Go forth and ride, then bring back pics

[joetron]

Attachment 185028

A few weeks ago

Thaaaats the stuff.

[mtngirl79]

im thinking bham is a good place to learn to ride a mtb.



One crash. 2 beers and 3 streams and an really awesome friend.

[babybear]

im thinking bham is a good place to learn to ride a mtb.



One crash. 2 beers and 3 streams and an really awesome friend.

One of my favorite things about mtn biking too- ride with a friend or two and end with a beautiful view and a beer. Doesn't get much better [emoji4]

[mtngirl79]

I had a swim, too!

[babybear]

Ooh that's nice too- Multi sport day!

[adrenalated]

One crash. 2 beers and 3 streams and an really awesome friend.

This is what's known as winning.

[grskier]

Rode right after sunrise... ran into some buddies shooting, can't wait to see what they got, the iphone doesn't do it justice!

[evdog]

This is what's known as winning.

And I guess this is losing.... fast forward to about 4:40

[joetron]

I'm not sure what I appreciate more, the 2nd and 3rd tries or the race plate.

[jetski]

Nothing too special...Just a bike leaned up against things. I ride alone lots.

[bagtagley]

GWNF ride a couple weeks ago. Out and back from Braley Pond on Bald Ridge Trail.

Nice camp site on Bald Ridge, ignoring the grill remnants.


We've got views over here

[TahoeBC]

[klar]

I had a swim, too!

Jealous. Too cold here currently for the bike/swim combination.

I went for a first longer ride with my new friend Merida3000OneForty. Questions and insights that occurred to me:

-I can run uphill in a way that is sustainable for a long time. I need to figure out how to pedal like that.
-Pushing the bike up shit is actually not that bad.
-Carrying the bike down shit is really awkward and sucks.
-Walk-shuffling downhill with ass on seat of bike and feet on ground is a dumb idea.
-I feel like I want my handle bars to be higher up when going uphill. Will I get used to this or should I find a way to actually get them higher up?
-What part of my foot is supposed to be on the pedal?
-If I ride through wet cow poo I will get wet cow poo all over myself.

Almost at the top of the main hill.


The hill happens to be on the AT-IT border and there is an old military road running along the ridge behind the hill for like 10km. This is very handy.


There are wildflowers and marmots and a bunch of creepy old bunkers that are probably haunted my Mussolini's ghost.


Mostly the road is pretty wide, like here




Some parts are less wide. Starting to see how this biking thing is fun.


Where we came from


Where we're going


More wildflowers and haunted bunkers.


Then I carried/dragged the bike down a bit to loop back in the valley.

Met these guys, they were like "damn u got a sick bike".

[jono]

Great pics as usual! Re: the part of your foot on the pedal, it's the ball of your foot over the pedal axle, basically. Roadies and track riders often fine tune that for better pedaling, but you mainly want to be balanced and in control when you have the cranks flat and your ass off the seat (seat down) for descending. So you aren't tempted to do that shuffle thing. Keep after it!

[gravitylover]

Jealous. Too cold here currently for the bike/swim combination.

I went for a first longer ride with my new friend Merida3000OneForty. Questions and insights that occurred to me:

-I can run uphill in a way that is sustainable for a long time. I need to figure out how to pedal like that.
-Pushing the bike up shit is actually not that bad.
-Carrying the bike down shit is really awkward and sucks.
-Walk-shuffling downhill with ass on seat of bike and feet on ground is a dumb idea.
-I feel like I want my handle bars to be higher up when going uphill. Will I get used to this or should I find a way to actually get them higher up?
-What part of my foot is supposed to be on the pedal?
-If I ride through wet cow poo I will get wet cow poo all over myself.

It may sound simple but finding a low gear that allows you to spin at a reasonable cadence is the trick. You'll figure it out.

Carrying down does suck but as with skiing you will eventually figure out how to descend things that scare the shit out of you now.

Yup dumb, don't do that.

A higher rise and slightly narrower handlebar should do the trick. Sometimes a shorter or higher rise stem will also help but you may want to go to a shop with a fitter that knows their stuff or you could make it more uncomfortable or negatively affect the handling.

Run flat pedals for a while and your feet will naturally fall in the best spot for you, it's not the same for everybody. That ball of the foot thing isn't where most people should be actually, a large enough platform that can support your foot from the ball almost to the heel should allow a stronger stroke.

When you see piles of remember to close your mouth

[TahoeJ]

A very common beginner mistake is to go uphill in too low of a gear and go at it too hard... your legs won't last, and then you're not as sharp on the downhill because you're exhausted. Important to pace yourself and there's nothing wrong with going into your granny gear and doing the sit-and-spin thing. It's funny, on some of my go-to loops that I've done hundreds of times I rarely match the segment times I posted on climbs the first few times I did them, when I was doing exactly that.

^^ And agree with above that the best spot on flat pedals is whatever feels most comfortable and natural. Your body tends to discover what's most efficient for you.

[jono]

A very common beginner mistake is to go uphill in too high of a gear and go at it too hard...

FIFY.

To clarify my post above, yes, you will want to find the right place for your own feet, but descending seems to matter more than climbing on a mountain bike. (My foot position on my road bike is quite different because it's entirely pedaling-oriented.)

[TahoeJ]

^^ Yeah, I always mess up high vs. low in these discussions. That's what I meant.

[klar]

Thanks The bike is a good motivator to go and do something other than my usual running loop.

there's nothing wrong with going into your granny gear and doing the sit-and-spin thing.

Right. It had not previously occurred to me that I might do anything other than sit down and use the lowest gear available. If I go as slow as I would like I just get too wobbly on the steeper sections. The bike still feels kinda alien, guessing this will get better once I don't have to concentrate so much on just going in a straight line up some gravel road

Sometimes a shorter or higher rise stem will also help but you may want to go to a shop with a fitter that knows their stuff or you could make it more uncomfortable or negatively affect the handling.

I think this will probably have to happen. After another ride today my lower back and should/neck area are really sore now, had to get off the bike from time to time on the climb to straighten out. This is going to be a problem if it doesn't go away.

[El Kanone]

You need to fiddle with your riding position. It is really easy to swap your stem for longer/shorter or more up/down. Stems are cheap and tons of used ones. Also you are probably really tense if it is new to you so focus on relaxing. Looks like great riding.

[TahoeJ]

[grskier]

Great am

[Dantheman]

Yeah klar!

[biggins]

Looking NW from the top of 'New York City' at Ascutney Trails, VT.

[mtngirl79]

So, yesterday (I forgot my camera) I learned you have to get your butt off the seat and even back behind it on downhills. Its scary at first, but way more stable.

Also got told to never ever do the foot off the pedal thing. Stop and put a foot down or go with feet on pedals.

Its kinda like skiing, too. If you dont want to hit it, don't look at it.

Its kind of amazing what the bike will go over without much issue if you just go over it without worrying about it.. and I only have a hard tail.

Your pictures are amazing, Klar!