mtalinm

ever since crashing a couple months back, I find myself slowing way down for corners and riding my (back) brakes down big hills.

it sucks because of course part of the fun of cycling is going fast. but I've developed this somewhat irrational fear of falling.

any tips on getting over the anxiety?

Creatre

There is an old quote, "Courage is not the lack of fear but the ability to face it." It is all mental. Remind yourself the fun and benefits of cycling instead of dwelling on the fear. You are capable of anything if you just focus yourself on it.

frpax

Sometimes it takes a while to get the old confidence back. Start braking less and less and deeper into turns 'til you get it back.

Velo Vol 

Lower your center of gravity.

Forza

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gregf83 

Time.

eippo1

Brake before you get to the turns. A thing to help you with confidence is to do some turning drills and thing like putting bottles on the ground and picking them up while riding by. I think Friel's book has some decent drills.

Blackdays

Being afraid of falling is only going to increase your chance of crashing.

7bmwm3gtr

Because a fear is just a classical conditioning, eventually the stimuli will reach the point of extinction.

brianappleby

wtf does picking up bottles have to do with cornering?

brianappleby

Lower like on the ground? I think that's what got the OP in trouble in the first place.

rydaddy

Yup. It's all in the head.

Rowan

WHAT????

I came off a bike while on the way to work on a slippery corner (diesel and rain). I dislocated my right shoulder. I was well into randonneuring back then and did a 300 only 10 days later. I was cautious about downhills from then. Then three months or so later I did a 1000k and some of the steep downhills were wet. Boy, was I ultra slow down them.

Five or six years later, I am still a bit leery about fast downhills.

I suppose it all depends on how much pain you suffered. FWIW, the fear is not irrational.

vantassell

Sounds like a recipe for disaster.

v70cat

Maybe a new set of performance tires will help.

Just give it some time and you will get your confidence back.

I still have fear of falling when climbing and being clipped in and I have not fallen in a long time.

Dave Kirk 

I have a slightly different take on this - I think the best way to reduce fear is to increase confidence and I don't think confidence is the same as guts or bravado. Instead I think the best way to increase confidence is to increase skill.

Many riders discount the skill needed to ride a bike well. We've all seen the guy who looks so centered and balanced on the bike. Thus guy has little trouble with going fast or with avoiding a pile up in the group and this isn't luck but instead it's a combination of skills that he has learned - bike handling, timing, reading of the way the group moves down the road, reading the way traffic moves..........etc. And we've also seen the opposite - the guy who is always in the area when **** happens. The guy who gets caught in the pile up, the one who gets the flat on the shoulder or the one who runs wide on the downhill corner and has to lockup the brakes to avoid going off. This is not bad luck most of the time but its lack of skill.

If you were to find a safe area and practice various skills on a routine basis your overall skill level will go up and your worry level will go down. Since you are having fears of going too fast on descents I would practice counter-steering techniques. If you counter-steer properly you will be in a better and more balanced position when going fast around corners and it will not require that you take more risks. IMO you can go faster by improving skills without being more brave.

I think many folks treat bikes as exercise machines that happen to move. The best riders are not only fit but they have the skill to pilot the bike in all kinds of conditions and these skills need to be developed and built over time.

I hope that helps.

Dave

big john

Time in the saddle will help restore your confidence but you have to decide on your limits. How far do you want to push it? If you're not in a race what is the benefit of hanging your ass out there? We all have to find our own comfort zone and balance the risks and benefits. If you crash your brains out while doing something that is supposed to be fun that seems a little counterproductive.
Discretion is the better part of valor, or something like that.

Kabloink

I think you gained the knowledge that at certain times being conservative in your speeds is a smarter approach than blindly going full tilt. Something that many newer riders have yet to grasp as they try to imitate professional racers.

jgjulio

Baby steps + time

surgeonstone

And more time. Think of it this way- if you had no fear you would be an idiot. You have had a bad experience and your mind is taking appropriate precautions, your skill and experience has increased and with that your confidence will follow.

Doohickie

Maybe you were taking undue risks when you fell and this is your subconscious telling you to back off.

10 Wheels

I ride slow on corners.
I ride slow on straight roads.

Drakonchik

Take martial arts like judo or aikido.

Or take take up skateboarding on half pipes or ramps.

palesaint

Time is the correct answer. Also for me though is that I have to have complete faith in my bike to really fly down hills. This means eliminating any and all weird sounds or feels (creaks, loose headset, out of true wheel etc) and having the best tires and brakes on that I can afford. It goes a long way to be able to trust your bike not to cause problems.

Being nervous tends to make the upper body be too rigid. Try to loosen up and you might get a less of an uncomfortable feeling.

Velo Vol 

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