r/mountainbiking rules, stats, and what to post

This is a community for people who ride mountain bikes. The public description says it covers trails, mountain bikes, accessories and related information. So the room is filled with riders talking about where they ride, what they ride, and the gear they use. People ask the community for help with riding questions, like jumping technique, and the rules show that sharing a video of yourself riding is normal here when it supports a real question. It is a hobby space, not a business space, and the rules keep it that way.

The rule that decides most marketing outcomes here is “No Self-Promotion Spam”. It allows a link when it is context for a real question, like a video of your own jumping technique, but it rejects posts that are just a link to your latest youtube video. It also pushes video feedback questions to a cinematography sub, so do not ask the room how your production looks. “Follow Rediquette” means you need to follow reddit's own baseline rules when you post and comment. “Be Nice” keeps the tone friendly, so no putting people down. “Stay appropriate” sets a PG-13 bar. “English Only” requires posts in English. “Gore should be tagged as NSFW” matters if you ever share crash photos with blood in them. “No Politics” bans political posts and memes, with one exception for laws or policies that directly affect mountain bikers or trails. Finally, “Don't overuse the modmail” tells you the moderator rarely checks it, so route your questions to the community instead.

Post like a rider first. Ask a genuine question about trails, bikes, or accessories, and let any link you share serve as context for that question. If you built something riders might care about, frame it as a real question or a real story from your own riding, and make sure the post stands on its own without the link. If you share a video of yourself riding, attach a real question about technique or gear rather than asking people to judge the video itself. Keep the tone friendly, keep it PG-13, write in English, and tag anything with gore as NSFW. Stay away from politics entirely unless it directly affects mountain bikers or trails.

The fastest way to get removed is self-promotion. A post that is only a link to your latest youtube video breaks “No Self-Promotion Spam”. Asking the community for feedback on how your video looks also trips that rule, because the moderators say that belongs on a cinematography sub. Politics is off limits under “No Politics”, even as memes, unless it directly affects mountain bikers or trails. If you post crash photos with blood, tag them NSFW or you break “Gore should be tagged as NSFW”. Keep everything in English per “English Only” and keep it PG-13 per “Stay appropriate”. Do not put people down, because “Be Nice” forbids that. And do not send the moderator modmail with your questions or pitches, because “Don't overuse the modmail” warns you will wait months for a reply and that community questions belong in the community.

What stands out to me here is how precisely the self-promotion rule is written. It does not just ban links, it explains the difference between a video that answers a real question and a video that begs for feedback, which tells you the moderators have thought hard about where the line sits. I also respect the honesty in the modmail rule, where the moderator openly says replies can take months and that they are not the god of mountain biking. That is a community that wants the members to answer each other, so show up as a rider first and let anything you sell come second.