By:Alison Addy

If you take part in mountain biking, especially the extreme kind, then it is inevitable at some point that you will have a crash. You can see mountain bike crashes on DVDs around the world, some are lucky as they have the right safety equipment, whilst others are not. Stunt crashes can be fascinating to watch, but the real life ones can be horrific and they can cause serious injury.

The potential injuries that can occur with mountain bike crashes are endless. Many bikers have been impaled on their bikes handlebars, they have broken their arm after falling off and some have even been paralyzed after a bad fall. So the injuries that you can sustain are quite severe. Crashes don’t just occur when you take part in extreme mountain biking. They can also occur when you take part in casual riding too. However obviously there is more of a risk involved with extreme downhill riding where jumps and tricks are involved.

Protecting Yourself against Crashes

The only way to truly protect yourself against a crash is to ensure that you have the correct safety equipment. You cannot always predict a crash when you are out riding on your mountain bike, but if you wear the appropriate safety equipment then you can at least protect yourself from serious injury. It doesn’t matter whether you are a beginner or an expert rider, you will have a crash at some point. So what protection should you have to keep you as safe as possible?

When you hit the ground after a fall, usually the first things to get hurt are your hands. Many people do not think to protect their hands whilst they are out riding and unfortunately that can cause problems if you do fall off the bike. The wrists ad our fingers are most sensitive to injury after a fall and it only takes a minor knock for them to get seriously injured. So wearing gloves is definitely a good idea as if you do fall off, the skin will be kept in place because of the gloves.

Essentially however the most important safety equipment you will need is a helmet. You should never go anywhere without your helmet, even if you are just going on a leisurely ride along a field! Anything can happen and the accident may not be your fault but if you fall and hit your head you could potentially suffer a serious injury. The way that helmets are designed these days makes them extremely comfortable to wear. They really can make the difference between life and death and so if there’s one piece of safety equipment you will not go without, make sure that it is the helmet.

Overall the helmet, gloves and eye protection are generally the only safety equipment you need when out cycling. You will definitely suffer from at least one crash on your bike so it is always better to be prepared for the inevitable.

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Alison Addy loves writing for www.bikecyclingreviews.com .Keep reading about mountain bikes reviews and mountain bike parts at his web.

There is a lot of history and information out there in regards to the history and origins of mountain biking, with some being recognized and some that depends on who has the best firm of public relations.

Some say that mountain biking began with the Buffalo Soldiers, which was a turn of the century infantry who customized bikes to carry gear over the rough and tough terrain.  They began in August of 1896, over the course of 800 miles.  Their mission was simple – to test bikes for military use in the toughest of terrain.

Others say it was the Velo Cross Club of France that started mountain biking.  The club was comprised of 20 young bikers from Paris, who between 1951 and 1956 developed a sport that resembles present day mountain biking.

It could have also been John Finley Scott, who was the first mountain biker in the U.S.  In 1953 he constructed what he called a “Woodsie Bike”, using a diamond frame, balloon tires, flat handle bars, and cantilever brakes.  He was more than 20 years ahead of his time.  Even though he remained an off road enthusiast, there were many at that time who didn’t share that same passion.

Today, we believe that the history of the mountain bike is most apparent in Northern California.  There are a few areas that claim to be the first community for mountain biking, although each and every history book will tell you Marin County.

The sport of mountain biking has taken many twists and turns over the last several hundred years.  Even though there are many that say different things about the history and the beginning, we know one thing  for sure – one thing has led to another and the sport of mountain biking was born.