FEEDBACK For @Brendan Knight - Turning + Obstacle This is a difficult topic to get your head around it is quite counter intuitive and takes a bit of feel and can be very different for each rider based on where they are at in their riding. For you Brendan work on the following; Understanding the issue The problems you face with turning and contacting an obstacle are - The front needs to be able to ride up - The line of force from the back wheel is not pushing directly through the contact patch. They are offset. In normal smooth ground turns, this shift occurs gradually. But with an obstacle, the shift is dramatic. The contact patch starts on the ground (close to the steering pivot) then as you touch the log, it shifts to the face of the log. So there is a very fast and significant change in the offset of the contact patch. This casues the bike to want to push down the line of the log in this situation, in the video. HOW TO RIDE IT Weight back - Keeping the front light will make a huge difference in allowing the front to rise up over the obstacle. It will also stabilise you Get low - The higher you are the worse it will generally feel. No need for extremely low, just a bit to stabilise things further. If you are top heavy it will be harder. You need some level of traction - If its slippery hop/float the front every time! You then have two options 1. Straighten the bike before the log. A very short quick straightening of the bike will help reduce the offset, as the load is applied. Then tighten up again as soon as your wheel rises. Downside is you will lose some space. 2. Straighten the bike after you contact the log. This is the better option in my opinion and may not be actual movement (straightening the bike) It may just be loading the bars. This even if you move the bars keeps your contact patch in the same spot and you lose less space in the section. Both options essentially put the push of the bike through your arms directly to the contact patch rather than through the head stem. Be gentle on the power, less is more in this. I hope that is understandable @Brendan Knight Let me know if you have any other questions. Your little sneaky hops are fantastic!! Very fluid and smooth!

Posted by Neil Price at 2023-12-20 06:43:04 UTC