Moving past that mental block to ride bigger / scarier stuff

miss notax

Hello

Just wondering how other people manage to take the leap to try bigger / scarier / rockier stuff. I know that these things build up gradually etc etc, but there still comes a point where it's effectively a big (metaphorical!) jump to get to the next level - which is where I seem to find myself at the moment :?

We are just back from a day riding in Dartmoor which was good fun, but some off the trails were pretty damn tricky and I just couldn't get in the right frame of mind to give the a try - which then annoys me and no doubt makes me a right pain in the @rse for the remainder of the ride :evil:

This was BIG rocks on descents by the way - not stoney loose stuff. For anyone that knows the area it was a tight bridleway around North Bovey, between Hunter Tor and Lustleigh Cleave. A few switchbacks but it was the rocks that threw me! I think part of it is that i'm not used to riding this sort of thing. Notax was loving it by the way (and making it look easy), so I know that it can be ridden!

Anyway, I think i'm going to go back armed with some knee / elbow pads which might fool me into feeling a bit more inclined to give it a go! I am pretty confident on descents so this is 99% a mental thing - but I know that to stand a chance of rising it, I need to commit or I am without doubt going to end up going over the bars!

Any thoughts would be appreciated!

JonnyN

Just keep going back and riding it. You'll get it. Once you've done it once you'll wonder what all the fuss was about.

Herbie The Dog

Lustleigh does have some pretty advanced trails, as such it's a great place to take people for some skills coaching.

But as JonnyN says...just keep riding it, work out you lines and if needs be session parts of it until you nail it.

Steve_F

It's a funny one and will probably always play on your mind now.

I've got a few like that:
- there's a couple of drops that I could never even roll over without diving off the bike, I absolutely love them now.
- there's also a few steep bits/drops that I know I can ride but will often miss them or make a mess of them as they play on my mind
- there's also a slightly difficult bit of trail that I came off at once (just an easy set down) and haven't tried it again. Have lined it up multiple times but dived on the brakes (normally hanging over the edge) so many times.

One of these things that if you think about it you'll probably not do it. The drops I mentioned first used to spoil the run up to that part of the trail until I just launched it off one day.

wheezee

It makes a difference to me if there's someone there with me, either to demonstrate it's possible or to shame me into not chickening out. Conversely or course, if your companion won't touch something you'd otherwise have tried yourself it can mess you right up.

Not sure where I'm going with that one, really. :oops:

Thewaylander

hmm it's a tough one,

Partially it's attitude, woman have it harder here, as alot would think if i crash scars, as soon as that enters there head its no chance. For you i doubt that having met you have more guts than that.

But one thing i notice with the best bikers i have met, they have a bit of a superioroty thing going on believe themselves better, and i honestly think to a point(the point where you want kick there heads off there shoulders) its a good thing. with a little bit of speed most things can be ridden.

I'd suggest a day spent up on a few easily repeated DH trails, FOD is good as there alto to choose from at different difficulties, and just a spend a day riding steeper stuff, we al tend to get complacent on the trail centers and when we see something a little steep it takes us back. you just have to get used to it

Rambl ramble ramble..(love a good mindless wander)

miss notax

Thanks

I don't think i'm too freaked out by the prospect of coming off - i'm no stranger to that, and it rarely hurts as much as you expect

It really is just a mental thing I think.... The comment about seeing someone else ride it is true, although in this case it looked so effortless (on something obviously tricky) that I just thought that there is no way I can do THAT!! Hanging off the back of my bike screaming and out of control maybe

Anyhooo, I guess I just need to practise on some trickier natural stuff.

Thewaylander

Come to FOD with me at some point, You can bring mr notax if you want really has stepped up my riding a bit.

and it's not because its harder than other DH trails tthere not, there slightly easier, but there enough of a step up from trail center bboredom to make you think and you can repeat them fairly quickly

miss notax

Thewaylander wrote:

Come to FOD with me at some point, You can bring mr notax if you want really has stepped up my riding a bit.

and it's not because its harder than other DH trails tthere not, there slightly easier, but there enough of a step up from trail center bboredom to make you think and you can repeat them fairly quickly

Yeah, we must go there actually, sounds like I could benefit from it

I enjoy trail centres a lot, but because it's all so sanitized it makes all the natural big stuff all the more :shock: :shock: :shock: . Or it does to me - you don't get much in the way of big rocky descents in the New Forest

Thewaylander

Exactly, that was my problem alot recently. I'd been stuck at cwwm n local routes due to cash issues, and i'd forgotton what could be ridden.. made me bottle out a bit which was frustrating.

Feeling far more comfortable again now.

wheezee

miss notax wrote:

I don't think i'm too freaked out by the prospect of coming off - i'm no stranger to that, and it rarely hurts as much as you expect

Er, yes it does. It hurts a lot. Although this is tempered by how much pain you're expecting, I suppose.

The most pain I've experienced recently was outside my house, crashing the pedal of my shopper into an already damaged area of shin.

Thewaylander

yeh but thats the one injury that most bikers will say really damn stings!! lol

miss notax

Ha, my most painful was falling off some boardwalk into a massive hole full of stinging nettles (and I was stuck there for about 15 mins)! Makes cracked ribs, concussion etc pale into insignificance.....

