makes little difference - i just get pleasure/satisfaction from riding


3. How do you gain access to trails predominantly (e.g. by car, public transport, ride there yourself)? Are there any associated difficulties with this method?

I ride there or drive. No issues at all

Equipment

1. Do failures or breakages of equipment ever disrupt/halt you ride? What are the most common issues you encounter?

flat tyres is most common. More frustrating is riding with larger groups - more chance of sh1t going wrong.

2. In general, do you feel you are equipped well enough to overcome a problem while on the trail? (Tools carried, knowledge for diagnosing and fixing issues etc.)

I have limited knowledge, but enough to get me home/to the car, etc. Always carry a small pump, cannister, spare tube, tool


3. With regards to caring for your equipment (e.g. regular cleaning and servicing, replacing worn components etc.), do you believe this to be an important aspect of your riding ritual or do you take a more relaxed approach (considering time constraints, cost etc.)?

I am a big fan of maintenance, I regularly clean my bikes and get my LBS to service my bike on a regular basis - it will cost me to service it "reactively" then being proactive about it.


Additional comments:

good luck!

 

[retroenduro]

Participant information

Gender: Male
Age:34

Questions

General

1. What are the main motivations behind why you mountain bike? Have they changed from when you first began riding to now?

Fun, mates and fitness in that order and nope havent changed

2. For you personally, do you feel there are any specific aspects that contribute to good or bad experiences while riding?

reactions of other trail users - walkers

3. In your opinion, what are the positive and negative aspects of riding alone and riding with friends or as part of a group?

Alone you go at your own pace, time to think, appreciate more of the surroundings but have to roll back the 'pinning it' due to the risk of accidents. With mates its more social good time to chat and enjoy the company.

Safety

1. Is your safety and wellbeing a major concern when riding? I.e. do you try and challenge your limits every time you go riding, or do you ride conservatively considering the implications of an accident?

Yes more and more as i get older and bounce less

2. If you or a fellow rider has even been/was involved in a serious accident, do you feel you were/would be adequately prepared to deal with the situation? (Considering First Aid training, available equipment, limited access to emergency or communication services etc.)

Yes a small first aid kit, some training and common sense goes a long way...not like the time i had to wait 1.5hrs for an ambulance whilst in metropolitan melbourne....again only push the boundaries where i can get help quick and easy in the event of an accident

Time Constraints

1. Do you consider the amount of time you spend riding each week adequate, or if given the opportunity, would you prefer to ride more?

ride more!

2. Currently, what are the main influences that impact on how often you go riding each week? (Work, family commitments, etc.)

Nothing now as have all the time in the world )

3. For you personally, is the length of a ride (time or distance) relevant to how worthwhile it is? I.e. can a short ride be just as enjoyable and a long session in the saddle? Why?

socially yes any time is great but i like to get at least 20kms in or i feel like i havent benefitted fitness wise

Location/Distances

1. In the area/s or trails you enjoy riding the most, what elements contribute most to your appreciation? (Trail design, close proximity to home, built yourself etc.)

Being in remote and beautiful areas, natural trails

2. In general, do you find greater satisfaction in riding familiar trails or somewhere new? What are the reasons behind this?

hmmm 50/50 i would say. i like to ride familiar trails fast and smooth, plus always happy to explore somewhere new

3. How do you gain access to trails predominantly (e.g. by car, public transport, ride there yourself)? Are there any associated difficulties with this method?

Car

Equipment

1. Do failures or breakages of equipment ever disrupt/halt you ride? What are the most common issues you encounter?

No not really, usually its a broken chain/flat tyre

2. In general, do you feel you are equipped well enough to overcome a problem while on the trail? (Tools carried, knowledge for diagnosing and fixing issues etc.)

