Recenyly getting nervous riding the bike

recently i have been getting nervous riding my bike down hills. does anybody have the same problem as me and can anybody help ?

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Comments

  • I don't like going down hills either. I'm always on the brakes, but that doesn't bother me too much because it's what makes me feel in control and therefore safe. 

    One day I may learn to let go, but for now I'd rather just get to the bottom in one piece!

  • Yes, frightens the crap out of me unless I can see where I am going, know that I can stop and that the road is bone dry.

    Give me 20% up anytime over 10% down.

  • Soup DragonSoup Dragon ✭✭✭

    Or if there is a handy hedge on a tight down hill corner Dustboy. image

     

  • K9K9 ✭✭✭

    Me too!!

    Im far more likely to be caught walking down a hill than up one!!

  • K9K9 ✭✭✭

    Learning to ski seemed to help!

  • i shat it a bit when i hit 40 odd mph and got a bit of a speed wobble and for about the next 3 or 4 rides i didnt go over 30 but i think i must have just forgot about it because it didnt have lasting impact. i say i forgot about it but now i remember - tnx button :/

    my next ride will top out at 25 image

     

  • It's because you let me fix your bike button... You are worried something might fall off. 

    In all seriousness though.. May be in part as we discussed earlier , that the frames a bit on the big side really , and you migh be happier on a better fitting bike ?

     

  • Yup! I went on a new route last week and realised there was a steep down in it. I survived and the 2 experienced looking cyclists behind me didnt catch up. BUT: such a blooming wreck at the bottom I couldn't eat my jam sandwich! image 

     

    My plan is 2 fold: 

    Join a club - used to train with a ckub in a hilly part if the country. Really boosts my confidence being talked through hills by an old hand. And knowing you arent alone! 

     

    Cycle lots of hills but suitably reward myself ie next week Im going back to that hill l. I will have a quick breather at the bottom as a reward - I think familiarity will build confidence!

  • popsiderpopsider ✭✭✭

    It's all relative - i got a strava kom on a popular local descent the other day but there are still plenty of people I know who would leave me beind on a really steep one.

    like anytthing you will improve with proper focussed practice - not just descending but trying to do so with good technique.    There are a few articles on the internet - the one  you often see linked is on red kite prayer which will probably come up on Google.   The basics are descend on the drops, relax, wide in to the corner and close to the apex, don't drag the brakes, brake before turning in, look through the corner not at the front wheel.   

  • and flex your elbows a little so your arms aren't rock solid...

  • Best bit about going up the freaking big hills is whacking it into a high gear and beating feet until you cant turn the pedals anymore on the other side image

    Altho to be fair weather  and road conditions come into play for me - gotta be sensible but I do like seeing how fast I can go - 40 mph has been my best to date - don't know that I would be keen to do more than that tho' image gets a bit hairy when you have to anticipate what other peeps on the road are going to do!

  • YouTube cancellaras descents and watch him. Amazing.



    Speed isnt a problem. It's just inappropriate speed. So too fast into a corner etc. brakes these days are very good. If they can't stop you then there's something wrong with them.
  • M..o.useM..o.use ✭✭✭

    I was about to say what Pops has already said.  Have you actually been taught how to descend?  The only additions to Pops' comments I would add would be to have the inside leg up, outside leg down.  Then distribute your weight onto the outer foot and the inner hand.  Coupled with being on the drops this will give you greater control of the bike.  Also, completely agree with Pops - look where you want to go.

     

  • Top speed for me of 54mph (and that was on a sketchy bit of road in Mallorca) but I'm sure FB will be along shortlyimage

    Echo the advice above - the more you relax the smaller your turning circle. Of course the flipside is a positive feedback loop so if you think you're going to fast, you'll tense up and you will be going too fast. So brake early and once you turn in, you've committed to that speed. Get off the brakes and trust that your line is good. 

  • SideBurnSideBurn ✭✭✭

    I think that you are right to be scared going down hill; there are not many people who stay with me downhill. The reason I am still alive is that I am very selective about when and where. How do you do it? Watch this...

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSSEkhwVap8

    It attempts to explain the 'limit point'; the furthest point of tarmac you can see ahead. The way this 'limit point' seems to move helps you to interpret the bend and ride accordingly. This is a technique you need to be shown but next time you are on the road look at the triangle of tarmac on a bend and watch how it behaves. This technique teaches you to scan and look ahead whilst driving and riding. If you get it you will find many people brake too far into a corner. Remember that when cornering to the right you lean into the oncoming traffic so should not use the central line when cornering.

    But be careful.... please

  • So how do peeps cope where you can't see where you are going and it's single width road, eg Ranmore/Whitedown hill etc. Must admit I am frying brakes and 10mph tops. There is no way I would be able to stop from 30-40 mph when a car comes round the corner. Bike lessons needed but cycling clubs are a bit stuck up their own arse IMO.

