Mountain Bike Terrain Technique

Mountain Bike Technique - Carving Corners
Mountain Bike Technique - Carving Corners
Carving Corners

Having looked at the fundamentals of cornering in an earlier issue it is time to add some meat to the bones and offer up some additional advice that will take you from 'getting by' to cooking on gas. There are 5 key ingredients in our recipe for success. Those ingredients don't change from corner to corner although the ratio in...

Terrain
Mountain Bike Technique - Climbing
Mountain Bike Technique - Climbing
Climbing

Uppers Will Improve your Downers Having been around the scene for over three decades I'm well aware that climbing is not everyone's cuppa tea, but when push comes to shove, we have to face the reality that in order to go down first we must go up. All too often the topic is taboo for the recreational rider, and it...

Terrain
Mountain Bike Technique - Conquering Camber
Mountain Bike Technique - Conquering Camber
Conquering Camber

We often think of trail as up or down, ascent or descent. The reality is we live in a far more three-dimensional world where often the fall line of the terrain is crossed rather than followed. The cross fall of the trail can challenge a rider and present a problem that pushes them to places either they don't want to...

Terrain
Mountain Bike Technique - Crags and Slabs
Mountain Bike Technique - Crags and Slabs
Crags and Slabs

Bedrock, boulders, and slick slabs of stone are some of the key elements that make up the quintessential mountain bike experience. For those of you who are lucky enough to live in such areas, these staple trail elements are less demanding. But as many riders live miles away from the mountains, some of you may find yourself getting in above...

Terrain
Mountain Bike Technique - Rock Stars
Mountain Bike Technique - Rock Stars
Rock Stars

Rocks come in all shapes and sizes from solitary lumps and outcrops to collectives forming gardens of granite. Although for some of us 'home' might mean 'loam,' no matter where you live your journeys on two wheels will eventually ensure that you encounter trails that are made of sterner stuff. Whether the trail ahead is impregnated with igneous, scattered with...

Terrain
Mountain Bike Technique - Strava Be In The Pub
Mountain Bike Technique - Strava Be In The Pub
Strava Be In The Pub

When the cycling press describes something as the 'technical innovation of the year,' you might expect them to be referring to electronic shifting, belt drive, 11 speed, clutch derailleur or perhaps another life-changing adaptation to wheel size. In this case however, the focus of such high praise was something as simple as an App. Strava itself is not vastly different...

Terrain
Mountain Bike Technique - Switchbacks
Mountain Bike Technique - Switchbacks
Switchbacks

Switchbacks are a trail feature that has been long forgotten in the new world order of trail centres and cultured MTB parks. Old school riders and those who enjoy getting out into the back country will know them all too well, but the new breed of riders born and bred at the trail centre will find them to be a...

Terrain
Mountain Bike Technique - The Golden Thread
Mountain Bike Technique - The Golden Thread
The Golden Thread

Much has been written about ‘line choice’ as an important aspect of taming the trail that lies ahead. This issue we put our usual spin on the subject with the ultimate goal of making you a better, faster rider. Line choice is indeed an important skill to develop, but from experience we know that when you are out on the...

Terrain

Featured

Mountain Bike Technique - Nothing New Never Normal
Mountain Bike Technique - Nothing New Never Normal
Nothing New Never Normal

So we are back! And boy have we missed sharing our secrets of the trade with you. For obvious reasons we took a wee break but now as the globe gets a grip with the ‘whack a mole’ pain in the butt that is COVID we have rounded up the troops and got the show back on the road. So...

Mountain Bike Technique - Frequent Flaws & Quick Fixes
Mountain Bike Technique - Frequent Flaws & Quick Fixes
Frequent Flaws & Quick Fixes

When it comes to improvement, every rider has their individual needs; there are some issues that that are common to many riders, whether they are new to the sport or long time veterans. The good news is that these issues are as easy to fix, as they are common. Even those of us who feel confident in all but the...

Mountain Bike Technique - Looks Like a Session
Mountain Bike Technique - Looks Like a Session
Looks Like a Session

Practice makes permanent Skills on demand and the ability to make the bike dance down the trail are not so much about perfecting things, it's more a matter of embedding subconscious memory (connections in the brain) and muscle memory within ourselves, making a permanent connection so that we can make the correct shapes at the correct times. With the core...

Mountain Bike Technique - Lost in Translation
Mountain Bike Technique - Lost in Translation
Lost in Translation

Whether you are taking advice from a better rider, a friend, an instructor or coach (qualified or not), an article or a book there is a danger that the written or spoken word can be misinterpreted, misapplied or was simply bad advice from the start. In an attempt to keep things simple, sound advice can often be reduced to soundbites....

Mountain Bike Technique - Short Sharp And Steep
Mountain Bike Technique - Short Sharp And Steep
Short Sharp And Steep

What goes up must ultimately come down. Long flowing descents are for many the highlight of their ride. Mother nature and trail designers alike do not always have the faint hearted in mind and when sections become suddenly very much steeper it is easy for fun to give way to fear, to have your flow broken as your mojo fades...

Mountain Bike Technique - Winter Skills - Part 1
Mountain Bike Technique - Winter Skills - Part 1
Winter Skills - Part 1

Fancy a line? The works Christmas do is on the horizon (or a distant fuzzy memory for some) and the New Year beckons. The winter solstice sees us heading back to the light in this part of the world but winters firm grip means we will have to endure mud, slop, snow, ice and varying combinations of all the above....