“Nobody is born learned”: everyone had to question themselves to improve and put certain skills into practice or, simply, to get off a single track well. Here is a list of information to treasure.
1. THE FITNESS
In 1st place physical fitness: it's that aspect that allows you to have an active approach to the sport you practice, essentially putting certain techniques into practice well thanks to your explosiveness and flexibility.
Working on your body, both in terms of cardio and power, plays a very important role since it allows you to stay composed during the descent and/or make the ride more pleasant, as well as not letting the bike carry you around after 3 curves because you are out of breath.
"No need to train, I'm going downhill“. Many bikers still put training into second (or third) plan. Ok, it's about getting to the end of the lap and letting go, I'm not asking you to eat raw eggs in the morning or salad in the afternoon, but a minimum of athletic preparation is needed at the base: training won't be cool, in spite of other athletes gravity, but you can always train secretly (like they do 🙂 )
You can have the best technique in the world but, if you are not trained, you will not be able to do certain movements in the correct times and you will look like a whale, rather than a spring, on single track
Last aspect the falls: being on the piece on a physical level will decrease the probability of injury, both because you will fall less and because it will be like having a second bib (your body) under the real one.
2. DON'T PURSE TECHNOLOGIES
I'm not saying that you still have to use Josè Antonio Hermida's 26″ to do Enduro, but you don't have to chase after all those futile technologies that come out every month. Evaluate carefully, and critically, what really can raise your level riding and what less. We have now reached a technical level where even non-top-of-the-range technical solutions achieve the same results.
Tech trends can be enticing, promising to improve your driving style for your money. But the reality is quite different: the real difference in driving can only be made by you! You don't need to spend thousands of euros on components: the money saved invests in driving courses or in letting you be followed by on-the-spot mtb masters.
You make a better impression riding divinely with a non-fashionable bike than having a 12k bike and crashing at the first corner (perhaps breaking the electronic gearbox and doing €700 of damage in 100 meters)
3. EAT ON THE RIDE
If you don't have an e-bike that can save your butt in the most critical moments, you have to eat with a traditional mtb, unless you are equipped with a large engine or know your body perfectly. Crises almost always arise from lack of nutrition or hydration: if you are in good physical shape and you don't go over the top (or over the threshold for the more technical), our human body can go on for hours if we keep it well fuelled.
4. RIDE AT YOUR OWN PACE
How many times have I seen the worst crashes because we try to go beyond our 100%, making technical passages never done, just because we want to keep up with our friend's pace. Never! Also because then it's a moment to lose half hours due to crashes, punctures and more.
Better to ride at your own pace and arrive 2 minutes late than maintain a PRO pace for 7 corners and then stop for 15 minutes to fix a puncture
This does not mean that it is forbidden to engage, but we must be aware that jokers can fit on one hand, then there is no God on earth to protect us.
5. FOLLOW THE RIGHT COMPANIES
We know that bad companies always lead to bad habits: in all areas. So ditch those friends who think they know it all. Riding with bikers of a certain level helps both from a technical point of view, even just watching them ride, and on the setup of the bike. example avoiding buying a Fat Bike just because it started to snow.
And now, happy MTB!
