What is your 1 tip to help improve someones riding?

jonnyashworth

I have been riding mountain bikes for about 5/6 years now and still absolutely love it. I would by no means class myself as a technically advanced rider or for that matter particularly fit and like most blokes have an attitude that I can do a bit of homework and teach myself to be a better rider. Also like most of us the amount of time I get to spend on my bike is limited due to work + family + beer commitments so a formal training regime is out of the question. I realise that the best way to improve is to have some skills tuition (but that's not what this thread is about). I would like to know what 1 tip you would give me (or anybody) to incorporate in my weekend ride to try to improve my technique as a rider??

Please try not to repeat what anyone else posts! and no +1'splease.

angry_bird

Keep your head up and looking at where you want to go, not down at your front wheel.

Kowalski675

Book a skills course.

arran77

Ride with better riders and learn from them.

supersonic

Lay off the brakes. Many crashes are caused by over use of brakes causing wash outs.

Cqc

Avoid doing unnecessary stuff the pros do when riding in video edits such as skidding and putting the inside foot down on every corner because it looks good on film. Of you watch them at rampage or at the world cups they never do it as its much slower in reality. Do it when you need to, but if you do it all the time you'll end up riding mega slow and looking like an idiot.

JBA

Stay loose. Use your arms and legs as suspension to absorb some of the bumps.

rockmonkeysc

Relax and stay loose. Easy on the brakes, speed can be your friend. Always keep your feet on the pedals while cornering.
Find some faster friends to ride with.

Angus Young

Learn to instinctively drop your heels at the appropriate moments.

97th choice

Don't pull upwards on the bars.

oxocube1

During a turn, point your hips in the direction you want to go and the bike will follow.

97th choice

Outside pedal down in turns, keep your weight on it and lean the bike

Manc33

Cadence @ 90.

The brake one is true. I put some brake pads on the other night and realized after about 18 minutes riding I had not even touched the brakes! The traffic light on my road must have been on green. Its hilly where I live, very useful.

paul.skibum

Follow the rabbit - the faster you go the further away it is - look for it

kajjal

Strangely Strava can be very useful. If you compare yourself to other faster riders you can see where they are faster than you and workout how to be faster on sections of your route. I did this with various corners and descents where other riders were a lot faster, also works for climbs as well.

devbrix

Wax on, wax off

PerformingMonkey

Learn to pump to carry more speed over rollers and through turns...

j_l

Just ride more

rockmonkeysc

97th choice wrote:

Don't pull upwards on the bars.

Not always true. Even when jumping sometimes a slight pull upon the bars can be good if you need to keep the front wheel up.

bigmitch41

Enjoy it

ianm7222

Session a section rather than going for bigger rides, you'll improve quickly as it allows you to concentrate on what you are doing well and what you can do differently.

punkatron1

Never forget that skids aren't just for kids.

Dr S

Image what would happen if you let the bike just roll down something with a hand on the saddle to keep it upright.
Note how it basically looks after itself.

Now get back on and make sure you don't interrupt the process.

Dr S

miceden

Ride a hardtail !

gt-arrowhead

The thing that helped me most was moving more on the bike.

Leaning back more helped me alot. and move yourself according to the terrain. Say if you are going over a "bump" for example, let the front go over, then when the rear is coming over, loosen your knees and allow your rear wheel to come up, basically like a rear suspension would.

rockmonkeysc

GT-Arrowhead wrote:

The thing that helped me most was moving more on the bike.

Leaning back more helped me alot. and move yourself according to the terrain. Say if you are going over a "bump" for example, let the front go over, then when the rear is coming over, loosen your knees and allow your rear wheel to come up, basically like a rear suspension would.

The bike moves, not the rider. Let the bike rise and fall with the ground keep knees and arms loose so you aren't moving as much as the bike. Same with cornering, the bike leans, not the rider.

I guess that's kind of what you're saying?

step83

Always challenge yourself. A good ride is where you push your limits

ste_t

If a riding buddy bails on you, don't let it be an excuse not to ride

Goggs-san

Stay Low, Stay Light, Stay Loose.

waverider

Learn about how your bikes components work and can be setup. A well setup bike will make riding it more natural, more capable and more fun!

Maro

Control your speed before you enter a corner, not through it.