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Crashed again

1K views 17 replies 10 participants last post by  Bttocs 
#1 ·
So this morning I rode ~4 miles from home to La Tuna (Hostetter), climbed ~4 miles to Verdugo Peak, then descended Whiting Woods (I'm guessing ~3 miles as it's steeper than Hostetter), crashed at the bottom of the WW trail while cornering (thank god I wear gloves, my hand was cut even with gloves) with hand, arm and leg bleeding/cuts/abrasions/whatever (nothing broken). I did this all in 2 hrs pretty much non-stop as I was running late for work.

thanks a lot Hawg for the route recommendation (13.2 mi RT) but it was a good workout and my left knee is not hurting in the ITB area or behind the patella (thank God so maybe the few days of no cardio and yoga gay **** I was doing to stretch and foam roll helped?) I raised the saddle an inch or so and did not stand and pedal uphill (buy my ass was killing me!) and used lowest 1-2 gears uphill so less stress on knee joints.

I don't feel comfortable descending anything steeper than Whiting Woods with my bike and skills.

btw, the crash caused my handle bars to be uneven or "turned". So now I need to turn it back into alignment.

So the ? is....

On the SoCal trails that are rocky and dirty/sandy, when you are entering and handling a curve/corner, how do you know your tires will grip enough so you don't crash? Or do you just brake strong prior to entering corner to accommodate? But I've seen other guys go faster than me down Verdugo. I'm not trying to beat my/their times descending but I just don't want to keep crashing. This is my 2nd crash in a couple weeks. I have a DB OD Comp 29er.
 
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#2 ·
On the SoCal trails that are rocky and dirty/sandy, when you are entering and handling a curve/corner, how do you know your tires will grip enough so you don't crash? .
body position and repetition,the more hours you log on your bike you'll learn what it and you can handle, on a curve/corner your tire may wash out at anytime and It's only through practice you'll learn how to react and adjust ,,crashing is all apart of downhill
 
#4 ·
crashing is all a part of downhill. i figured that. it's weird, i've only seen me crash downhill in all these years of hiking, running, biking SoCal area. I guess as long as you don't hit a human, break something, or die, it's not too bad but it's not pleasant either.
 
#3 ·


Get fitted for the bike. Raising the seat will only help if its an issue with extension. If the knee isn't tracking straight over the pedal, it's going to cause all sorts of issues. Trust me, spend a few hundred now on a fitting or lots more to treat the problems that it can cause.
 
#5 ·
Nobody told me about the knee tracking straight over the pedal. That's good to know. The unfortunate thing is you ask ppl and they all have different responses. The other guy told me yesterday that bike fit for mtn bike is a waste as you don't maintain the same position the entire ride like you do with street cycling.

And nobody on here talks about stretching/rolling IT band and strengthening hips. I've been doing that for a few days and guessing it helped my knee issues (along with the rest I'm sure).
 
#6 ·
It's just one of those things that gets easier as you ride more and develop your skills. Try just taking these things slower until you're more comfortable on the bike. It just sounds like your stem is a little crooked from the crash so you'll probably just need to loosen it up and readjust it.
 
#7 ·
So I will need to determine how to do that. I'm sure it's not difficult compared to replacing brake pads or brake bleed but I'd imagine there is a multi-tool or similar that is required. Any recommendations?

btw, this bike for $500 used seems pretty damn durable so far.
 
#12 ·
On the SoCal trails that are rocky and dirty/sandy, when you are entering and handling a curve/corner, how do you know your tires will grip enough so you don't crash? Or do you just brake strong prior to entering corner to accommodate? But I've seen other guys go faster than me down Verdugo. I'm not trying to beat my/their times descending but I just don't want to keep crashing. This is my 2nd crash in a couple weeks. I have a DB OD Comp 29er.
It just takes time to learn your bike and your ability. When I first started I hated leaning in to corners, and never used berms to corner, I crawled through them at a snails pace. As I developed more skill and ability I learned to position my bike in the corner and use my body as leverage to push through the corner instead of slowing through it. The angle that you attack is also helpful in corners, start wide, come in narrow and finish out wide again (watch any sort of moto racing).

Check out some videos on youtube, although not all are DH specific, they'll help with overall bike control.

 
#13 ·
are you washing out the front or the rear? Same both times? If it is the same both times it probably means you need to shift more weight in that direction.

Do you have almost all your weight on the outside pedal at 6 oclock? If your seat is too high it can prevent you from putting your weight on the outside pedal. A dropper post can help
 
#15 ·
1st time rear brake caused rear tire to go left too much iirc. Fell on right side of body. 2nd time front or both hard to tell it happened fast and I fell on left side of my body. I was turning left in the corner. 1st was straightish and a couple of hikers on right side of fire road coming up threw me off.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#17 ·
Som etips in the corners:
Look where you want to exit not front of your tire
Lean the bike and push down on outside pedal, a way to do this stick the inside knee to the inside. Do nit lean your body to the inside of the bike.
Or take your inside foot off the pedals and stick it forward, it can help grip

Some tires are better for SoCal type dirt. When I lived there I preferred High Rollers. They don't bite immediately but they will bite.
Lower pressures can help so run tubeless if you are not.
Dropper post will let you get lower and help you get an even better push down on the outside pedal.
 
#18 ·
I am no expert, actually more of a beginner, but I rode motoX for quite a while. I put my foot down if I feel like I might crash. Especially if I have to get on the brakes while cornering. You definetly should brake before the corner and then ride through. If you slowed down too much, go a little faster next time. You will find the max safe speed eventually that way. Sounds like you are exploring beyond max speeds and working your way back down. On my motoX bike, I would put my inside foot down and do a two wheel slide around corners all the time. Really fun if you can stay in control. I am not sure if this works on a mtb, but I have seen inside feet come down in some videos, maybe a bail out safety thing? I ride more up and down single track, rather than high speed stuff, so I am still keeping my speeds down for now.
 
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