We trust the best mountain and road bike brands for our cycling journey. But is it worth it? 

Can a premium brand help you elevate your cycling journey, or is a regular brand enough for you to achieve the dream of winning the cyclocross? 

Well, the questions are endless when we start to shop for our bikes. Without a delay, let’s explore some of the top options. Today we aim to guide you to some reputed and well-known road and mountain bike purchases you can consider next

1. RockShox

Rockshox is a regarded road and mountain bike brand for its aggressive riding, balance, and performance versatility. This company trusted by many was first established itself in the market by introducing A-class suspension components, particularly forks and shocks, essential for mountain biking performance.

RockShox was founded by Paul Turner and Steve Simons in 1989. RockShox introduced the Judy fork, which became a hallmark of mountain biking innovation in 1995 with elastomer springs and adjustable damping. 

In 1990, Greg Herbold won the first Downhill World Championships using a RockShox fork, which is why the company is still in the big names today. The company was acquired by SRAM Corporation in 2002, but the legacy continues in the joint name. Models like the Boxxer, Zeb, Lyrik, and Pike are highly praised for their performance in various terrains.

2. SRAM

SRAM Corporation is an innovative company whose four road groupsets are among the big hits in history. They are known for a range of components, including drivetrains and brakes, specifically designed for mountain biking. SRAM Red, SRAM Force, SRAM Rival, and SRAM Apex—all of these have amazing shifting braking, ergonomics, and integrated gear ratio options loved by users. 

History 

SRAM Corporation is an innovative dream seen by Stan Day with his shifting solutions for a bicycle. With the same interest, he along with his team introduced the Grip Shift (or twist shift) shifter to the road bike market in 1988. The product became an instant hit, and in less time than 3 years, the Grip Shift technology became the future of mountain bikes.

It was in 1995 that SRAM came up with its first mountain bike rear derailleur, known as ESP. With its ambition and vision, it acquired Sachs, a German manufacturer, and expanded SRAM’s expertise in chains and gearing in 1997. 

SRAM re-released the existing ESP line with the X.O. rear derailleur, a complete redesign of it in 2001, which became a key product. Five more years down the line, SRAM came up with The Force and Rival groupsets in 2006. 

The company’s by-one hero product, the XX1 groupset, launched with wide-range 1×11 mountain bike shifting, a 10-42 cassette, and a patented single front chainring design in 2012. SRAM RED eTap introduced a wireless electronic shifting system in 2015 with the XX1 Eagle AXS and X01 Eagle AXS.

The launch of the Rival eTap AXS groupset made SRAM highly competitive in the market, with an accessible price point to its higher-end counterparts, and rest assured, it’s a top brand you can shop for 2025. 

3. Fox

Fox Technology, a reputed mountain biking brand renowned for high-quality suspension systems and components, is a favorite. Many professional mountain bikers appreciate and trust the brand for its durability and performance. 

Fox has an excellent suspension, and Fox’s Active Valve system is one of the new heroes in suspension management. The best-selling products from FOX technology are, 

History of Fox Technology in Mountain Biking 

Fox Racing Shox was founded in 1974 with the idea to innovate on motocross suspension. And fate has it aligned: when mountain biking as a sport became famous in the 1980s, Fox as a brand transitioned smoothly. Its first mountain bike suspension fork, the Fox Vanilla, had a warm welcome in 1991 and was trusted by many cyclists. 

It introduced advancements in suspension and ProPedal technology as fine-damping systems in 2006. Fox unveiled its Live Valve technology, an electronic suspension system, in 2017; advancements like the GRIP2 damper technology are the latest contribution from their side in mountain biking technology. 

4. Shimano

“Closer to Nature, Closer to People,” Shimano has this core concept in outdoor sports like cycling and fishing. This brand has been more of an achiever in mountain bike components, including drivetrains and brakes, and believes in  “Explore New Grounds.” Some of the most loved products from this famous mountain and road bike brand are, 

Shimano was founded by Shozaburo Shimano in Sakai, Japan. But the start was about the bicycle freewheels, and it is one of the early founding mountain bikes operating with trust since 1921. The Shimano 333 derailleur in 1957 must say is the product that brought this brand into popularity with its amazing gear-shifting technology. 

With years of research, Shimano successfully revolutionized the gear-shifting system with click-based precision in 1984—the Indexed Shifting System (SIS). It rose to prominence with STI (Shimano Total Integration) levers in 1990, and there was no coming back. 

The introduction of Di2 (Digital Integrated Intelligence) brought electronic shifting to the forefront in 2009, making it more among the choices of professional cyclists. Their flagship groupset, Dura-Ace, remains a favorite.

Shimano has come up with products like the q’Auto Shimano, an automatic gear-shifting system to date. It’s a brand with a history to inspire and technology that can explore new trails—one we can look for. 

5. Hope Technology 

Hope Technology is a British mountain biking company whose key aspects are precision-engineered disc brakes and hubs. It has been a trusted companion since 1989. Let alone the products do the talking. Hope has a strong reputation when it comes to mountain biking. Some of the top-notch products from Hope with key features that you like to buy are, 

Hope Technology was first founded by Ian Weatherill and his team in Barnoldswick, Lancashire, UK. Hope Mono Brake is one of the popular first products. The Hope Pro 2 hub, launched in 2005, became particularly popular in the late 1990s. The introduction of the Hope Tech brakes marked a significant advancement in hydraulic braking systems in 2007.  

