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Biking tips for a beginner

1K views 8 replies 8 participants last post by  MysteriousWind 
#1 ·
After hitting the trails in Huber-woods I realized that I need a lot of advice. I need help on going uphill around roots and the annoying step looking things that I guess help out the hikers and such. Then going downhill I would fall over my handle bars and fall on my head :madman: because of the same problem. I got a few scrathes and bruises but I am so excited about mountain biking that I don't really mind all the minor injuries. Can you please help me out and give me some tips. I'll keep practicing. :thumbsup:
 
#2 ·
going over the bars on decents would most likely be caused by not having your weight back far enough. i try to keep my body positioned behind the seat on the steep ones. on the uphill sections i usually keep my weight forward to keep the front wheel well grounded for better control. if your problem is getting over the roots, then you can unweight (is that even a word) your front wheel so it can roll over, put your weight back on it, then as your rear wheel makes contact w/ the root, kinda scoot your weight forward, thrusting the back wheel up and over it. dont get frustrated if you dont get it down quickly. alot of it is in the timing and that takes time to figure out. just keep riding and have fun. thats most important. :thumbsup:
 
#3 ·
Also, in many cases more speed makes it easier to cross obstacles. Going uphill that may be easier said than done...

Stay away from brakes when your wheels are on rough ground.

Pay attention to balance and weight distribution
 
#4 ·
Also dont jab on the brakes right before an obstacle. When coming into a technical downhill section go through these steps.

Before the hill:

Just before aproaching the decent throw your butt behind the seat almost like you are trying to tickle your stomache with the back of the seat. This will give you a ton more controll and keep alot of your weight back making it hard for you to go over the bars.

Also slow down to a speed you want to take down the hill before you actually start on the hill. Its much easier to slow down when its flat than doing a panic brake while you start decending and have to worry about upcoming obstacles.

While on the hill:

Keep the weight behind the seat

While riding pick and chose your times for braking. Never break hard while going over an obstacle its a great way to stall your front tire resulting in a possible fall. slow down in between the bumps and let the bike roll freely over them.

For stairs use your best form of suspension which is your body. Keep your arms and legs in a comfortable extended but not locked position. Keep your pedals level for best clearance. Let the bike conform to the terrain while you try and keep your upper body still and use your legs and arms as shocks to suck up the bikes movements.

After the hill:

Look back and celebrate your new accomplishment!
 
#5 ·
I definitely need to take that advice with shifting my weight WAAAY back on my bike. I went over the bars hard today, and ended up straddling a tree (luckily, it was a small tree that had some give, so it wasn't that bad). I thought it was all over, till my bike landed beside me about a second later. I'm still not quite sue what it was doing behind me! But I could feel as soon as I started that I was in trouble cause my weight was too far forward.
 
#8 ·
all this body positioning talk is kind of useless without mention of the neutral position - this is where all mountain biking "body english" comes from.
feet at 3 and 9 on the pedals ( pedals level, not up and down)
legs and arms slightly exteneded
butt out of the saddle
relaxed, not a death grip
eyes looking forward

Being out of the saddle, riding light, on a descent makes it much easier to move behind the saddle as needed... I don't think anyone mentioned HOW you get behind the bike. I've always needed things spelled out, so there ya go.
 
#9 ·
This forum is a great source of information, but there are also some good books out there. I can only comment on Ned Overend's Mountain Bike Like A Champion but I'm sure there are others out there. Ned's book does a good job at explaining the basics and once you have those down you can start trying the more advanced stuff.

Just some pointers
1. Keep your weight back on the decesnts.
2. Brake before you enter turns. Braking while in a turn, unless you have to, is a good way to have your tires slide out on you.
3. Keep your speed under control before you start a steep downhill, because once you start down the hill you may not be able to stop or slow down
4. Practice doing trackstands. This is where you stop your bike and balance on it for as long as you can. You don't have to become really good at it like some people are, but by doing trackstands you are improving your balance which is really helpful on the trails.

It sounds like you have a lot of energy which is a good thing, keep trying and you'll start to see yourself get better quickly.
 
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