Mountain Biking - Riding on thin beams

Hey Guys...

I'm having trouble riding on small beams (about 15-16 cm across). Do these things come more with skill or more with the bike's balance and structure? I'm going to try it again, but last time I did, I fell off, 3 feet unexpectedly, hit my pedal as I fell, flipped but luckiuly, not even a single cut. Just a lot of bruises. =D

What the heck is a cm...ummm let me google that...ok 5 to 6 in...no...hints

1 - use your body to adjust. Do not steer with the handle bar
2 - use your legs to balance and avoid pedaling. If you must pedal learn how to ratchet, this stop body sway and keeps the bike upright
3 - in extreme circumtances stick a leg out for counter balance...
4 - practice...lots...north shore kids become good at skinnies by riding them a lot. Nothing I can say will help you beyond your initial thinking :)

Me and my riding buddies always ride along the top of gutters to practice. They are normally about 5 inches or like 20cm wide sop theyre pretty good. AND if you fall, it doesnt matter, you're only half a foot off the gorund on one side and no drop at all on the other! Perfect for practising!

Two more points

5 - look far enough ahead to know what is coming up YET keep your front wheel in peripheral vision.
6 - Startsmaller. 3 ft and 6 inches is damn tall/hard. At 3 feet if you are asking these question I wold drop the height to 2 ft and width to 8 inches or 10 inches...see the pattern ;)

a good way to practice is to try riding curbs too. if you can find a nice curb where you can fall off both sides (as opposed to only being able to fall of one side) it'd be a lot better. they're nice and skinny and not to high off the ground, so if you fall off or lose balance, you aren't going to be plummeting to your doom.

i also found that wider bars and fatter tires helped me balance a bit better.

See...hmmm...I don't agree. Skinnies have nothing on either side. I tried this and it didnt do much for real world skills. Just like riding the yellow lines....doesn't seem to work. I need a skinny to practice skinnies.

To really work on balance practice trackstands...that translates well onto skinnies :)

See...hmmm...I don't agree. Skinnies have nothing on either side.
that what i meant though. curbs with nothing on either side. or if there is somethong on one side, the curb is higher than whatever's there.

Thats it. A curb. I was trying to remember the name so i put "top of the gutter" instead.

Well, I can't find any curbs like that. Maybe it's just my problem+ my crappy leg disease (the bone is stretched on one side, I don't know wtf happened it it, but I've lost some balance ever since.).

And the only skinnies that I can find here which aren't hard to get to is the tall one. OH yea, it's like 2 feet. ****, sorry. Not to mention I'm 5'3 on a 20'' bike. Ouch!

Well, I can't find any curbs like that. Maybe it's just my problem+ my crappy leg disease (the bone is stretched on one side, I don't know wtf happened it it, but I've lost some balance ever since.).

And the only skinnies that I can find here which aren't THAT hard to get to are ...well that tall one, which hurts. OH yea, it's like 2 feet. ****, sorry.
just out of curiousity, where do you ride? i used to live in thorncliffe for a good amount of my life and ride the don valley every now and then.

Well, I can't find any curbs like that. Maybe it's just my problem+ my crappy leg disease (the bone is stretched on one side, I don't know wtf happened it it, but I've lost some balance ever since.).

And the only skinnies that I can find here which aren't THAT hard to get to are ...well that tall one, which hurts. OH yea, it's like 2 feet. ****, sorry.

Sorry to sound like a dick here but that isn't anything. You can beat that. I am missing most of my left hand making it very difficult to grip or brake. My buddy is blind in one eye. My cousin has a similar problem to yourself. About an inch difference. Get out and ride, practice and force your body into submission.

NO *****ING! Have you guys seen that guy in one of the movies in the NSX Series. He has no left arm. It is some special thing created for him. It has multipul air shocks that act as joints. And this guy does all the north shore stuff. Props to him, shame on you.

Rasheed, I don't run anymore because Im selling my bike.

When I do get to ride again, maybe we'll meet as long as we gots some contact. I ride around taylor creek park/DVP/ Sunnybrook area. For my skinnies, it's in a local schoolyard.


To Mael: How'd you lose most of your left hand?

I didn't loose it. I was born without the middle and third finger as well as both my pinky and first finger have only one knuckle (making them essentially thumbs)...so I have three thumbs and no fingers...makes it interesting braking at high speeds :)

Isn't it hard to type? :P

Sometimes I get 2 coolers, put a board across the top, and one going up to the first, and sometimes one going down from the second, so it's like 4 feet of riding on a 10' wide board. Not too hard, and about a foot off the ground.

Isn't it hard to type? :P

Sometimes I get 2 coolers, put a board across the top, and one going up to the first, and sometimes one going down from the second, so it's like 4 feet of riding on a 10' wide board. Not too hard, and about a foot off the ground.

A ten foot wide board?

Isn't it hard to type? :P


nope. I type close to 100 words/min. The only time I have ever had a problem with my hand was during dh....

Jeez, a comp speed maniac AND a coolio biker. Some people are just born with gifts. :P

A ten foot wide board?

heh, i mean inches of course :p

Correction it's a very intinimdating sand+rocks on oneside and cement+rocks on t he other side, 1 foot, 10-11 cm board. Thats about 3-4 inches. Yes, Im serious. And yes, I suck.