There is so much out there in the way of accessories for your bike that you'll probably be in a tailspin if you go to a local bike shop to check them out. Listed below are the "no frills" accessories that all mountain bikers should have.

Bike Bags - There are several types of bike bags that are recommended for mountain bikers. The first type is a small bag that fits on the back of your saddle and is just big enough for something like an energy bar. Another type is a rack bag which is quite large and sits on a rack if you have one attached to the back of your bike. The third bag is the handlebar bag. These are great because they are large enough to carry almost anything you can think of and even has a plastic sleeve where you can slide your trail map in for easy viewing.

Lights - While it's not recommended to bike at night, most bikers will find themselves biking at night at some point in their career. If you are caught out in the dark, it's important that you have a light on the front of your bike to light your way and also alert motorists of oncoming cyclists. You should also have an LED rear light which can either blink or stay on to alert people behind you. Most lights are either battery powered or hooked up to a generator which is powered each time your wheel turns.

Water Bottles - There are many different types of bottles and sizes (the smallest holding .75 liters and the largest holding 1.51 liters) to choose from. You will want to make sure that the mouth of the bottle is wide enough to fit ice cubes through for those hot days. Giro makes an excellent bottle called the "Rocket Bottle" which allows you to put carbonated drinks in your bottle along with anything else because the screw-top mouth is so wide.

Bottle Cages - If you are going to carry a water bottle, the best way to do this is on the frame of your bike. There are two screws located on the bottom sloping tube of your bike where you are able to connect a water bottle. Depending on the size of your frame, you may be able to get away with putting two bottle cages on the frame. Most cages are designed to carry almost any size bottle without dropping one.

Pumps - There are various sizes when it comes to pumps ranging from floor pumps to micro pumps that are made to fit in a bike bag. A floor pump is the type of thing to leave at home or in your car while a micro pump is great to bring with you on the trails. The floor pump will inflate the tire more quickly, but the micro pump will definitely get the job done.

Computers - Bike computers are great to have because they will usually keep track of trip mileage, total mileage, average speed, maximum speed, cadence, elapsed time and much more depending on the model. Computers are the types of things where the more money it costs, the more features it has.