I recently had the chance to spend three days at a BetterRide mountain bike skills camp. It’s been a long time since I’ve been in school and the amount of information was overwhelming – in a good way!  I learned a ton of ways to improve my mountain bike riding and handling skills.  With new skills to master, now I approach mountain biking with the same excitement as when I was starting out over 14 years ago.  This post won’t cover nearly as much as I learned while at camp so if you want to know more, head over to BetterRide’s website and find a camp near you.

BetterRide Coach Andy Winohradsky leads a women’s MTB skills camp

In my pre-camp post I mentioned how Gene Hamilton stresses the importance of using visualization for mountain bike racing and riding, and during Gene’s BetterRide mountain bike skills camp at Georgia International Horse Park I realized this actually means two different things. There is the positive-imagery type of visualization that can be used on and off the trail which I find most effective at boosting my riding confidence.  If I use visualization to psyche myself up for a race, or even when thinking about a technical section of trail that I always freeze up on, my actions become almost instinctual to mimic those visions when faced with the real situation.

But positive visualization can only get you so far. Most of time we are physically and mentally capable of riding a mountain bike trail, and to ride it better and more efficiently requires a whole different kind of vision. At BetterRide mountain bike skills camp, Coach Andy taught us about having vision on the trail.  The kind of vision to see the best line that will allow you to keep your momentum and get you where you want to go.  The best line isn’t always the most worn-in, main path on the trail and it certainly can have its share of obstacles.  It sounds easy in theory; of course, we want to take the path of least resistance, but when you’re riding 15 mph down a trail you may not have time to even realize you need to make a decision.  That’s why at camp we slowed things down and practiced training our vision in the parking lot first.

On the first day we did some vision drills to practice scanning and trusting our peripheral vision.  The most important outcome from those drills was remembering to always keep our heads up and focused two steps ahead of where we wanted to go.  Looking down, especially when coming up on an obstacle, can lead to falls and at a minimum it kills your momentum. When you combine vision with proper body position (photo left), also taught during the camp, you have the basics for riding efficiently and being in control.

Over the next two days of camp, Coach Andy showed us more drills for cornering, braking and wheelies, switchbacks and balance.  Putting it all together on the trails was tough, especially because I’ve been riding for more than a decade and have become comfortable in the way I ride.  In particular, downhill cornering is one area I know can use a lot of practice and it turns out this is probably the most common place mountain bikers throw away momentum when not executed correctly.

The first few times I executed a good bike lean in a corner on the trails it felt weird – the acceleration through the corner felt fast, almost too fast, and it definitely surprised me!  I realized I have a habit of slowing down before going into a turn which is clearly the wrong approach. It always felt natural for me to squeeze the brakes at the last second in the crook of a corner but it turns out that’s way too late to maintain good control of the bike. The photo below shows one of the cornering drills we did during the camp.

One of my initial goals for the camp was to learn how to control my heart rate during a ride.  I had gotten to a point in my riding where I thought just pedaling faster and harder would make me better, but it has actually just been making me more tired. Now, having been to camp, I’m convinced I can control my heart rate better by fine tuning my skills to ride more efficiently.  Throughout our time at camp, Coach Andy would say, “sometimes you gotta go slow to go fast.”  I know I have some slow rides–on and off the trail–ahead of me, slow enough to train my vision while doing things right.  I left camp with enough drills to practice in the convenience of my own neighborhood, so I can practice skills like cornering and wheelies on days I can’t make it to the trails.

BetterRide camp was a great experience and I learned a lot, but actually becoming a “better rider” takes a lot of disciple.  Andy was an awesome coach, teaching me what to do and what not to do on my bike, so now if I do my homework I should be able to accomplish my goals.  In fact I’ve even come up with my own measurable goal to check my progress: by the end of the summer, I hope I can shave a few minutes off the time it took me to ride the Blankets Creek trail in the Dirty Duathlon just a few weeks ago.  I’ll report back in a couple months with the results, or watch the MTB event calendar and come ride my time trial with me!

Photo courtesy of Sorella Cycling

Spring arrived early in Atlanta this year with high temps in the 60s or better most days since late February. It’s been great for a fair weather rider like me and I’ve been able to hit the trails at least a half dozen times so far this year.  I went all out on nearly every ride, leaving the trails feeling satisfied yet exhausted, legs burning, and Camelbak sucked dry.  And every time I wished I could have ridden my bike just a little longer and just a little faster.  I made excuses like, “I need to trim some weight off my bike,” and “running during the winter just isn’t good enough cross-training for mountain biking.”  Then one of my riding buddies from Sorella Women’s Cycling Club mentioned Gene Hamilton, mountain bike coach to many top pro racers, is having a BetterRide mountain bike skills camp right here in Atlanta.  Perfect – being totally immersed in mountain biking for three days is just the kick in the pants I need to get serious about mountain biking again!

