Building Nerve
Discussion
Do any of you guys have an sure fire ways to build nerve, I am riding the Monkey Trail on Cannock Chase nearly every Sunday morning and I keep walking the rock gardens I know I should be able to ride them but every time I get to the top of them I walk them. Not helped by the fact I had a fairly big off on them 2 weeks ago.
So what tricks can I use to get me to ride them?
So what tricks can I use to get me to ride them?
On my mountain bike leaders course I was shown this little trick.
Walk the bike over the obstacle, holding on only to the saddle, you will quickly see that the bike can be pushed over most terrain fairly easily, add a rider and some momentum and you should see the same result.
I was sceptical of this at first but it does seem to be more accurate that it is not!
Walk the bike over the obstacle, holding on only to the saddle, you will quickly see that the bike can be pushed over most terrain fairly easily, add a rider and some momentum and you should see the same result.
I was sceptical of this at first but it does seem to be more accurate that it is not!
Do you know why you came off? My guess is a lack of speed as you need to keep your momentum through rocky sections, also you need to stay lose and let the bike move around beneath you.
I started doing motorbike trials last year and found that the best way to tackle something you either can't or don't want to ride is to just be stubborn and refuse to be beaten by it. Think about where you've gone wrong, work out what you have to do to clear it, and don't think about crashing otherwise you will!
Once you can ride the sections then do them a few more times so that it becomes relatively easy.
It's probably a good idea to have someone with you just in case...
I started doing motorbike trials last year and found that the best way to tackle something you either can't or don't want to ride is to just be stubborn and refuse to be beaten by it. Think about where you've gone wrong, work out what you have to do to clear it, and don't think about crashing otherwise you will!
Once you can ride the sections then do them a few more times so that it becomes relatively easy.
It's probably a good idea to have someone with you just in case...
I know the two rock patches very well, having come off and destroyed a rear mech there myself. it's really not practical to walk it, as it's just too steep to walk down. i know why i came off, it was a combination of not having moved back far enough, and having about 1/4 of the air in my fork that i should have. i've been back since with a fully pumped up fork, and it's not as bad as i remember. i do wish it didn't end in a corner though. it's the wolf drop that still gets me...
Get yourself signed up onto a skills course, best £80 I spent last year. The instructor will point out your bad habits, and push you to overcome your nerves.
The instructor on my course was quite relaxed; he was safety conscious but quite casual about pushing the attendees beyond their comfort zone – which seemed to work. My course had a real mixed bag of people from me and another chap who rode quite regularly, to a couple who had only been riding for 6 months and at the start of the day would not do a 2 foot roll off, by the end of the day they were happy to have a go at a good 10 foot drop in!
It probably gave me a little too much confidence as a week after the course I nearly killed myself on a table top jump, can’t blame anyone other than myself and my ego for the crash though!
The instructor on my course was quite relaxed; he was safety conscious but quite casual about pushing the attendees beyond their comfort zone – which seemed to work. My course had a real mixed bag of people from me and another chap who rode quite regularly, to a couple who had only been riding for 6 months and at the start of the day would not do a 2 foot roll off, by the end of the day they were happy to have a go at a good 10 foot drop in!
It probably gave me a little too much confidence as a week after the course I nearly killed myself on a table top jump, can’t blame anyone other than myself and my ego for the crash though!
Don't get to hung up on simply leaning back. You need to keep some weight forward to make the front tyre work for steering and braking. Focus more on, as said, staying loose on the bike, absorb the shocks with your arms and legs and don't be afraid to let the bike move around. You have far more suspension in your body than on any bike.
I'd also suggest walking the section, or give it a good dose of looking at then go back up the trail a good way. Roll into the tricky section and just go for it. Look well ahead for where you want to exit and deffo don't stare at any one spot... you'll go where ever you look.
Good luck!
I'd also suggest walking the section, or give it a good dose of looking at then go back up the trail a good way. Roll into the tricky section and just go for it. Look well ahead for where you want to exit and deffo don't stare at any one spot... you'll go where ever you look.
