jyl

I think the key to descending is the line.

Car drivers, well actually car racers, think a lot about this. Motorcyclists too.

You want to late apex. That means brake before the turn, enter the turn at the outside of the road, turn in, clip the inside of the curve well after half way through, and hit the throttle aka pedal through the exit, exit the turn at the far outside edge of the road.

This not only allows you to turn as little as possible, it also has you doing your slowing and turning first, then accelerate into the straight. You want the highest possible speed as you enter the straight after the turn.

So the bike needs to
- Have good brakes. You want to brake as late as possible, so your brakes need to slow you very quickly.
- Have good tires. Obviously.
- Position you over the front of the bike. Usually we are 40/60 front/rear weight distribution. I feel more comfortable with more weight in front, more like 50/50. Presumably you are in the drops, in a tuck, which helps.
- Have secure pedals. You want to have your outside pedal down and be practically standing on it. This gives you a better chance of recovering from little slips, and your leg is suspension in case your bike hits a pavement ripple. If your shoe comes off that pedal, that's really bad.
- Be stiff. The exit from the turn should be a sprint. Sprints want stiff bikes. Be in your highest gear. This is the time for 53x11.
- Bars low. Helps you get your weight as low as possible. Again, be in the drops, with your torso low, for low center of gravity and also aero.
- I've sometimes wondered if a dropper post wouldn't be a good thing for descending.