One brand that is particularly well known in the field of mountain biking is Orbea mountain bikes. The company that makes them is based in a town called Mallavia, in Spain's Basque country. These days their range includes Orbea mountain bikes, touring bikes and road bikes.

Not everybody realises that Orbea actually started life as a company which manufactured weapons. In the beginning Orbea made rifles, pistols and their cartridges. Throughout Spain, Orbea was renowned for the weapons it made. Certianly, by the 1870s, Orbea was one of the most influential and successful companies in the area.

The business  carried on manufacturing weapons right up until the end of the Spanish Civil War, when demand for weapons sharply decreased. In 1926 tensions in the family business led to the company splitting into two separate enterprises. From the split of the business came a company who chose to specialise in bikes and Orbea mountain bikes was born.

As a well known and respected name in biking, the company has always sponsored and had strong links with cycling teams. Euskaltel-Euskadi and Xacobeo-Galicia are two of the high profile cycling teams with which Orbea has close ties. Additionally, Orbea mountain bikes has had its own team since 2005.

Nowadays, the company sponsors many biking events throughout Europe and its products are often given as prizes in mountain biking events on the continent. Many of Orbea's current designs are made using the most modern carbon fibre frames. And the company also makes several bikes with frames made entirely of aluminium, which are incredibly lightweight and popular.

With more and more publicity from event sponsorship under its belt, Orbea mountain bikes have a very bright future. Orbea sponsors some of Spain's biggest events in the field of mountain bikes which welcome participation from professionals and members of the public. More evidence of their quality, if it were needed is the fact that the bikes are sold in many countries worldwide.

It can be a bit frustrating as well as time consuming when you buy a mountain bike. Take a look at these tips to help you when you are deciding on which mountain bike to buy.

Determining your price
Before you start shopping, set yourself a budget and stick to this. When you buy, you shouldn’t buy from mass merchant stores. Your local retailer will be able to offer you competitive deals and a better service. They might have a store online and you can make use of MTB finance, which helps when paying off a big sum.

Finding your style
There are bikes designed for every type of surface and terrain. If you prefer one type of riding over the rest, pick a bike with this purpose. Smooth riding, cross country racing, mountain cruising, or lift accessed downhill is something you need to figure out. make sure the bike you choose is based on your decision, not the preferences of the sales team.

Sales and seasons
During the year, the prices of mountain bikes can fluctuate quite a bit. Spring through summer is the main buying season. If you are not desperate for a new bike in the summer, wait until autumn or winter and you could save yourself two, maybe three hundred pounds. If you are buying accessories at the same time you might be able to get a discount too.

Finding a good dealer
Try to find a dealer you are comfortable with rather than focusing on the cheapest price. If they try to sell you a bike because it is expensive rather than it suiting you properly, find another seller. Trust should be established between you and the dealer and their services should be professional. Look for a professional, a biking enthusiast and a trustworthy dealer.

Doing the research
Before you buy a bike, do a bit of research and you will find some reviews commenting on the performance and reliability of the bike. Look at what other people say about brands or models, if they are all bad, do not waste your time looking at them, but pay attention to manufacturers who receive consistently good reviews.

Cross Country (XC) Suspension Forks

Light and short travel, XC mtb forks are often single crown thanks to the mild terrain and to save weight so not to make the bike too heavy to rise.

Traditionally, XC forks will have been spring loaded however the trend is now moving towards air sprung suspension.

The obvious advantages of such a change of keeping the weight of the fork to a minimum and making them easy to adjust this.

Downhill (DH) Suspension Forks

Have you watched the insanity that may be downhill mountain biking?  Massive drops, huge gap jumps and dreadful terrain over a short prtiod of time.  Downhill forks can have large amounts of travel ( 10 inches isn’t unhead of ) to make allowance for the stress a DH bike is put under.

Downhill forks are sometimes coil spring to take on large hits but are also double crowns ; this is where there are two legs of the fork near the top where the fork joins the handle bar.  Double crown forks offer double the suspension of single crown forks.

Dirt Jump (DJ) Suspension Forks

Gigantic airs, giant jumps and massive tricks need forks which can take some punishment forks not designed for this reason are liable to be damaged, or worse break, causing major injury to a rider.

A dirt jump ( DJ ) bike will typically be a hardtail and front suspension, although some riders do still prefer firm forks.  Suspension forks will have tiny travel of 80-100mm and are normally coil sprung as well as being much heavier thanks to the increased strength than those designed for other mountain bike disciplines.

Rigid Forks

Though suspension forks are more and more a standard sight on mountain bicycles they are by no means the sole option left.

For the die hards, people who do not wish to speculate in pricey suspension or those preferring something lower upkeep there are still a number of quality stiff forks available on the market.

extremely popular in the dirt jump and street MTB scenes as well as singletrack, firm Forks offer a viable and regularly more economical alternative option to suspension.