MOST SIGNIFICANT TIP: Dynamic Pedal when cornering (Steering with inside knee: opening the Inside turn knee, dipping outside turn pedal)

Tried it on May 11, 2012. I will corner always like the info below from now on. It is an amazing tip that works!

I ride right foot forward.
The tip in the video suggests: When cornering open the inside knee (which is unweighs this side of the bike) and as the result of such opening, the OUTSIDE PEDAL will be dipped a bit.
When I turn left: open the left knee- the right foot (pedal) will move forward and down.
When I turn right: open the  right knee- the left foot (pedal) will move back and down.
Just like skiing! Man, this tip works!!!

Cornering (twist those hips, screw into the bike)

Disclaimer: These tips are for the blog author, pls seek professional instruction as this sport may be dangerous!



Great Reference on cornering: TWIST THOSE HIPS, SCREW INTO THE BIKE!
Hey coach series:
http://www.nsmb.com/5214-hey-coach-ep-1/

0. Brake before the turn
1.  Drill:  standing practice turning the bike on flat terrain by TWISTING THE HIPS (1:20 in the clip)
ADD Dynamic pedal idea in this drill
2. Turn with all three eyes (belly button is the third eye, imagine laser shooting from it, point with it!)
     (2:15 in the clip)
3.  Angulate the bike into the turn, not the body (2:28 in the clip)
4.  Go screw yourself into the bike (2:37 in the clip)
BATHE :
 Brake before the corner
 Angulate the bike, not the body
 Twist the hips (screw yourself into the bike in the direction of the turn)
 Hand (I adjusted this from the original: outside hand is so that the outside elbow is high)
 Explosive exit (I can't do it yet: put pressure with feet on suspension as you are unscrewing yourself: as you untwist towards the end [quote] "try pushing yourself up to neutral position with a powerful push through the heels of your feet. This should drive more traction but also generate some momentum and bring you to the neutral position quickly, ready for the next corner or trail challenge."

Technique points I keep in my mind when riding these days

The key word on my mind on a downhill turn is ROTATE, just one word but occasionally also.....

1. Rotate the belly button and looking with "three eyes" when on downhill turn
2. Leaning the bike into the turn
3. Counterbalancing the leaning with the rear part as a result of belly button turn and resulting weight shift on the seat.
3. Having the outside turn elbow bent and high
4. Looking past the turn
5. Dynamic Pedal

Going downhill and in trouble

Disclaimer: These tips are for the blog author, pls seek professional instruction as this sport may be dangerous!

What if I am going downhill and sense possible trouble. What is the first thing to do?

GET AS LOW OVER BB AS I CAN:

-getting low over the central balancing point of the bike (over the seat area and BB). If I get low the rear will move back AS A RESULT OF GETTING LOW
-elbows a bit forward as if doing regular (not military style) pushups.Or as if you were holding a basketball at chest level.

This will not work is the seat is high (impossible to get low in this case). So people move behind the seat as a compromise. This is not ideal as:
-the bike is not centrally and evenly balanced
-arms are already extended and can't be used pushing the bike forward if needed
-front wheel is unweighted and is ready to slip sideways which means imminent fall

Telescopic seat post may be an answer to the above dilemma. One word of caution. Sometimes the telescopic seat may still be too high even if completely retracted. This may give a false sense of security as I endoed once thinking that I was low because I retracted the seat but I was still overall high.
The picture provided helps understand this point. The seat is clamped in such a way that it will be still way too high for OVERALL (albeit fully retracted) downhill height for me.

Another picture of the toughest climb on Bridal Path

Disclaimer: These tips are for the blog author, pls seek professional instruction as this sport may be dangerous!


This is the hardest climb for me.

I did it once using GRANNY gear up front and SECOND BIGGEST ring in the back ("my magic gear"). Seat post fully extended, climbing in sitting position.

"Magic gear" for climbing on Bridal Path

Disclaimer: These tips are for the blog author, pls seek professional instruction as this sport may be dangerous!

I discovered a gear combination that works practically for any kind of difficult Bridal Path terrain that requires any kind of climbing over obstacles.

It is GRANNY ring up front, SECOND BIGGEST gear in the back.

Here i one example of a little tricky rooty climb at the beginning of Suicide connector going East

Scariest stretch on Bridal Path

Disclaimer: These tips are for the blog author, pls seek professional instruction as this sport may be dangerous!

This is where I flew over handlebar and hit the hip pointer. Result: huge painful hematoma.

Descending and making a relatively sharp turn is still the biggest weakness. So I walk biting putting a lid on the ego. Ego has no hips that may hurt after all...

Toughest climb

Disclaimer: These tips are for the blog author, pls seek professional instruction as this sport may be dangerous!


If for the long time I can't climb a certain stretch, I am most likely use the wrong gears!

This is the steepest climb on Bridal Path that finally after many months I was able to do on Dec 31, 2011.

Some guy suggested this gear combination:

GRANNY up front and the SECOND BIGGEST ring in the back.

I climbed it mostly sitting and to my biggest surprise I did it.

Until this attempt I was using the MIDDLE ring up front and the BIGGEST one in the back, no way it was doable!

Bridal Path Gears

Disclaimer: These tips are for the blog author, pls seek professional instruction as this sport may be dangerous!

So far I have been using the following gear combinations on Bridal Path, Seymour, N. Vancouver:

1. Golf Course parking lot-> Horse Loop until the "T" intersection by the fence (before the uphill section)- GRANNY and BIGGEST RING in the back.

2. For the remaining sections (with some exceptions) -MIDDLE ring up front, THE BIGGEST ring in the back.

3. For "step-like" obstacles MIDDLE ring up front, THE SECOND BIGGEST ring in the back.

4. Very steep section going East not far from the "T" on the Hyannis side (I will post a separate post with the picture) GRANNY ring up front, THE SECOND BIGGEST ring in the back. I tried to climb while sitting.

5. I will try to post pictures with "tricky" sections and the gears used.

Remember the pedals!

Disclaimer: These tips are for the blog author, pls seek professional instruction as this sport may be dangerous!


See more than "beating" an obstacle!

Today I was so focussed making it over a log or a root patch that I would lose awareness of what my pedals were up to. And they were hitting many things that they encountered (mainly nice rocks already scratched by other riders).

I call it riding in sync (thank you Assassin's Creed for inspiration with the term). Will your pedals hit something when you are laboring over an obstacle or on its approach to it or not? That is the question! Sometimes ratcheting back is a great way to avoid being "out of synch"

Riding in the rain

Disclaimer: These tips are for the blog author, pls seek professional instruction as this sport may be dangerous!

I rode today in wet rainy weather. And last time too and next time as well...
I can't even think what it would be like without the following things that are crucial for riding in wet conditions for me:

• Tubeless converted tires (Stan's rimstrips and sealant)
• 28 or so PSI tire pressure (I am 240 lb)
• March 4, 2012 correction: I ride with 20-22 PSI now
• Maxxis Minion EXO DHF 2.5 (both front and back)

Practically no side-slipping on wet roots! Very predictable lines and riding.

December 31, 2011 update:

I find myself riding with 20-22 PSI now as 28 seems way too much for such conditions. I even deflated the tires a bit to achieve the lowest possible pressure without hitting the rim.