Yes

3. With regards to caring for your equipment (e.g. regular cleaning and servicing, replacing worn components etc.), do you believe this to be an important aspect of your riding ritual or do you take a more relaxed approach (considering time constraints, cost etc.)?

im realistic about it. i keep my bike clean and well oiled etc but i replace bits when they cause issues rather than freak out about 'chain stretch' etc etc Also if i break something then thats a good justification to replace it with something better

Additional comments:[/QUOTE]

 

[snowy92]

Cheers cleeshoy and retroenduro, I really appreciate your responses!

 

[JanGG]

Participant information

Gender: Male
Age: 20

Questions

General

1. What are the main motivations behind why you mountain bike? Have they changed from when you first began riding to now?

Fun, fitness and no they have not changed.

2. For you personally, do you feel there are any specific aspects that contribute to good or bad experiences while riding?

Good: A great trail is nice, mates, good weather etc

Bad: Pinch flats ruin a ride!

3. In your opinion, what are the positive and negative aspects of riding alone and riding with friends or as part of a group?

Alone: Me time, ride what I want when I want

Groups: Catch up with friends, have someone there to help if you stack hard (more for downhilling)

Safety

1. Is your safety and wellbeing a major concern when riding? I.e. do you try and challenge your limits every time you go riding, or do you ride conservatively considering the implications of an accident?

I usually ride conservatively but try and push myself a little more with each run. Work out where I can go a little faster, smoother etc and try and piece it all together

2. If you or a fellow rider has even been/was involved in a serious accident, do you feel you were/would be adequately prepared to deal with the situation? (Considering First Aid training, available equipment, limited access to emergency or communication services etc.)

Mostly yes, always have access to a car or phone when we go riding or there are other riders/help close by

Time Constraints

1. Do you consider the amount of time you spend riding each week adequate, or if given the opportunity, would you prefer to ride more?

If given the opportunity I would love to ride more but work and uni do not allow for this!

2. Currently, what are the main influences that impact on how often you go riding each week? (Work, family commitments, etc.)

Work, uni, hanging out with mates who don't ride

3. For you personally, is the length of a ride (time or distance) relevant to how worthwhile it is? I.e. can a short ride be just as enjoyable and a long session in the saddle? Why?

Nope, can be a short blast on a downhill track or a 3 hour trip out on the XC bike - always manage to have fun

Location/Distances

1. In the area/s or trails you enjoy riding the most, what elements contribute most to your appreciation? (Trail design, close proximity to home, built yourself etc.)

Good trail design makes for a better ride imo and reasonable proximity to home is always appreciated

2. In general, do you find greater satisfaction in riding familiar trails or somewhere new? What are the reasons behind this?

Usually familiar trails as I know how fast I can go, where to break, where to accelerate etc. But I'm always up for riding new trails

3. How do you gain access to trails predominantly (e.g. by car, public transport, ride there yourself)? Are there any associated difficulties with this method?

Car, and there no real difficulties apart from cost of fuel

Equipment

1. Do failures or breakages of equipment ever disrupt/halt you ride? What are the most common issues you encounter?

Not often, most common one is a pinch flat

2. In general, do you feel you are equipped well enough to overcome a problem while on the trail? (Tools carried, knowledge for diagnosing and fixing issues etc.)

Yes, always carry enough gear to change a tyre/tube plus a multi tool

3. With regards to caring for your equipment (e.g. regular cleaning and servicing, replacing worn components etc.), do you believe this to be an important aspect of your riding ritual or do you take a more relaxed approach (considering time constraints, cost etc.)?

More relaxed. However, I always clean the bike and then lube the drive train after every decent ride. Get them a service if they are starting to feel like they need one. Don't have a set time where I take them in for a service i.e. once every 3 months

Additional comments:

Survey monkey!

 

[Bryce88]

Participant information

Gender: Male
Age:24

Questions

General

1. What are the main motivations behind why you mountain bike? Have they changed from when you first began riding to now?

The social side and fitness, nothings changed.

