giant XTC1 and trail riding question

pete7

Hi. i have a Giant XTC1 and absolutely love it. on bridelways and tracks it is brilliant, i can travell very fast and dodge the ruts and puddles and have fun.
it is great up for climbing hills, bombing down hills ( on a track or bridleway )
it is great on the road to and from work..!


but i have a problem.


when i hit the local singletrack trail ( croft wood swindon ) the thing is like a bucking bronco. i find it very dificult on the bumpy parts of the red route. i find it difficult to get any speed up due to it bucking around, this makes it difficult to take on the technical bits.
i am 6 foot 4 and its a large 22 inch frame. i find it difficult to get round the tight corners.

maybe i need to drop the saddle and stand up more, and just ride the trail more and get a technique.
maybe the bike is good for XC but not trail riding?

any thought please?

cheers

Pete :?

Chaz.Harding

Sounds like you've not been riding years, right?

Try dropping the saddle, and slowing down a touch if your crashing alot. Standing up is pretty much a requirement on anythng but canal paths, tbh. It's just technique mate. I'm 6'1'', and I can get round almost impossibly tight corners (albeit slowly) and I'm certainly no trailmaster jedi

See this as a damn good reason to get out more, and hit the trails longer, 'specially since it's almost SUMMER!!!

:twisted: 8)

The Spiderman

Play around with the forks settings and tyre pressures.The amount of sag and rebound settings on the forks can make a dramatic difference as can letting as little as 5 psi out of your tyres.

These things can make a massive difference.

Having said that the XTC is a racy kind of bike and as you have discovered,accleration and direct power transfer can mean compromises in terms of compliance.

A change of tyres can also make a big difference,as can trying out a different stem or bar position to your overall control.