# Can I jump my xc bike?



## Laupe (Jan 9, 2022)

Hello

I’m wondering what type of bike classification my 2020 Orbea Oiz omr is, does anyone know?

I guess it would be in category 3 since it’s an xc bike.
I would like to know because I’m taking the bike to a bike park with big jumps

thanks


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## Le Duke (Mar 23, 2009)

That will be rider dependent.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Jayem (Jul 16, 2005)

This would generally be a bad idea. Parks are much steeper and do not have the grade reversals of flatter trails, you gather speed faster and there's nowhere to "dump" it, except into your brakes. This also tends to overwhelm suspension, even on what might look like relatively easy runs, because of how steep it is. On a bike like that, you end up "death gripping" the brakes and trying not to go over the front or lose control, which means every run down is a fight against the bike. Because of the geometry and setup, it will be harder to control the bike on jumps and because of the lightweight nature of it, you run a much bigger risk of damaging it. I would not recommend running a bike like that at a park.


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## LMN (Sep 8, 2007)

Yes and no.
If you are a good jumper and hit the transitions jumps are really smooth and you will have no issues. 

but everybody makes mistakes jumping from time to time. If you have a big case on an XC bike you might have an ex XC bike.

I would say if you are asking this question the answer is probably no.


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## looks easy from here (Apr 16, 2019)

Can an xc bike be jumped? Absolutely. Any bike can be jumped.






Can YOU jump your xc bike? I don't know.


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## Jayem (Jul 16, 2005)

People want to "run what you brung" at parks, but don't realize how abusive they are to the entire bike, overheated/glazed pads and toasted rotors, ripping the tires to shreds, crashing due to the control issues, swiping the derailleur on a rock or landing, kicking up rocks, pedal strikes, and so on. Most of these can be alleviated with the proper bike, enduro or DH. Sometimes in an enduro race at a park you'll see high end expert/pro riders on a relatively lightweight bike, they'll push it to the limit, but they know the track, they are doing a limited number of runs and sacrificing stability for ease of pedaling uphill and being able to put in pedal strokes downhill. This is generally not a good reason to do the same for 99.9% of riders. At a bare minimum, I would recommend 200mm rotors F and R with semi-metallic pads, DH casing tires, 780mm bar (to keep the front straight and not endo). Also, realize that XC bikes usually have the least amount of shock progression designed into the leverage curve. As you move up to all-mountain and enduro bikes, they have more and then DH bikes have the most. This means if you screw up on the DH bike, you have more safety margin, vs. if you screw up on the XC bike, you are likely to bottom out, then something will break or you will rebound the other way uncontrollably. Inevitably people keep trying to ride XC bikes at parks, I did way back in the day too. Just don't recommend it for the point of having to fight the bike down every run and not enjoying it.


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## DachshundBiker (Aug 30, 2021)

Jayem said:


> People want to "run what you brung" at parks, but don't realize how abusive they are to the entire bike, overheated/glazed pads and toasted rotors, ripping the tires to shreds, crashing due to the control issues, swiping the derailleur on a rock or landing, kicking up rocks, pedal strikes, and so on. Most of these can be alleviated with the proper bike, enduro or DH. Sometimes in an enduro race at a park you'll see high end expert/pro riders on a relatively lightweight bike, they'll push it to the limit, but they know the track, they are doing a limited number of runs and sacrificing stability for ease of pedaling uphill and being able to put in pedal strokes downhill. This is generally not a good reason to do the same for 99.9% of riders. At a bare minimum, I would recommend 200mm rotors F and R with semi-metallic pads, DH casing tires, 780mm bar (to keep the front straight and not endo). Also, realize that XC bikes usually have the least amount of shock progression designed into the leverage curve. As you move up to all-mountain and enduro bikes, they have more and then DH bikes have the most. This means if you screw up on the DH bike, you have more safety margin, vs. if you screw up on the XC bike, you are likely to bottom out, then something will break or you will rebound the other way uncontrollably. Inevitably people keep trying to ride XC bikes at parks, I did way back in the day too. Just don't recommend it for the point of having to fight the bike down every run and not enjoying it.


I disagree, you can easily hit mid sized jumps on an xc bike you don’t always need a top line downhill bomb machine designed for professional racers.


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## brex17 (Jan 31, 2019)

If an XC bike gets airborne, it will catch fire and you will die.
Nobody ever jumped bikes without suspension, and you need a minimum of 210mm travel front and rear to jump a mountain bike.


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## Harold (Dec 23, 2003)

DachshundBiker said:


> I disagree, you can easily hit mid sized jumps on an xc bike you don’t always need a top line downhill bomb machine designed for professional racers.


you are misreading what is being said


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## Jayem (Jul 16, 2005)

DachshundBiker said:


> I disagree, you can easily hit mid sized jumps on an xc bike you don’t always need a top line downhill bomb machine designed for professional racers.


