Why did I bother with Tony Doyle's UK Bike School training?
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ive heard it said that the best upgrade for any bike is a training for the rider. i certainly inten to do some training at some point in a one on one fashion. i enjoy my riding and am not in any competitions but there are things i wish i was more confident with and i think with some good advice i coul well end up enjoying my riding more.0
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sheepsteeth wrote:ive heard it said that the best upgrade for any bike is a training for the rider. i certainly inten to do some training at some point in a one on one fashion. i enjoy my riding and am not in any competitions but there are things i wish i was more confident with and i think with some good advice i coul well end up enjoying my riding more.
The proof of the above is that despite a bike upgrade being worth extra speed, you often see people on full sus unable to keep up with a HT rider on tech DH sections. This seems like it shouldn't be, but bad technique wipes out a lot more than the advantage given by a better faster bike. It's a long time ago, but anyone remember Peaty winning the British DH series on a rigid Kona with 1.5" tyres? Good technique will get you down most tech stuff on a HT or even a fully rigid, just not as quick as a full sus.0 -
Who coaches the coaches? And if you are that good, why ain't you pro riders!
;-)
But seriously, they work for some, and not for others. Maybe try a session out. Sometimes experienced riders can help novices a lot too, or if you are lucky enough to ride with pros or good racers.0 -
supersonic wrote:Who coaches the coaches? And if you are that good, why ain't you pro riders!
;-)
But seriously, they work for some, and not for others. Maybe try a session out. Sometimes experienced riders can help novices a lot too, or if you are lucky enough to ride with pros or good racers.
you know what they say, those that cant do, teach.
thats not supposed to be as insulting as it porbably reads!0 -
Aye, I wouldn't claim to ride as well as a pro downhiller, although I get down stuff quicker than anyone I know. But, not all pro riders can teach bike skills. It's interesting that as someone said before, world champs usually have coaches, so logically the coach can't be as good as the rider! However, the coach should be able to 'see' what's happening with the riding & will know what can be improved as well as what's already working.
It's all down to results, so if you know someone who's done a good course, you'll have seen whether their riding's improved or not.0 -
How do you become an instructor?0
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supersonic wrote:How do you become an instructor?
The SMBLA Trail Cycle Leader & Mountain BIke Leader awards require you to be able to teach bike skills to certain levels, as well as navigate using real maps. You also need to be able to perform trailside repairs etc and have some knowledge of nutrition etc
The award is only valid with a valid outdoor 1st aid cert.
Although the focus is on teaching the skills, you need to be able to do them as well, as part of the teaching is nearly always a demo. You're not required to be able to manual or wheelie for ever, mainly because on the trails it's only needed briefly.
You also have to have a fair amount of riding logged & group experience. Whilst theoretically you could make this bit up(!) it would be obvious to the assessors...
Although I only know the SMBLA scheme, the MIAS & OTC are similar.
To sum up, if you've got to MBL level you will have to prove you can do/teach the following:
Effective use of gears/brakes
Riding position
Climbing/descending
Rough ground (obviously!)
Front wheel lifts (manuals)
Powered front wheel lifts (wheelies) - they like to use their own terms!
Rear wheel lifts
Line choice/reading the trail
Cornering & berms
Pumping the bike through berms & dips etc
Drop offs (various techniques)
Step ups
Bunnyhops (proper ones as opposed to speed hops)
Side hops
That's about it, and it might not be in the exact order of a course, that will vary a bit.
In the UK it's not illegal to work as an outdoor instructor without being qualified, but in practice you won't get insurance & if something goes wrong you'd not be able to prove in court you were competant & therefore not putting people at risk.
There's been a bit in various mags about the process & there's plenty of info online as well.0 -
Cheers!
No room for none handed trackstands?!0 -
supersonic wrote:Cheers!
No room for none handed trackstands?!
Ah, knew I'd forgot something! Trackstands yes, none handed, optional...
I like trackstands, will have to see if I can do no hands! If not, do you know a good no-handed trackstand coach?!0 -
Not me lol, I can rarely do it!0
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switchback18 wrote:If not, do you know a good no-handed trackstand coach?!
i know a good trackstand coach with no hands
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JamesBrckmn wrote:i know a trackstand coach with no hands
Ah, he wouldn't have a choice then!0 -
yep, can do them easy.
trackstands are a car park trick. all that is needed is a balanced pause on the trails0 -
Jedi wrote:yep, can do them easy.
trackstands are a car park trick. all that is needed is a balanced pause on the trails
yep, normal ones are no prob, supersonic was talking about no handers!
Agree that on the trails you only need a quick balance to get your bearings again, but practising them when your bored for as long as poss increases peoples balance & bike control, as well as confidence a bit. A bit of a waste for a course, but a good thing to practise other times.
[edit]Just seen the pic - the rider appears to have no feet either! Awesome skills! Is that you, by the way?0 -
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The trackstand was one of the most important skills I learned, I feel, as has payed dividends on slow, very rocky, technical terrain, and has improved my balance no end.0
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The think the title of this thread is a little misleading. I came in here expecting to read a rant about how bad it was.0
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R+P+K wrote:The think the title of this thread is a little misleading. I came in here expecting to read a rant about how bad it was.
were you disappointed? 0 -
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Hucking Fell wrote:I've never had any MTB coaching but 9 years of martial arts coaching and being chucked about means that I can fall off well
Do you mean with style, or just without getting hurt ...or both?
Actually falling well is quite handy, but not really a practical part of a course!
"Right everyone, when you get to this tree here, I'd like you to bail, and practise getting hurt the least that you can..." or something.
I did a few years of judo as a kid & that seems to help. Although the older you get the more it hurts...0 -
I tend to roll nicely out of a bail instead of putting my arms or legs out to stop me hitting the ground, so both. Usually.
I've found it's hard to tuck your head in when wearing a fullface helmet though and I'm not good enough to judo chop through any trees I'm flying towards.0 -
i could drive a car at the age of nine but needed tuition to do it correctly0
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Jedi wrote:i could drive a car at the age of nine but needed tuition to do it correctly
Coming from a motorbiking and motorbike racing background i have no doubt at all you're correct mate.
Training to get to the next level i think is essential.
I've not done any because i'm a tight bastard... but i could really do with some.Salsa Spearfish 29er
http://superdukeforum.forumatic.com/index.php0 -
Tractors for me, then onto cars. Passed test 2mnths after 17th b`day which was handy as I had strted serving my time as a motor mechJedi
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New postPosted Tue Mar 2, 2010 10:21 pmReply with quote Report Post
i could drive a car at the age of nine but needed tuition to do it correctly
Ditto + auld age does`nt come by itself.Training to get to the next level i think is essential.
I've not done any because i'm a tight bastard... but i could really do with some.0
