Women's Mountain Bike Setup Tips
By: Lacy Kemp, Mountain Biking Marketing Aficionado and Writer | Last Updated: July 11, 2024
Mountain bike setup plays a critical part in having a good ride every time you hop on your bike. We have put together a few pointers that will help dial in your bike to its best possible configuration for your kind of riding.
Pedals
Your bike likely did not come with pedals. You’ll need to select a set that best suits your needs whether they’re flat or clipless. You can learn all about how to choose pedals in our complete guide to selecting your pedals. Before you get too deep into your bike setup we suggest installing your pedals as you’ll need to stand on them several times throughout the process.
Popular Flat & Clipless Pedals
All of the most popular pedals are unisex.
Bolt Check
No matter whether you build your bike yourself or have a professional assemble it for you, getting in the habit of doing a regular bolt check is a good idea. A simple set of Allen/hex keys will do the trick, but if you want to ensure you’re really dialed getting a set of torque wrenches will ensure your bike is properly tightened every time. Be sure to follow the torque ratings on your bolts to ensure they’re not over-tightened. evo has a large selection of bike tools. Find everything you need for your bolt-checking and general maintenance needs here.
A simple check to see if your bike’s bolts are tightened is a great thing to do before you ride.
Suspension Set Up & Adjustments
One of the most critical parts of bike setup is ensuring your suspension is properly set up for your weight and riding style. It’s important to understand how the suspension works to ensure your proper setup. Check out our guide on How Mountain Bike Suspension Works. If you feel comfortable setting up your suspension yourself, you may find our guide on Suspension Setup helpful. Tinkering with your suspension is a good habit to get into and it’s not as intimidating as it may appear. It's worth trying out a few different settings to see what feels best for you and your riding style. Pro tip: We suggest everyone owns a shock pump so you’re able to make quick suspension adjustments any time.
Proper suspension setup will make riding over roots, popping off of little obstacles on the trail, and the overall ride much more enjoyable.
Tire Pressure
Before you dive into the proper PSI, determine whether or not you’re running tubes in your tires. Most modern mountain bikes can be set up tubeless, which offers a lighter option with fewer hassles. You’re also able to run lower tire pressures. If your bike isn’t currently set up to be tubeless, inquire with your local shop to see if your wheels and tires can be converted. If you’d like to learn more check out our guide to going tubeless.An often overlooked but incredibly important component of bike setup is tire pressure. It’s not as simple as pump and go. Having the proper tire pressure for your weight and terrain, and whether or not you’re riding a tubeless setup will have noticeable effects on your ride. Our Mountain Bike Tire Pressure Chart and Guide can help steer you in the right direction to figure out the proper PSI for your setup.
If you need a good bike pump, check out our selection here.
Cockpit
Another relatively easy bit of setup you can adjust at any time is your cockpit. This includes things like your brake, shifter, and dropper post spacing and angles, your bar width and roll, and your grips.Bar width is something that many companies don’t bother adjusting for smaller sizes and riding bars too wide can cause fatigue. Fortunately, handlebars are easy to cut with either a hacksaw and vice or a pipe cutter. Many bars are even pre-marked with 10mm intervals to make the cutting easy. How do you know what bar width is right for you? Typically, if you’re riding and you feel stretched out, the bars are too wide. You should feel comfortable controlling the bike climbing and descending without fatigue in your hands, shoulders, and lower back. We have a complete guide on how to choose the best handlebars that also includes info on how to determine the best bar width.
Adjusting lever height.
Setting the lever angle is also a personal preference, but getting this right can help minimize wrist pain and fatigue. A simple baseline is to get into your riding position on your bike and angle the levers so there is no discernable bend in your wrist. You may prefer to set your levers higher or lower depending on what’s comfortable for your riding style, but this is a great starting point.
Blake sets her brake levers so there is minimal bend in her wrist when she is engaging the levers. This keeps pressure off of the joint and is a great starting point for setting your lever height.
Adjusting saddle height with an Alley key.
Saddle Height and Positioning
One of the most overlooked items on your bike, but most important, is your saddle, which is sometimes referred to as a seat. Another easy way to ensure a comfortable ride is to make sure your saddle positioning and saddle height are properly set. Having a saddle at the wrong height or angle can cause lingering aches and pains and make riding uncomfortable. Saddle shape is also something to consider. Most bikes are spec’d with saddles that are generally comfortable for most people, but depending on the width of your sit bones you may want a different saddle. We recommend reading our guide on how to choose a saddle for more info.Setting saddle height is relatively simple. The basic guideline is you want to be able to extend your leg with your foot flat when the pedal is down, but you don’t want to hyper-extend the leg. If your saddle is too high your hips will rock, ultimately causing low-back pain. If your saddle is too low, it’ll put undue stress on your knees and could potentially cause pain in your legs. Saddle height is adjusted by using an alley key on the bolt on the seatpost collar.
Dropper Post Activation
Most modern mountain bikes are equipped with a dropper post. The dropper post might just be the single greatest piece of mountain bike tech since suspension came around. Once your saddle height is set with the dropper fully extended, you’ll never have to worry about having to adjust your saddle height when ascending or descending. The dropper post makes it easy!To activate the dropper post, simply push the lever on the left side of your handlebar. When your weight is pressed on the saddle, the dropper will lower the saddle to the height you choose. When you’re ready to raise the saddle simply stand up on the bike and hit the lever and the saddle will rise to its full extension. A dropper post is great for dynamic trails with lots of undulations where you may want to raise and lower your saddle throughout the ride.
Descending with the dropper post down
Climbing with the dropper post fully extended.
Congrats! Your bike is now set up properly. If you’re still looking for more info on mountain biking including how to choose gear, maintenance tips, and more, be sure to check out all of our guides on evo.com!
LACY KEMP
Mountain Biking Marketing Aficionado and Writer
Lacy Kemp has over 20 years of experience in the mountain bike industry, including working for Kona and Nukeproof bikes and contributing to NSMB.com, Bike Mag, Vital MTB, and Pinkbike, among others. As an award-wining writer, producer, and director, she has made significant contributions to women's mountain biking. Lacy is also a yoga instructor, dog mama, wannabe surfer, extrovert, traveler, and dad joke connoisseur.