I signed up for the BetterRide women’s mountain bike camp right away and I immediately received some articles with good information to help me prepare for the camp.  In one article, Gene explained the importance of imagery or visualization for mountain bike riding (and racing) success.  I had practiced positive imagery while training for marathons for years but I never thought to apply it to mountain biking just for fun.  Gene says “consistent imagery will make a bigger difference in your riding than actually doing the drills if you spend 20 minutes twice a week working on it.”  This is something I’m definitely going to do more of, particularly with respect to the MTB skills I want to get extra help with at camp.

The BetterRide camps cover a ton of  mountain bike skills like:

• Learning correct body position
• Setting up your bike
• How to look ahead correctly
• Climbing & descending techniques
• How to conquer small and advanced obstacles
• Cornering & riding switchbacks
• Braking effectively
• Mental skills

Personally, I have three main goals for completing the camp.  First, I want to gain confidence on downhills.  If you’ve ever ridden with me, you know I don’t mind the challenge of a climb but it’s really all about the downhill reward on the other side. But sometimes I feel like I’m not going as fast as I should be (and therefore not having as much fun as I could be!).  Maybe I burn too much energy on the climbs and underestimate how much energy the downhill will take so I slow myself down.  Or maybe it’s just my human instinct to brake when rolling over jagged rocks and between trees that seem mere inches away from my elbows.  My point is, momentum is a terrible thing to waste so I want to get faster going downhill!

My second goal is to learn how to control my heart rate during a ride.  Most of the time I don’t like to stop during the ride so I keep breaks short unless there’s great scenery along the way.  Like a 3-foot high log across the trail, an erratic heart rate can just as easily ruin my flow.  I don’t really care about the actual heart rate number, but I want to know how to handle those heart rate spikes that result from short, steep climbs or powering through hard, technical sections.  I want to be able to stop and take a break when I want to, not after every tough part of a trail.

Lastly, I’d love to learn a new trick at the BetterRide camp – to be honest my bike handling skills are terrible!  After 14+ years of mountain biking and building a teeter-totter to ride in my backyard, I still get nervous going over some 8” wide bridges on the trails (I can’t believe I just admitted that on the internet). Hopefully after the camp, I’ll be able to ride skinnies, do a wheelie, or land bigger jumps!

I’m super excited about the upcoming BetterRide mountain biking camp and taking my riding to the next level.  There may still be a few spots left in the Atlanta women’s camp on April 15-17, 2011 if you want to join me.  And for the guys, there are BetterRide camps for you too! Don’t pass up the chance to learn from Gene’s expert coaching at one of the many Colorado camps or other locations around the US.  For camp dates and locations, visit www.betterride.net.

Photo courtesy of BetterRide.net

About BetterRide
BetterRide provides structured skills coaching, designed to get you riding at your best. Coaching sessions range from two hour clinics to three day camps across the US and abroad. BetterRide was founded by pro racer and USA Cycling Expert Coach Gene Hamilton who has over 20 years of coaching experience including 12 years coaching mountain biking skills. BetterRide’s coaching highlights include coaching many top pro racers (Chris Van Dine, Brian Buell, Mitch Ropelato, Joey Schusler, Graeme Pitts,…) and over 1,900 riders who just want to get better. Gene and his certified coaches are passionate about coaching, riding and helping others reach their goals. All mountain bike clinics, camps and private lessons are guaranteed to improve your riding or your money back.

Bull Mountain photo by K2K.

It’s day seven of my 29 Trails in 29 Days challenge and things aren’t going so well. I’ve only ridden 2 trails so far and while the roads are better here in Atlanta today, the trails are still shellacked with a thick coating of ice on top of snow. The good news is temperatures are up and things are starting to melt so hopefully I can notch trails #3 and 4 before the weekend is over.

During the Snake Creek Gap Time Trial last weekend I witnessed some pretty fancy riding – and not on the infamous rock gardens. Large stream crossings can be particularly daunting, especially in winter when cold feet and socks can be hazardous to your health and comfort; fortunately I came across a few of techniques we can all use to avoid the deep freeze.

#1: Remove your shoes and socks and walk across.

This technique is the most time consuming but it’s also almost guaranteed to keep your feet dry if done correctly. Admittedly I’ve only done this a few times, usually when there’s a deep stream crossing early in a ride and I want to avoid hours of soggy shoe riding. I saw more than one person doing this at the Snake Creek Gap TT, though last weekend I don’t think it was necessary (I managed to keep my feet dry using another method). This is a great technique for exceptionally deep water or wide river crossings where you anticipate needing to put a foot down.

