Descending Hills for Mountain Bike Racers

Video Transcript

"So, on a shallower grade, you want to lower your front end as much as you can, get as low as you can to really maintain the most control and get the most speed you can out of the terrain. So, it may look pretty flat, but you know, there are little rolling undulations and stuff like that. By being low and over the front end of the bike, I'm able to push the bike down into all those undulations and get more speed. So, if this hill was longer or steeper (especially if it was steeper), I wouldn't be quite so low and over the front end of the bike. But, in this application, it really helps a lot, especially when I get to a tight turn, like if I continue through that corner there, being all low and forward would really help me get the best angulation and weight that I can into the wheels. The way to think about it is, you know, you just spend enough time riding around in the woods and really feeling how your tires work and stuff like that. You realize that, to maintain the optimum amount of grip, you are always sort of moving around this curved cone. The center of gravity of your bike and of your body (the combination of the two) is like a big ice cream cone. Where your belly is at the top of this big ice cream cone and it moves left and right, forward and back. So, on a descent like this which is pretty easy (you know, very low consequence, very little risk of popping off the bike), I move that cone sort of forward, and as low as I can just so I can maintain stability and go the fastest. Like I could ride down that bold upright with one foot locked like that if I wanted to, like I was on a beach cruiser, but it's just not going to be as stable. And it's certainly not going to be as much fun. "