From Lopes/McCormack:

"Free your front wheel, and the rest will follow. You'd be amazed at what your rear wheel can get over if your front wheel is already clear."

And they are certainly not the first to say it.

We're apparently talking about two different things here.

Lopes is a Hack

What we have here is...failure...to communicate



I see where you're coming from...I'm not talking about getting up and over stuff...more or less slipping off something sideways.


edit: I am not afraid to be called out b/c I'm often wrong and big enough to admit it . Besides, this crap is good for the community to read. To finally know that I am not perfect...I know it's a shock...but it's true.


So yeah, I could copy and paste Lopes book if I had the time. He is my favorite rider with EC coming in a close second. I Tevo'd a 4x race where Lopes and EC were in the final...Lopes won the race, EC won the season...it was the greatest.

Oh, my bad. I thought you were referring to "Tech climbing/descending/coasting."

I'm going to shut up now.

After you said you see people treating their bike like a sherman tank, I cracked up. This is exactly what I did yesterday . So it was my first day at this area, and well.. Picture this with 2 and a half foot tall grass rather than trimmed grass, and then see some "newbie" flying down it at 20 mph, soon to fly off the edge at 20 mph, and continue to go through two foot tall grass/bushes at 20 mph. Then I went back, tried again, and did the same thing. My fast turning skills need some work.

Victory belongs to he that is not me.

Where is that? I'm in the DC/Fredericksburg area a good bit.

Edit: Never mind, saw the thread

Man now I have to on demand "Cool Hand Luke". There's a movie for the young uns to watch if they have never seen it.

Man, I don't feel so busted now, way more people got that Cool Hand Luke name drop than I thought was possible.

Wakefield park in annandale.

One of the hottest scenes ever filmed was the blond washing the car.........

Agreed, She brought way more to the table than the 50 eggs scene.

I feel like my priorities are jacked...I remember the eggs way more than the blonde. (re-evaluating life...wife...kids...love hot legs) Okay, I'm back. Still a guy.

3, 5, 7 and 8 are more down to personal prefernce IMO, but all in all a good set of general things to watch out for.

Oh, and about hitting slippery roots at 90*, I generally find as long as I can get my front wheel up them, genrally by just pulling it over, I get can my rear up as well, even if it does slide along a bit. Not always possibly to hit them square on so it may be useful for people to practice.

if you're at slow speeds, you can get away going over the roots/trees/w.e. by manual-ing the front and twisting it midair to 90 degrees, even if the approach angle is off.

This so true. Gearing is especially important. Quite possibly the best tip I got from an MBUK racer was to be in the right gear for the trail ahead. Change early at the base of a steep hill etc.

Choccy...

One thing that really helped me improve was becoming aware of my center of mass relative to the bike. Somewhere in middle of your torso is your center of mass. If that ever gets ahead of the front axle, you go over the bars. That's why you should get behind your seat on steep descents. By the same token, if you get your mass behind the rear axle, your front wheel comes up. That's why you keep your back flat and your chest down close to the bars on steep climbs.

One of my biggest issues for OTB was learning to get my fingers OFF the brakes on anything technical. Fear makes you grab the brakes. I've learned to fear the brakes on technical terrain.

I like this information, well thought out, you don't even think about doing half that stuff

+1 It's surprising how many beginners actually brake with all four fingers without knowing it. Reaching out to grab the brake lever actually causes them to momentary loose grip of the handlebar. Not a problem seated in flat areas but a big no no when standing in technical trails. Best advice I'd ever given a newbie when I see them do this is suggest they re-learn their braking technique with two fingers (index and middle) with the ring finger and pinky gripping the bar. Even better with just the index finger only... this is where powerful disc brakes really payoff... also reduces hand and arm fatigue.

Cover it with dirt!! I stepped on one of those once... very inconsiderate!

...dont undestimate the power of the humble front wheel loft. if you cannot do a reliabe wheelie or manual to get the front wheel up onto an object, it's perfectly acceptable to simply yank up on the bars and plop it there.

...use the damn seatpost quick release. it's quick. drop the saddle for anticipated descents. lower than that. LOWER. i said drop the goddam saddle so slam it, fool. i dont care if it feels weird. make yourself some room and you'll soon figure out what to do with it.

...if whatever you are riding in/on sounds "crunchy" you are asking for a puncture.

...learn to differentiate between pulling up on the bar and pulling back on the bar. likewise, pushing down on the bar and pushing forward on the bar. it's easy to mix them up when you are clueless. different muscle groups are involved so take note.

..don't lockout suspension for technical climbs. only the smoothest climbs are lockout time.

...just because a tire has tread depth does not mean it's good. it't the sharp edges of new treadblocks that generate grip. compared to the very gradually wearing height of knobs, those sharp edges can be lost very quickly. pavement absolutley murders them.

... don't butt your brake lever right up to your grips. move them inwards so that your index finger lands on the hooked tip of the lever. that's where the leverage is. if you have to use two fingers.... that sucks. find a way to improve your braking power so you don't compromise your grip. if you ever use more than two fingers - congrats you have basically let go of your bike.

...the front and rear wheels have vastly different jobs to do. the tires to not have to match. the rims can be different types. the pressures can be way different.

...no bike really shifts that well. experienced riders can shift well. a derailler just pushes the chain left and right. to get consistant and smooth shifts you will need practice. don't expect an upgraded shifter or derailler to act like a proper gearbox.

...you may kiss my ring.

...try to pay attention to what your tire contact patch it actually doing. no, don't look at it, numbnuts.

...effective climbing is not all about fitness. it's mostly about form and experience.

...learn how to squeeze on power so you dont have to think in terms of pedal strokes. this is what they call "spin".

...riding with no hands is not a party trick. it's the gateway to trackstanding (which you do use your hands for).

...track standing is the abolute bomb. you should be practicing it constantly. totally clutch skill for cycling in general.

... for choppy descents, shift the chain to your big ring. it leaves less slack in the chain and reduces likelyhood of dropping or sucking which you in particular could stand less of.

Ditto...that and the parking meters. There was a blond washing a car, up in there?

Re: braking...

Learn to use the middle fingers to brake. You have much more control with the thumb and index finger gripping the bar. Feels a little weird at first, and you have to be okay with giving everyone else on the trail the inverted bird.... but this method is best when you need to have control in technical sections and still cover the brakes.

go see a doctor!
it may not ruin YOUR good time, but you bet it ruins hers!