#2: Do the pedal shuffle

The “pedal shuffle” works like this: starting with the pedals in the horizontal position, pedal forward until your lead pedal almost touches the water. Then, backpedal until your rear pedal just touches the water. Repeat until you get to dry land.

I ended up using this method on Saturday after running out of momentum about 2/3 of the way across the stream crossing. This method works only when the water is less than two inches below your bottom bracket. It can be slow and becomes more difficult on rocky/uneven crossings.

#3: Legs up!

For smooth bottom stream crossings, this one works great. Build up plenty of momentum and just as you reach the water, take your feet off the pedals and lift them as high in the air as you can. Done correctly and with perfect form, you can theoretically cross streams at handlebar depth – just make sure you have enough steam to make it all the way across!

At least one of the guys in my group at Snake Creek Gap TT did this flawlessly and looked like a champ doing it. Just don’t hit any bumps – all your weight is on the saddle which can lead to some serious discomfort (not to mention you may have a hard time balancing with feet in the air!).

#4: Gun it across.

I’m a big fan of this method for shallow crossings and even puddles (keeps the mud off your bike). Given the right conditions and enough speed, riding fast will cause the water to spray sideways, leaving you and your bike completely dry. Go too slow, however, and the water will splash upward, leaving your feet and legs drenched.

The big stream crossing on the 34-mile Snake Creek Gap course is a bit too wide for method #4 but that didn’t stop many riders from trying. In fact, just as one rider was attempting technique #1 (walking) another rider came screaming across, spraying rider #1 with a wall of water (though I’m pretty sure both guys got wet). In a thick German accent, rider #2 apologized profusely saying “So sorry. I didn’t mean. I didn’t mean!” Then he rode off on the other side, leaving rider #1 fuming.

As you can see, there are a number of ways to keep your feet dry when crossing streams on your mountain bike depending on the conditions. Of course there are also a few Gore-Tex mountain bike boots out there but for anything deeper than boot height, you’ll need to use one of these techniques to stay dry. Happy trails!

We hear about womens mountain bike skills clinics all the time but the Dirt Series program (put on by Rocky Mountain Bikes) sounds a little different. While most clinics focus on getting women comfortable riding off road, the Dirt Series wheelie drops, log jumps, and techniques for climbing super steep pitches.

The Dirt Series is held in different spots around the US and Canada from Whistler to Santa Cruz to Park City, UT. Since the program stared in 2001 more than 5,000 riders have completed the clinic and most of them are probably kicking mens’ butts as we speak.

Boston.com published a good run down on womens MTB skills camps and clinics and points out that many programs teach trailside repair, nutrition tips, and fitness instruction in addition to skills and technique. Some programs also offer decidedly feminine touches like post-ride massages and catered luncheons but I guess that’s ok

Ladies, start doing your research now for a summer skills clinic tailored to your MTB skill level and interests – there seem to be plenty of choices out there!

Photo by John Ussenko

Anyone else out there ready for winter to be over?  I’m looking outside this morning at the five inches of snow we got yesterday and can’t help but think I’d rather be somewhere warm and tropical.  Then out of nowhere, I receive an email from Marla Streb who is in Costa Rica getting ready to put on her mountain bike skills camps there this summer.

The camps sound like much more than just practicing drills and getting a guided tour.  Here’s what Marla herself has to say about it:

The 3 day, 4 night camp is all-inclusive, so you get personalized skills clinics, lodging, meals, zip-lines, surfing, yoga, wild animal parks, jungle epics to waterfalls… and you’ll be riding a sweet Orbea Occam freeride rig. There are women’s only camps on the schedule as well.  Just bring your helmet, sunblock, and sense of adventure!

Not only do you get to ride in a tropical paradise, you’ll be mastering mountain bike skills like doing manuals over obstacles, braking techniques, and climbing effectively all while being led by a world cup champion!  I think meeting and riding with Marla in a more personal setting would be a real treat, I have always been inspired by her passion for mountain biking after reading her biography.  I am sure that passion will be evident in how she runs the skills camp.

I can’t think of a better way to spend my summer vacation.  Check out Marla Streb’s website for camp dates and reserve your spot soon!  Until then, keep thinking warm and tropical thoughts.

Freeriding in Florida. Photo posted by ositoking.

I just spotted this announcement for a MTB skills clinic and race series in the British Virgin Islands that’s sounding pretty good to me right about now. Why wait for better MTB weather here in the US when you can just hop down to the Virgin Islands for an early start to the season?

The skills session and first race seem to be geared toward beginning riders and kids aged 8-12 so it should be a great family vacation opportunity. I think I’ll start saving up now to make the trip next winter