Mudguards are the subject of debate in the mountain biking community for at least two decades. People generally have a similar opinion on each side of the debate. However, to make a valid point for or against mudguards, we should look at if professionals use them or not.
Just by glancing at muddy mountain biking competitions, we can say that the answer is unclear. It depends a lot on certain weather conditions, the type of competition, and even locations. The same pro rider sometimes chooses differently in the same weather condition because there are many factors to account for. If we had to put an answer in a few sentences, it would be something like this.
Pro mountain bikers use mudguards only when they can’t get away with not using them. They carefully weigh the pros and cons before each wet weather mountain biking event, often choosing to use mudguards for longer cross country races while deciding otherwise for shorter trail rides.
To completely understand their reasoning and decisions, we must first look at the types of mudguards invented by this time. There lie the roots to all pros and cons that shape the pros and everyone else’s opinions.
What Types of Mudguards Are There?
We can divide mudguards into three groups – MTB style, clip-on, and traditional mudguards.
Traditional mudguards are the most effective of all. However, they can’t be fitted on mountain bikes due to suspension.
What Are MTB Style Mudguards?
A better name would be motocross mudguards because the looks were always inspired by the motorcycles used in Rally Cross disciplines. MTB style mudguards were made to work great. They are firm enough, can fit on any mountain bike, and stop mud from flying towards your face or back very well.
They are easy to put on and off the bike quickly. The rear one is installed on the seat post, and most front ones are attached in the fork steerer tube.
MTB style mudguards look perfect on paper, but they are heavy, too big, and look awkward on any bike in reality. Those are probably why they are not used too much these days by pro mountain bikers except in some extreme cases.
What Are Clip-On Mudguards?
Clip-on mudguards were mainly invented for non-mountain bikes that can’t accommodate traditional mudguards. However, the idea proved to be quite intriguing for mountain bikers as well.
They are not very effective, but they prevent the worst of mud spray from the tires. They are very light and easiest to put on and off any bike. In other words, the pros are not too great, but the cons are minimal, and that’s why they are used a lot in recent years.
They can have some drawbacks, but those mainly depend on choosing the right one that fits your bike the best.
The most popular of clip-on mudguards among pro mountain bikers are so-called minimalistic mudguards. A brand called Marshguard invented them first, and soon after, everyone started copying their design. These are smaller and lighter than any mudguard. The protection from mud is minimal but effective at protecting the most important parts; the rider’s face and lower back.
Do Professional Mountain Bikers Use Mudguards?
We stated before that pro mountain bikers use mudguards only when completely necessary. They are used to riding in wet weather and lots of mud. Mud is not something they scare away from. Looking at it overall, pro mountain bikers don’t use mudguards very often.
However, accumulating mud on your clothes and bike can cause huge problems. Clothes can stick lots of mud to themselves, and if that goes on for long, it’s a lot of added weight to carry on. An even bigger problem is mud constantly smashing into your face. On longer rides, there is nothing clean left to wipe it off anymore.
That’s why professional mountain bikers sometimes choose to use mudguards for longer races in wet weather.
Trail riding is a bit different in deciding logic. Races and rides are much shorter than XC. Even if there is mud, pro mountain bikers use full-face helmets that protect their faces from mud for some time—the decision on if to use mudguards or not is often made from looking at the terrain. If there are many small rocks and gravel among the mud, pro riders tend to go for MTB style mudguards.
Why Some Mountain Bikers Never Use Mudguards?
For most riders, mountain biking is just a way to get into nature and enjoy it. Even some pro mountain bikers feel that way. Protecting themselves from everything is not an option. Unless something can really harm them, they prefer to be exposed to everything in nature as much as possible. Many of them actually like to fight their way through the wet forest trail and get all muddy.
Another reason is that mudguards ruin the bike’s looks. And we can agree upon that. When it comes to mountain bikes, they look weird and dorky with mudguards, except maybe with some minimalistic ones. However, how a bike looks is not a valid point when it comes to professional mountain bikers. Their decisions mostly come from them being used to getting muddy or not.
Why Are There No Company Fitted Mudguards on Mountain Bikes?
Bike brands like to take cues from the pros and mountain biking community. Unless you are one of the biggest brands, you really want to listen to what people want. For this reason, we don’t think you will see many mountain bikes fitted with mudguards from the factory. Also, the fact that some mountain bikers consider them dorky wouldn’t be good for brand image.
Although there are some even bigger issues.
Mudguards always present a challenge to bike manufacturers. Just the fact that you need to fit them onto every bike model and still make them look good can be difficult. Bike brands would have to sacrifice the freedom of designing different geometries, account for tire clearance, and produce dozens of different mudguards for each bike model.
How Much Do Mudguards Slow You Down?
A general opinion we encounter a lot is that mudguards slow you down. Most likely, some pros think that as well. The reality is a bit different, though.
Mudguards would actually slow mountain bikes down if they are used in dry weather. However, mudguards’ weight and aerodynamics are almost irrelevant to the weight of mud that sticks to the rider’s clothes. So mudguards actually help you go faster in muddy conditions.
Several tests were done by mountain biking Youtube channels like Global Mountain Bike Network, which proved that the benefits of mudguards on riding speed are much greater than its drawbacks.
Do I Need Mudguards On My Mountain Bike?
In conclusion, we believe mudguards are unnecessary unless you really need to protect your face for longer rides and hate cleaning your clothes. Judging by the mudguard usage among professional mountain bikers, they agree with this statement as they don’t use it very often.
While mudguards might not be necessary, it’s clear they have a lot of benefits performance-wise. If you can ignore that they make our bikes look bad, you can actually make your mountain bike rides in wet weather much easier and more efficient.
