Sod this- Face this time.

[pesty]

Right over the bars it happened that fast the first thing I knew about it was my face hitting the trail.

Ive split my top lip and my bottom teeth have chewed up my bottom lip. my nose feels funny and my neck which has not healed from when I landed on my head hurts like hell again.

I was doing ok and going down down some faily technical stuff but this has done my confidence. Was on the front brake from then on too much I had the fear.

I need a new hobby

[atom111]

What type of bike were you riding long travel, short travel and is the front suspension set up correctly.

Sorry to hear about you injuries but this thread is useless without pictures hope you have a quick recovery and maybe get a full face helmet.

If it's any consolation I had an over the handlebar moment recently that like you happened so fast I don't really know what happened it was at the end of a longish ride and wasn't even in a particularly technical bit!!

Edited by atom111 on Sunday 18th May 15:33

[Scraggles]

went over the handlebars as a kid, had mother pulling out the gravel that had embedded itself in my hands. did not stop me, but made sure to look ahead and think is it too dangerous or whatever, then make decision.....

maybe the op was cycling down a very steep hill and slipped

[pesty]

Scraggles said:

maybe the op was cycling down a very steep hill and slipped

was steep but didnt slip. dont know how just hit the deck fast front wheel just stopped dead. couldnt even see what caused it there was a root and a dip with a bit of mud but normly would just go over them no problem.

its pissed me off more because from then on in I was shit scared of everything. when we got to the harder steeper bits that last week I went down no problems I had to get off and walk down the steep bits.

and I still dont like riding up hills my fitness seems to get worse week on week.

there could be a set up issue though as when I fall off its usualy straight over the bars. Front shock pumped up too much? I run with quite high tyre pressure as well

Edited by pesty on Sunday 18th May 19:52

[hughjayteens]

If you don't fancy a full face lid, the Met Parachite is a great half way house that would save your teeth in such a crash!

www.wiggle.co.uk/ProductDetail.aspx?Cat=cycle&ProdID=5360033697&N=Met%20Parachute%20Helmet

[Gooby]

One of the characteristics of front suspension is that if the front wheel goes into a dip it can compress and "duck", this is made worse by your mass traveling forward as the bike stops. This will pitch you over the bars. It is even more fun if you are wearing clipless.

It is a newbie mistake - did it many times. When going downhill lean back and keep your weight bias over the rear wheel.

Shamelessly OCR'd but a great book...

Mastering Mountain Bike Skills said:

Downhill
The steeper it gets, the farther back you need to be. But don't overdo it: Volumes of magazine articles have convinced people to get behind their saddles whenever they descend. This is not only unnecessary, it also makes your bike handle poorty. Your front wheel gets too light, and it dances randomly instead of tracking precisely.

When you coast down a trail, you should be balanced over the middle of your bike. If the grade is 10 percent, you only need to lean back about 10 degrees. Any farther than that and your front wheel is too light for effective braking and cornering.
On steep descents, lean back with your arms almost straight. Bent arms let your front wheel flop all over the place; straight arms act as a steering damper. If you're not far enough back: The rear wheel wants to lift off the ground, and you feel like you're being pitched forward, which you are. The rear brake skids easily. If you're too far back: With all your weight on the rear end, your front tire will slide and skip in corners. Also, your rear tire will buzz your bum. Which isn't all bad, really.

To get a feel for balancing on your pedals, coast down a slight grade and stand on your bike with some weight on your hands. Move your body backward until your hands hover lightly on the bars. If you lean so far back that you have to pull with your hands, you went too far. This light-handed place makes a good base of operations. For cornering, you want more handlebar pressure; for rough terrain, you want less handlebar pressure.


As descents get steeper, your window of balance narrows and, paradoxically, it gets harder to move your weight far enough back. Long stems pull you toward the front of your bike. High saddles get in the way. Your rear tire buzzes your butt. These iffy situations make it more important than ever to:
Layoff the brakes. Here's a paradox for ya: The steeper the trail, the less you should use your brakes. Too much lever pitches your weight even farther forward. Besides, traction sucks on a cliff.
Get as low as you can.
This gives more traction to the rear wheel and stabilizes your balance.
When terrain gets extremely steep, there comes a point when balancing on the pedals isn't far back enough. For most bikes this happens when the pitch reaches about 60 degrees. What to do? Get even farther back-and lay off that front brake.

[mat205125]

I stacked this weekend too. Full face protected my bonce, and knee / shin and elbow pads kept the blood inside me. Still bruised like a bad apple, and suffering with a badly sprained wrist.

Don't quit. Go back in the saddle as soon as you are able. Next time you ride any technical downhill stuff, stop and drop the saddle right down. Stops the bike bucking up under you and firing you over the bars. Brake in a straight line, and not at all on steep short descents .... It is a bit of a mental challenge, but often faster without brakes is smoother and safer than trying to "control" your speed down descents ..... Then again, I'm the one limping with a sprained wrist so what do I know

[Scraggles]

try some gentler hills, nothing wrong with cycling, just that if not having fun with the hard stuff, do gentler things, does not make u less of a man for doing it, just brighter

Tend to have tires pumped up hard, nothing worse than impacting the rims and bursting a tyre

[mat205125]

Depends on wisth of tyre, but I'd never go above 40psi for an XC tyre. I run my full sus XC bike around 35-38 normally and rarely suffer punctures. Thats for a 2.1 tyre with a tube.

[Moose.]

hughjayteens said:

If you don't fancy a full face lid, the Met Parachite is a great half way house that would save your teeth in such a crash!

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/ProductDetail.aspx?Cat=cyc...

I've seen a few people with these out on the trails but to me they just don't look strong enough. I cannot see how a flimsy bit of extra plastic on the front is going to save you. If you want proper head protection, use a proper full face helmet. I've only ever used one for down hill (at Cwm Carn) and the extra confidence it gives you is amazing! If you're wanting that extra confidence then get one.

Having come off a few times, (twice really badly resulting in A&E visits) you will get the confidence back but it'll take a bit of time It would be a shame to give up something you enjoy because of a few bad experiences.