2. For you personally, do you feel there are any specific aspects that contribute to good or bad experiences while riding?

nice groomed trails are always good, motorbikes constantly choping them to pieces is bad

3. In your opinion, what are the positive and negative aspects of riding alone and riding with friends or as part of a group?

Groups are always more competitive, you ride faster and harder, also a lot safer.

Alone is often nice and relaxing however I never push myself hard incase I have a bad stack.

Safety

1. Is your safety and wellbeing a major concern when riding? I.e. do you try and challenge your limits every time you go riding, or do you ride conservatively considering the implications of an accident?

I try and push myself within reason, however after breaking my wrist I do feel less invincible as I did before.

2. If you or a fellow rider has even been/was involved in a serious accident, do you feel you were/would be adequately prepared to deal with the situation? (Considering First Aid training, available equipment, limited access to emergency or communication services etc.)

As soon as I finished my strava run, i'd whip out my first aid kit and phone for help

Time Constraints

1. Do you consider the amount of time you spend riding each week adequate, or if given the opportunity, would you prefer to ride more?

Not adequate, and with daylight savings over I'm often limited to riding sundays, obviously i'd love to ride alot more

2. Currently, what are the main influences that impact on how often you go riding each week? (Work, family commitments, etc.)

Tafe (2 courses 1 full time, 1 part time), work, kids, wife, life in general, gets dark quick

3. For you personally, is the length of a ride (time or distance) relevant to how worthwhile it is? I.e. can a short ride be just as enjoyable and a long session in the saddle? Why?

Not relevant, any riding is good.

Location/Distances

1. In the area/s or trails you enjoy riding the most, what elements contribute most to your appreciation? (Trail design, close proximity to home, built yourself etc.)

Trail design, the bike club put in huge amounts of time and effort on the local tracks, proximity wise the trails are only 10 minutes away

2. In general, do you find greater satisfaction in riding familiar trails or somewhere new? What are the reasons behind this?

Both. Familiar tracks to push you that little bit harder each time, new tracks are fun to explore.

3. How do you gain access to trails predominantly (e.g. by car, public transport, ride there yourself)? Are there any associated difficulties with this method?

car

Equipment

1. Do failures or breakages of equipment ever disrupt/halt you ride? What are the most common issues you encounter?

broken chain, always carry quicklinks now

2. In general, do you feel you are equipped well enough to overcome a problem while on the trail? (Tools carried, knowledge for diagnosing and fixing issues etc.)

yes, in most cases

3. With regards to caring for your equipment (e.g. regular cleaning and servicing, replacing worn components etc.), do you believe this to be an important aspect of your riding ritual or do you take a more relaxed approach (considering time constraints, cost etc.)?

I keep the running gear clean always, otherwise I'm pretty relaxed.

 

[mik_git]

Participant information

Gender: Male
Age: 41 (bloody hell, that doesn't seem possible)

Questions

General

1. What are the main motivations behind why you mountain bike? Have they changed from when you first began riding to now?

Fun and fitness, since I started riding it has squewed more towards fitness over fun, as when I started I was fit and it was all fun, now I'm not fit and that makes it less fun, so 20 years ago fun, now fitness

2. For you personally, do you feel there are any specific aspects that contribute to good or bad experiences while riding?

Everyone is so serious nowdays. 20, even 10 years ago, we all rocked up and did XC and DH, now the DH is all huge and XC is all mega fitness. But apart from that, its all still fun.

3. In your opinion, what are the positive and negative aspects of riding alone and riding with friends or as part of a group?

Alone I can ride what I want at the pace I want (slow) and most of the riding I have done is alone just pedaling about. With friends its good to catch up, laugh when someone screws up, try some new trails, talk gear and general BS and basically just tool about.

Safety

1. Is your safety and wellbeing a major concern when riding? I.e. do you try and challenge your limits every time you go riding, or do you ride conservatively considering the implications of an accident?

Year ago when I was brave and stupid, I'd push, but nowdays always holding back, never had a serious crash, but seen a really really bad one and it puts things in perspective.

