How tos, MTB 101 - Skills »
Cross country bike skills: Introduction and fundamentals
In order for mountain biking to continue to thrive, it needs new riders. However, mountain biking is one of those sports that has a high learning curve, and I’ve seen a lot of people quit out of frustration — not because of a lack of fitness but, rather, because of a lack of technical skills. Depending on the level of technical difficulty on your local trails, you’ll need to spend the time learning some basic skill if you want to have fun and enjoy yourself when you get out in the hills.
This series of ‘how to’ articles is geared towards the beginner / intermediate xc rider, as I am certainly not an expert when it comes to bombing down trail at places like Whistler or at some of the other gnarly spots out there. But, you know what They say, “You teach best what you need to learn most”.
This introductory post highlights some basic skills that have helped me become a better rider; future posts will take more detailed looks at specific skills that you can use while out on the trail.
The “I wish someone had told me that” Basics
I’ve got scars up and down my knees and shins from learning how to ride a mountain bike. Each of these scars represents something that I learned the hard way and, in hindsight, wish that someone had told me when I first started riding.
Know your center of gravity. There is a point in space somewhere in front of your navel that is often referred to as your center of gravity (CG). It represents a point where all of your weight is located. Understanding how to manipulate your CG depending on the terrain and what you want to accomplish while riding is a key to all types of mountain biking.
It’s a balancing act. When you climb a hill, you need to move your center of gravity forward in order to keep the front wheel from popping up. However, if you move it too far forward you start to loose rear wheel traction. When going down a hill you have to move your CG towards the rear of your bike to keep yourself from pitching over the bars. However, if you move it too far back you unweight the front wheel and make it difficult to corner. When it comes to mountain biking is a game of give-and-take, compromise, and balance.
Speed is your friend. Fear usually keeps me from going as fast as I might on downhills and, obviously, riding on terrain that is beyond my technical skills gets me into trouble that could have been avoided. However, 8 crashes out of every 10 could have been avoided if I was going faster. It is very hard for beginners to understand how important momentum is. Remember that momentum and speed will get you through something more often than not.
Learn to like your front brake. Something like 75% of your braking power comes from the front brake. The first time I went over the bars as a result of grabbing my front brake at the wrong time, I was instilled me with a fear that took a long time to overcome. I think that this is a problem for a lot of beginners, who rely mainly on the rear brake, something that leads to a lot of skidding and causes you to lose control of your ride. As you brake, your center of gravity wants to move forward. Remember to counteract this shift by forcing your cg rearward. This movement allows you to brake with the front without going over the bars.
Look where you want to go. Look at the trail, not at the rock or tree. See target fixation for more information.
Look up. This is one of the hardest things to do. Keep your head up and look down the trail rather than at your front tire. To put it another way, the next time you drive down the highway, look 5′ in front of your hood, and then look up as you normally do. Which one ‘feels’ like you are going way too fast?
Built in suspension. Our knees and elbows are a form of built-in suspension that is as good as any modern linkages today. Keep them bent, keep them loose, and let them move with the bike to soak up bumps.
Assume the position. Developing a feel for the ‘ready’ or the ‘attack’ position often times does not come naturally. How many beginners have you seen go down a hill while sitting in the saddle. Try to focus on the following things and your descents will ‘feel’ better:
- Elbows bent and elbows out
- Keep your head up
- Keep your chin low
- Keep your center of gravity low
- Get off the saddle
- Use the saddle for stability by squeezing it between your thighs
- Keep your pedals level with the ground, with your strong (chocolate) foot forward
This picture is somewhat exaggerated but one thing I’ve realized is that even though I ‘think’ I am in the right position with my elbows are out, chest low and head it up, the reality is never as good. So it helps to try and exaggerate the ‘ideal’ position in order to get closer to it while actually riding.
When I first started trying to emulate this position I’d feel like I was going to pitch forward every time I braked. That’s because I was trying so hard to ‘get things right’ that I forgot to shift my weight back more when braking. Lesson: Flow with the bike, be loose. Not stiff like us xc guys.
Placing weight on the pedals. When going downhill, move your center of gravity back far enough so that you have your weight centered over the pedals. You’ll know that you’ve done it correctly when you can go down a rough downhill with only your thumb and index finger lightly wrapped around the bar or even completely OFF the bar.
Note: only do this a few times to emphasize the feeling. This is something that you have to FEEL to understand. But once you get it, you will increase your speed on downhills dramatically.
Learn to pick up the rear wheel without clipless pedals. I started cycling with mountain bikes way back in the late ’80s. For me, that meant flat pedals with toeclips. In order to bunny hop and pick up the rear wheel I naturally tightened my toe clips down. With the advent of clipless pedals, cleats that were bolted onto your shoes replaced those tight toe straps. This made picking up the rear wheel easy but, technically, it’s not the ‘right way’. It works, and I continue to lift my rear wheel with a heavy reliance on being clipped in. But I have started to try and learn the proper way of hopping and lifting the rear wheel with flat pedals. I wish someone had showed me how to do it way back then. If you are a BMX kid than you probably already know how to do this.
Recommended reading and resources
Conclusion
For a lot of you, these things are ingrained in your riding and you don’t even think about them anymore but for some beginners these skills can make or break their enjoyment of the sport. Hopefully these basic skills will help you or someone you know. Remember that simply reading over these tips a couple of timesis not going to make much of a difference in your riding ability — these are things you have to feel and experience in practice and on the trail over and over in order for them to sink in. Don’t believe everything you read, try it out yourself and convince yourself.
My next entries will deal with specific skills that will help you become a better technical rider and give you a better ‘feel’ for your bike and the trails you’re riding on.
1. Posted by Cory | 7:31 am, 1 March 2006
I haven’t read the book myself, but have you considered Brian Lopes’ book? It’s fairly well regarded by lots of riders…