✅ OUR MTB COURSES - 365school
Today we face the topic of the curve, very useful since in mountain bike being able to make the curves is very important ... and we will find many of them in our laps ... unless you only ride in Oklahoma on Route 66. The style is always very smart and straight to the point, space for video.
In the end, however, turn off your PC and go out on your bike because, as in all things, it takes a lot of practice: any tutorial can help you learn the basics of the technique, but then it does not take away a course with some skilled teacher who follows us well. (I leave some in description). Why ATTENTION: often the sensations we have on the bike are not reflected in reality.
Let's go! Ah no wait, so if you happen to be the first video, take a pedal back and go to see the video on the basic position. Otherwise it's like trying to fix a puncture without an inner tube. Ah, are there vermicelli?
THE MANTRA - ONLY FOLD THE BIKE
The beauty, and the ugliness for some, of MTB is that it is done on dirt. What are the characteristics of the dirt road? Which is bloody slippery. So there are 2 solutions: either we learn to make a curve as God commands or we become modern trail builders who spend more time on the bulldozer than with the hoe in hand, pushing everything that comes under fire.
Step 0
We must be firmly planted on the bike: weight on the legs (centrality) and wide elbows ready to load if necessary (theme of the video on the position on the bike).
Step 1: The outer foot goes low
This position will be essential to give weight to the ground, therefore on the tires: left corner, low right foot. Turn right, left foot down.
We have said that the low external foot is used to give grip to the tires on the ground, so it means that it is not essential to do it on the curves with little degree or banked, otherwise it risks becoming the dance of the foot your ride out on the bike.
On banked curves, the support already gives you the inclination of the bank and therefore it will be easier to turn, it being understood that it does not hurt if you go down with the external foot but ATTENTION: if you are for example on a wall ride there is there is a real risk that the external foot will touch the platform if you do not bend enough, then go up with the antennas (or with the pedal).
Step 2, the most important: just tilt the bike
And here is the highlight: if you feel that you have no grip when cornering, there is no excuse. The mistake lies here, it means that you fold with the bike in a motorcycle style. Why does this happen? Try to look carefully at the correct position and the incorrect position: we can see, in the incorrect position, how the forces that act push the tires diagonally and here is that if I load a little too much (or if I find a classic curve gravel, the nightmare of every granfondista) I slip the front. Different situation instead in the other position where I push perpendicularly on the ground.
Last step, see where you want to go
Do you want to crash into a tree? Watch it.
Do you want to close the curve? Look at the exit.
By doing so, if you are a bit soft and you support the movement, your shoulders and pelvis will rotate towards the correct position without bandaging your head with astronomical reasoning regarding the position of the shoulders, the rotation of the pelvis etc. It is only a matter of gaze: and the gaze always looks well ahead, never the front wheel. Always forward (magnetic gaze). A matter of gaze.
MISTAKES
A common mistake is, out of fear, going to lock yourself behind the handlebars: in this situation you will no longer be able to load weight on the front because you will depend on the triceps which, inevitably, will never be as strong as the pectorals.
It will be hard and sincere: posture errors can be many and it is useless to list all the possible variations in this video. Now I only tell you to let yourself be seen by a good one, that is a good MTB teacher, who sets you up well and maybe corrects some posture errors that you did not notice. I leave you with a description of some mtb schools active in the area.
See you at the next video lesson and please: watch what you want to do.
👩🏫 SOME ITALIAN MTB SCHOOLS
➡ https://www.scuolamtb.it
➡ https://epic-trail.com/mtb-school
➡ https://www.gravityschool.it
➡ https://scuolaciclismocanguri.com
➡ https://www.raidacomemangi.com