2. If you or a fellow rider has even been/was involved in a serious accident, do you feel you were/would be adequately prepared to deal with the situation? (Considering First Aid training, available equipment, limited access to emergency or communication services etc.)

Nope, not at all. For most crashes it been laugh and htfu and we all ride home, the 1 bad crash all I did was ride as fast as I could to the nearest phone to call a medivac.

Time Constraints

1. Do you consider the amount of time you spend riding each week adequate, or if given the opportunity, would you prefer to ride more?

I got all the time in the world at the moment, but still down ride enough.

2. Currently, what are the main influences that impact on how often you go riding each week? (Work, family commitments, etc.)

Laziness, I used to ride every day, but now I'm all unfit and old(er), need to ride more to regain the fitness, but riding more destroys me, gar!

3. For you personally, is the length of a ride (time or distance) relevant to how worthwhile it is? I.e. can a short ride be just as enjoyable and a long session in the saddle? Why?
I liek short rides always have, were talking 1-2 hours, thats my normal time. never really done ride longer than that except the odd 24hr, but thats like 1 hour at a time.

Location/Distances

1. In the area/s or trails you enjoy riding the most, what elements contribute most to your appreciation? (Trail design, close proximity to home, built yourself etc.)

Close to home is good, type of trail also is a thing. I like more technical trails, maybe not what peopel call tech these days, no big drops or anything. But don't really like the big highway berm/jump type things...

2. In general, do you find greater satisfaction in riding familiar trails or somewhere new? What are the reasons behind this?

I liek trails that I know. It nice to know where you are going, what is ahead, no surprises. If I go riding with someone in an area that I know and normally follow a route, but the other person does a different route, freaks me out totally. Guess i don't like changes, probably why I still ride a 26in hardtail with v-brakes. new is only good if it is a racecourse, then I go back and ride laps of that.

3. How do you gain access to trails predominantly (e.g. by car, public transport, ride there yourself)? Are there any associated difficulties with this method?

I prefer to ride, only difficulty is i'm not as fit as I used to be, so I'm stuffed when I get there let alone riding, so I usually drive.

Equipment

1. Do failures or breakages of equipment ever disrupt/halt you ride? What are the most common issues you encounter?

Flats and broken chains.

2. In general, do you feel you are equipped well enough to overcome a problem while on the trail? (Tools carried, knowledge for diagnosing and fixing issues etc.)

Yes

3. With regards to caring for your equipment (e.g. regular cleaning and servicing, replacing worn components etc.), do you believe this to be an important aspect of your riding ritual or do you take a more relaxed approach (considering time constraints, cost etc.)?

I believe it is important...I just don't do it, hence all the broken chains.

Additional comments:
Mountain bike is cool, its fun and I love it. I just wish it wasn't so serious. I wish there wasn't such a segregation between DH and XC. But still, I'm happy to be out there pedalling about again after loads of years away. It's FUN!

 

[snowy92]

Survey monkey!

I know I'm sorry! Survey Monkey only allows 10 questions for free, and I couldn't justify paying $250 for a yearly subscription, seeing as this the only survey I need to do this year.

But cheers JanGG and Bryce88, really appreciate the response.

 

[rotorub]

I know I'm sorry! Survey Monkey only allows 10 questions for free, and I couldn't justify paying $250 for a yearly subscription, seeing as this the only survey I need to do this year.

But cheers JanGG and Bryce88, really appreciate the response.

you could have done 2 surveys for free?

 

[Slowman]

this will be an interesting thread if everyone copies in their responses :smile:

 

[snowy92]

Thanks mik_git!

you could have done 2 surveys for free?

I could have, but then you'd have to flick between two different links. I thought having it all in one place might be easier.

 

[mik_git]

also survey monkey survey arn't always the best for some things, nothing worse than asking a question and your answer not being on the list or only being able to select 1 thing...or worst of all having to select an option when none apply.