mountain biking
Tips for Beginning Mountain Bikers
Regardless of whether you’re trying to lose weight, get your adrenaline going or simply find a new hobby, mountain biking ticks all of the right boxes. It’s thrilling, addictive and surprisingly strenuous.
Unfortunately however, it’s also known for being incredibly challenging. And the steep learning curve is something that leaves many beginners with both scraped knees and a sense of frustration.
Should you find yourself venturing onto a mountain bike for the first time, here are eight straightforward tips for getting off to a good start.
Wear a Helmet (Seriously)
Wear a bike helmet!
If you’re new to mountain biking, it’s important to get one thing straight; you’re going to fall, a lot. Mountain biking isn’t like regular cycling where most falls can be avoided by riding safely. Falls are a part of the sport.
If you don’t want to kill yourself in the process, a helmet isn’t just recommended, it’s straight up common sense.
Look Ahead, not at Obstacles
When you first start riding, it’s only natural to be a little obsessed with avoiding obstacles. After all, riding into a tree or rock can be pretty painful. Unfortunately however, looking at such obstacles can easily turn into a self-fulfilling prophecy.
This is because the more you look at them, the less you are looking at the track ahead of you and the more likely you are to fall. It takes time but try to keep your eyes firmly on the track ahead at all times.
Learn When to Stand
Over time, choosing between standing and sitting becomes instinctive. For beginners however, it can be a source of endless confusion. As a general rule of thumb, if you’re tackling a bumpy course, standing is usually the best choice. This is because standing allows your knees and elbows to absorb the track rather than your rear.
If the track is relatively smooth, on the other hand, sitting is usually preferable as it burns less energy and allows you to encounter far less wind resistance.
Walk bike when needed.
Don’t be Afraid to Walk
When it comes to mountain biking, there’s nothing more satisfying than tackling, and subsequently handling, a new terrain or obstacle. Unfortunately however, push yourself too hard, too soon and you’re more likely to find a hospital than a sense of accomplishment.
Take your time, learn the ropes slowly. And most importantly, don’t be afraid to walk. When you see something that scares you, get off and walk around it.
Learn to Brake
If there’s one thing that you’re going to want to master pretty early on it’s how to brake properly. Unfortunately, it’s not quite as straightforward as it first seems.
• Whenever possible, try to ease into the brake slowly, the faster you break, the more control you lose.
• Be careful when using the front brake exclusively; do so over the wrong terrain and you run the risk of flipping over.
• Whichever brake you use, try to place your weight over the corresponding tire. Doing so will greatly increases its braking capacity.
Happy mountain bike trails
Don’t Grip Too Tightly
Another common mistake among beginners is to grip their bike far too tightly. This is a mistake because the tighter your grip is, the less flexibility you have and in turn, the more susceptible you are to injury.
Aim to keep your elbows bent, your body loose and your hands unclenched. The looser you are, the more control you’ll have and the better your body will be to absorb the inevitable shocks.
Shift Gears Before You Need To
Try to get into the habit of shifting gears sooner than you need to. Downshift when you see a hill coming up, up shift when you see a slope. Wait until you’ve actually reached them and you’re making things needlessly difficult on yourself.
Aim to take the pressure off your bike before it’s actually applied.
Start Slowly
Finally, probably the most common mistake that beginners make is simply going too fast. You don’t need to master the sport your first day. Mountain biking has a steep enough learning curve as it is without making it steeper by going faster than you’re comfortable with.
Start off slow, learn to handle the bike and learn to predict the track. You can speed up gradually over time. You’re not in a race, yet.
Author Bio:
Today’s guest blogger, Anthony Black, is a marketing executive at Reid Cycles, a leading manufacturer of cheap mountain bikes in Australia. He likes to make use of social media in his free time.