So actually, as long as I make sure there are no stinging nettles around these rocky descents I should be sorted

supersonic

Sometimes you jus thave to go for it. Many, many crashes are caused by stalling, bottling and inproper use of the front brake. The more relaxed you are, the more chance you will stay on, nail it, then movce on to even bigger stuff.

mac_man

supersonic wrote:

Sometimes you jus thave to go for it. Many, many crashes are caused by stalling, bottling and inproper use of the front brake. The more relaxed you are, the more chance you will stay on, nail it, then movce on to even bigger stuff.

True.

Every crash I've ever had can be attributed to the above at some point.

As for riding scarier stuff, It's always good to go with somebody who can ride the stuff you're scared of. You can then see how they do it and then try and replicate their approach.

Or some advanced coaching might help... even it's nothing more than giving you the confidence to know you can do it.

And make sure you remember all the basics before you tackle something. There was a short section at Gisburn Forest that I always used to bottle. Anyhoo... last time I went I thought "I can do this". I knew WHAT I should be doing so made a determined effort to recall everything I'd learned before I tackled it. In the end it was a piece of cake

mattrgee

I use a mantra, simply ask yourself:

"What would Steve Peat do?"

mattrgee

supersonic wrote:

Sometimes you jus thave to go for it. Many, many crashes are caused by stalling, bottling and inproper use of the front brake. The more relaxed you are, the more chance you will stay on, nail it, then movce on to even bigger stuff.

Sound advice.

nozzac

My mental blocks tend to be based around steep downhill sections with a little step on them caused by erosion on the far side of a root or rock half way down. If the drop was on the flat I wouldn't even notice it. If the slope had no drop then I'd just coast down it no problems. But looking down the slope at the little drop (could easily less than a foot deep) I'm convinced my front wheel will drop off it, forks compress and I'll go over the bars.

On the idea of just go for it....there is a little double in Swinley I used to brake short of jumping. I eventually got my clacker up to do it and it was a breeze. I wondered what the fuss was about (it is a pathetically small one). So the next time I went out I whizzed over it more confidently. I woke up several minutes later in some mud having been knocked cold, broken my sternum, ribs and bike. Funnily enough I've not tried it again recently. One has to discern between lack of bravery and lack of adequate skills.

Jedi

it'll be a mental block brought about by a physical block that will lay in the way of your progress . a common plateau for a lot of ridiers

specializedsteve

It must help being able to conquor all trails being a Jedi and all . . . . . ..

Jedi

yeah it is

Gizmokev

Believe in yourself.....said in my best Obe Wan Kenobee voice

wordnumb

miss notax wrote:

This was BIG rocks on descents by the way - not stoney loose stuff. For anyone that knows the area it was a tight bridleway around North Bovey, between Hunter Tor and Lustleigh Cleave.

You mean 'Nutcrackers'? Aptly named piece of trail if you get your front wheel in the wrong place. Lovely tea shop in Lustleigh.

miss notax

Ha ha, no idea! It was a quite narrow bridleway, a few switchbacks and a section of large boulders - it was tricky enough to walk down the damn things!!

Sadly we had about another 25 miles to ride at that point, so no cake stops for us

desmojen

I feel your pain Miss N, being in a similar place myself. And I am equally receptive to good advice.

Unfortunately, deep down inside I think a certain amount of MTFU is the only answer. There's nothing more frustrating to me than knowing I have the skillz to do something, but being unable to because something inside won't let me!

Jen.

Stan Leigh

I think my technical decent skills have picked up by going out with more experienced riders .

I'm usually out on largish group rides. If I can see a couple of riders my size on a similar bike not having any problems , then I just go for it .

Sounds silly writing it down , but sometimes I'll risk wiping out trying , rather than lose face bottling !

Once at the bottom , I realise the anticipation was worse than the decent its self . Hell talk about psychological , I'll look back & it no longer looks that big & scary.

Just to clarify , the above is XC decents , steep swichtbacks , with rocks & roots . NOT mad bastard DH stuff ! :?

wordnumb

Stan Leigh wrote:

I think my technical decent skills have picked up by going out with more experienced riders .

I'm the opposite. Riding alone makes me rationalise that I might as well try the difficult drops, because if I get chewed up at least there are no witnesses and I can claim there was an alligator. No, two alligators, big ones.

TuckerUK

Phew, for a moment I thought this was going to be a dating topic! :shock:

miss notax

I'm fortunate to ride with some very, very good riders so I think it's blurred the boundaries of making stuff look possible - because I see them ride all sorts of I really know that is WAY out of my league! It's a bit tricky to see the difference between what is do-able if I give it a good shot (most stuff i'm sure falls into this category :oops: ), and things I should really just stand back and admire 8)

Hey ho!

miss notax

TuckerUK wrote:

Phew, for a moment I thought this was going to be a dating topic! :shock:

ThePriory1978

wordnumb wrote:

Stan Leigh wrote:

I think my technical decent skills have picked up by going out with more experienced riders .

I'm the opposite. Riding alone makes me rationalise that I might as well try the difficult drops, because if I get chewed up at least there are no witnesses and I can claim there was an alligator. No, two alligators, big ones.

+1
-Alligators