Good luck!
Engineer1 said:
I've done a basic course and really enjoyed it, learnt stuff but then get out in the wild and I end up going for the wet option.
Perhaps talk to Adam Halling at the Bike School. He's local to the Chase and, since he finished 6th senior in the 2011 BDS Downhill serires, knows more than a thing or two about bike control.http://www.thebikeschool.net/
Engineer1 said:
So what tricks can I use to get me to ride them?
I am a complete wimp when it comes to really technical sections, but I just stick the saddle down low so I can jump off easily, push the bike back up the hill and try and do the same (maybe 20ft) section until I clear it.For what it's worth I find these basic tips helped:
- Keep your head up and look where you want to go, not where you fear you'll end up (like a tree or a particularly pointy rock on the floor somewhere...) Also works well in a car - you'll find yourself opposite locking naturally if you look the right way on a drift day!
- Keep your pedals angled upwards (backwards) a little relative to the direction of travel - I think the idea of this is that bumps react inline to your calves, rather than at angle, so they're less likely to change your centre of gravity position or cause your feet to slip off
- If in doubt, get your weight further back, so the front end encounters less resistance when you roll over obstacles; this also reduces the momentum the front end carries meaning it won't slide as far if you lose grip
You lot are all missing the point of this thread. What the OP is dying for us to say is "hmmmm, tricky one, I think you need to add more carbon and more travel...and possibly up your group set a bit. New bike time...it's the only way to be sure!"
On a serious note, try dropping your saddle...knowing you can bail does help. Get the speed right...fast enough so it's all over before you even know it and the bike will keep its line, slow enough so you still feel you in total control.
Lastly, go and do the 7 stanes, when you come back you will look at that and go "pah!". It's no harder up there, it's just there's a lot of it, and rather the it being that "bit" that you are dreading on he ride, it ill be a few metres of rock which will seem like nothing compared to the many hundreds of metres you will have ridden before. It changed my misses from hating rock gardens to actually looking forward to them.
On a serious note, try dropping your saddle...knowing you can bail does help. Get the speed right...fast enough so it's all over before you even know it and the bike will keep its line, slow enough so you still feel you in total control.
Lastly, go and do the 7 stanes, when you come back you will look at that and go "pah!". It's no harder up there, it's just there's a lot of it, and rather the it being that "bit" that you are dreading on he ride, it ill be a few metres of rock which will seem like nothing compared to the many hundreds of metres you will have ridden before. It changed my misses from hating rock gardens to actually looking forward to them.
Hard-Drive said:
Lastly, go and do the 7 stanes, whenif you come back you will look at that and go "pah!". It's no harder up there, it's just there's a lot of it, and rather the it being that "bit" that you are dreading on he ride, it ill be a few metres of rock which will seem like nothing compared to the many hundreds of metres you will have ridden before. It changed my misses from hating rock gardens to actually looking forward to them.
Fixed that for you - I still think tuition, of the right sort, is underrated. (Other place OP could try is Niel Donoghue's courses at Llandegla.)You're right though, that the OP should be looking to 'buy' more speed/bottle in the way of a bigger bike.
Digga said:
Engineer1 said:
I've done a basic course and really enjoyed it, learnt stuff but then get out in the wild and I end up going for the wet option.
Perhaps talk to Adam Halling at the Bike School. He's local to the Chase and, since he finished 6th senior in the 2011 BDS Downhill serires, knows more than a thing or two about bike control.http://www.thebikeschool.net/
Talk to the local experts Hard-Drive said:
You lot are all missing the point of this thread. What the OP is dying for us to say is "hmmmm, tricky one, I think you need to add more carbon and more travel...and possibly up your group set a bit. New bike time...it's the only way to be sure!"
In that case:
http://www.orangebikes.co.uk/bikes/224-evo_world-c...
No carbon, but it'll get you down most things pretty rapidly.
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