Hope began producing its components using CNC machining in 2010, and since very widely diversifying its product line in mountain biking, the collaboration with Lotus Engineering resulted in the development of a new track bike for Great Britain Cycling in the 2020s. Hope Carbon EVO Crankset and Hope TR Stem are some of its new product lines. 

6. Magura

Magura is a well-established mountain bike brand that has all eyes on it with its innovative braking systems and components. It has a longer history with its inception in 1893, but it entered the mountain biking market by introducing hydraulic rim brakes in the 1980s. Some of its all-time most-sold products are, 

Magura transitioned from rim brakes to hydraulic disc brakes, but its Magura HS33, a hydraulic rim brake, from 1997 is one of its hero products that people still talk about. In the 2000s, Magura took a leap of fate with the MT series of hydraulic disc brakes, including models such as the MT2, MT4, MT6, and MT8. 

The release of the MT7 brake system in 2017 is still popular among downhill and enduro riders.

It was in 2019 when things took a better turn as Magura introduced the MCi (Magura Cockpit Integration) system at Eurobike. In 2000, the MCi system was made available for OEM partners, compatible with both 2-piston and 4-piston brake calipers from Magura.

If we talk about the Recent (2024), Magura continues to innovate with products like the Vyron MDS-V3, a wireless dropper Seatpost

7. e*thirteen

E*thirteen first came to the mountain bike industry with components like chain guides and wheels. But today, it is not only a wide distributor of drivetrain components but also of wheels and cockpit components (handlebars and stems). 

It had a different name at first. But later, the Founders decided to shorten “Exit 13” to “e*thirteen” and added an asterisk to make it a cool and distinctive part of their identity. 

Some of the most sold products from E*thirteen are the TRS Plus Wheelset, LG1 Race Carbon Crankset, and reliable chain guides. But the journey was not that easy at first. You get to shop for both trail and enduro-style riding with e*thirteen. Also, learn how to shift gear.

• 2001: Dave Weagle, a mechanical engineer, founded e*thirteen in 2001 with his other partners with a focus on chain retention systems. 
• 2003: Thirteen introduced its first product, the Chain Guide, 
• 2000s: Expansion of Product Lines such as cranksets, wheels, and cassettes,
• 2012: The launch of the TRS+ (Trail/Enduro) 
• 2015: e*thirteen introduced the LG1+ Wheelset, 
• 2020: The company continued to innovate with the introduction of the Vario Dropper Post.

8. Campagnolo

Campagnolo is a famous road bike brand known for high-end components. Tullio officially founded Campagnolo as a company in 1933 in Vicenza, Italy. The first products included the quick-release hubs and the “Cambio Corsa,” a back-pedal derailleur. We continue talking about hero products from Campagnolo and its history. 

1949: The introduction of the Gran Sport rear derailleur marked a significant advancement 

1950s-1960s: Campagnolo successfully secured a position as a high-performance cycling brand trusted and used by legends like Fausto Coppi and Eddy Merck. With the Nuovo Record dominating the market at that period, there was high hope and promise for the future.

1961: Campagnolo was among the first to use low-pressure magnesium casting for components

1990s-Present: Campagnolo continued to innovate with products like the Chorus, Record, and Super Record groupsets.

2020: Campagnolo launched the Ekar groupset, specifically designed for gravel riding. This 13-speed groupset

2021: The company continued to innovate with updates to its existing road groupsets

9. Vittoria

With over 70 years of experience in cycling technology, Vittoria is a leader in high-quality tires and accessories. This road bike brand was loved the most by the World Tour teams like Jumbo Visma, Astana, Alpecin Deceuninck, and Team DSM. 

Vittoria has its famous road bike tires (e.g., Corsa, Rubino), gravel, and cyclocross tires (e.g., Terreno). They also have expanded their inner tubes, tubeless accessories, and other mountain bike tires (e.g., Mezcal, Barzo). 

• 1953: Vittoria was established in Italy to produce high-quality tubular tires.
• 1960s-1980s: Throughout these decades, Vittoria became synonymous with tubular tires and supplied tires to many cycling legends, including Eddy Merckx and Bernard Hinault.
• 1978: Vittoria became a pioneer in the cycling footwear market, introducing the first colored cycling shoes. 
• 1990s: Post financial struggles, Vittoria expanded its product line to include clincher and tubeless tires.
• 1998: The introduction of carbon soles in cycling shoes marked a significant
• 2000s-Present: Vittoria has continued to innovate with products such as:
• The introduction of the 4C (four-compound) tread layer made it a beast of all.  

Conclusion 

Not all mountain bike and road bike brands are all-rounders; if you choose one hero bike product from each of the brands, you can custom-make your bike, and that will be the most robust of all. For the customizable features and trusted guide to get your dream bike assembled, The-LBS shall help. It’s your local bike shop with delivery across many countries in the world and a travel companion in your biking journey. Book your product and get consultation service today!