The difference is, jumps at a park on grades and riding that park in general (the grades). People think the park is like their trails that have downhill sections, but without much relief/grade reversal, it's a different animal. It's the availability of the terrain too, jump lines tend to get bigger or have multiple jumps. You get a little out of sequence and you are coming up short or overshooting. Your margin is a lot less on an XC bike. I jump on my XC bike...but I don't bring it to the park.


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## slapheadmofo (Jun 9, 2006)

Regular lift services riding tends to really kick the crap out of a bike, specially one that isn't built for it. 
Once in awhile isn't the end of the world (maybe the end of some brake pads and a few assorted parts).


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## DGUSMC (Jan 29, 2021)

Harold said:


> you are misreading what is being said


Yep - the issue the “you.” Obviously an XC bike can survive jumps and park lines in the hands of a skilled rider. 

However, a rider that doesn’t understand the nuances of techniques or bikes sufficiently that they have to ask the original question is not likely to be that skilled. 

So, your bike can do it YOU probably can not.


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## BikGer2 (May 25, 2021)

An XC bike is going to be way less forgiving, not recommended at all. You really have to *know what you're doing when you land that thing. *

Renting a bike that was made to ride stuff like that is a much safer option.


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## GSPChilliwack (Jul 30, 2013)

Harold said:


> you are misreading what is being said


Hmmmm. Yes, you can jump an XC bike, but it really hurts if you catch an ankle on a bar end.


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## Jayem (Jul 16, 2005)

GSPChilliwack said:


> Hmmmm. Yes, you can jump an XC bike, but it really hurts if you catch an ankle on a bar end.


You know people using bar-ends?


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## Harold (Dec 23, 2003)

GSPChilliwack said:


> Hmmmm. Yes, you can jump an XC bike, but it really hurts if you catch an ankle on a bar end.


all jumping requires you to put your feet over the handlebars?


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## shwinn8 (Feb 25, 2006)

SEND IT!!


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## slimat99 (May 21, 2008)

Good landers will put less stress on you and your bike than simply riding fast through chunky terrain. That said, come up short, or too deep and you might learn the hard way why parts and frames built for more than XC weigh what they do. Equipment failure is nothing to take lightly. If it was me I would only jump when I feel confident I could do it perfectly 100 out of 100 times. 

When we see vids of pros doing silly stuff on road bikes they are accepting the equipment failure risk for our entertainment. They also know how to soak up impacts to reduce equipment stress. Equipment failure aside, why beat on your bike using it for something it's not designed for? If you're ok with pinching casing, denting or cracking rims, and flexing the crap out of your pivots/fork go ahead and do a park day. Kill enough components and you'll quickly grow tired of beating on bikes that aren't up to the task.

I will say I would have zero issues sending "big" jumps on an XC bike if they were flow trail tables. That's really not stressful on a bike assuming you know how to jump.


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## noapathy (Jun 24, 2008)

Harold said:


> all jumping requires you to put your feet over the handlebars?


We need to get an expert in here to answer that.


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## slapheadmofo (Jun 9, 2006)

Harold said:


> all jumping requires you to put your feet over the handlebars?


If you're jumping OVER an XC bike, it does.

Ya missed da joke...


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## GlazedHam (Jan 14, 2004)

Yes, XC bikes can and should be jumped. XC bikes are really fun to throw around on flowey trails and jumps, because they are typically easier to get of then ground the big bikes. It's the landing that gets sketchy so I wouldn't send my XC bike into a pile of rubble too often. I hit a dozen or so jumps multiple times on my 100mm XC bike today, but it was all stuff that had man made landings.


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## Sparticus (Dec 28, 1999)

Here is the correct response IMO:


LMN said:


> I would say if you are asking this question the answer is probably no.


...or at least very close to the correct response.
Personally I'd eliminate the word "probably" from the statement above, but whatever.
Close enough.
=sParty


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## ozak09 (7 mo ago)

It depends, if you can land it


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## LetsGoOutside (Sep 4, 2005)

Can an XC bike be jumped? Yes is the answer to that. I've ridden big features on small travel bikes a plenty; it's good for the soul. 

However: I wouldn't thrash my xc race bike on a bike park day. You will more than likely burn through a set of brake pads and maybe torch a tire or two if you're spending all day on park laps. Seems like it would be about the same amount of $ to just grab a rental bike when you get there and enjoy smashing the day.


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## prj71 (Dec 29, 2014)

We have a local bike park. The kids thrash it all day on rigid bikes with no suspension at all. No reason you can't do the same with an XC bike. Just that the landing won't be as cushy.


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## NordieBoy (Sep 26, 2004)

prj71 said:


> Just that the landing won't be as cushy.


And may be expensive...


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