Originally Posted by
Doge
I think the road will be picking up as these kids mature.
FWIW - he has never crashed in a non junior USAC category road bike race. MTB is different.
MTB tires slip and slide a lot and good ones do it in a predictable way that's easy to use or recover. Road tires are either gripping or they aren't (for most people) and once they let go, you're sliding 40+ mph into the ditch/curb/oncoming traffic. I've Tokyo drifted road tires in crits and sketchy downhills, and it takes a level of finesse that most people don't want to tempt fate to obtain.
Odd comparison, but I'm a vastly better cornerer on the road bike than I am on the mountain bike or cross bike, and I'm one of the more timid dudes on a motorcycle.