     

     

  • skottyskotty ✭✭✭
    button mushroom wrote (see)

    recently i have been getting nervous riding my bike down hills. does anybody have the same problem as me and can anybody help ?

     

    Wiggo?

    Is that you?

  • RicFRicF ✭✭✭

    Steepest hill I've chucked the bike down was one called Ley Hill near Bovingdon. 

    It goes down at one gradient, into a dip and then straight back up the other side at a similar gradient. If you get it right you can almost make it up and out.

    Scary thing is going down and find yourself staring into the road going back up the other side. Seems almost 90 degrees to each other.

    Highest speed was 43mph whereas a mate of mine did 46mph. Because he was mad enough to slipstream me on the way down and then sprint past pushing the 53-11 all out to do it. Nuts!

    🙂

  • fat buddhafat buddha ✭✭✭
    Dustboy wrote (see)

    So how do peeps cope where you can't see where you are going and it's single width road, eg Ranmore/Whitedown hill etc. Must admit I am frying brakes and 10mph tops. There is no way I would be able to stop from 30-40 mph when a car comes round the corner. Bike lessons needed but cycling clubs are a bit stuck up their own arse IMO.

     

    Simple - adapt to the conditions.   I don't think any decent descender would go balls out on a steep bendy single track with traffic on - you just have to make sure your brakes and braking surfaces are in good nick and you have the skill to react quickly.  But on clear open wide roads with good visibility, just let go and keep looking ahead for hazards.

    And it's like many things - some people are better at it than others - and many are prepared to park their brains at the top of the hill and take risks.

    When I hit 68mph in IMCH I'd already descended that hill 3x (once in practice, 2x in the event) so knew what to expect when I went for it on the 3rd lap - I knew precisely where the hazards were (very few as it happens) so could choose my line and being closed I didn't need to worry about any traffic coming along.  But I was also concentrating all the way down!

    And to improve your descent bike handling skills - get off road.  You'll learn to react very quickly to hazards and put trust in your bike (if it's up to the task) knowing that if you screw up it's likely to be your fault and not the bike's as good MTBs will take much more abuse than most people can throw at them.   Sure, mechanical failures happen but if you look after your bike, it shouldn't happen at all.

  • There one near us that starts at 10% and the end is 15% with a road joining from the left at the bottom, always always, have to brake before getting to to the 15% bit, but like RicF said about his hill, there is an uphill the other side, going down the 15% bit you can just see road

     

  • popsiderpopsider ✭✭✭
    Dustboy wrote (see)

    So how do peeps cope where you can't see where you are going and it's single width road, eg Ranmore/Whitedown hill etc. Must admit I am frying brakes and 10mph tops. There is no way I would be able to stop from 30-40 mph when a car comes round the corner. Bike lessons needed but cycling clubs are a bit stuck up their own arse IMO.

     

     

    Bit unfair I think.   Maybe 10 years ago when cycling was much smaller and clubs were dominated by people wo ad been into it for decades but since the boom they are full of newcomers to the sport who are a bit mre sympathetic to other newbies.

    That said maybe cycling clubs are a little less well set up for the less quick rider than tri clubs or runnng clubs are for runners - the upside is round here at least all the rides tend to be if you can keep up and aren't dangerous you are welcome.  Most of the faster local triathletes tend to come out with groups of cyclists - in fact I train with far faster runners when i'm on the bike than I ever could when I was doing a lot of running  - dropped a sub 30 minute 10k runner on Saturday !!

  • popsiderpopsider ✭✭✭

    Ps I can spell just not type on an ipad

  • fat buddhafat buddha ✭✭✭

    and if by magic, an article in Triathlete Europe today on how to descend on a bike

    http://triathlete-europe.competitor.com/2013/05/28/cycle-skills-how-to-descend

     

  • This was me playing at descending last week in the Alps. I can only imagine what speed the pros hit down here !



    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mQJrTSYV5Tw
  • fat buddhafat buddha ✭✭✭
    The Silent Assassin wrote (see)

    just beaten to it by FB

     

     

    as usual eh??  image

  • That's all so helpful guys! I've decided that my crap bike handling is my second biggest weakness (after my snail paced run). After reading this I can't wait to get out on my bike and start actually working on my downhill image 

  • fat buddha wrote (see)

    When I hit 68mph in IMCH 

     

    image Had I been drinking coffee, it would have been sprayed all over the screen. Since I am holding a glass of wine, I managed to keep it all in my gob.

    I am in awe, sir.

  • I'm still trying to break 50mph. 48 is my current top. Maybe when the sun comes out and I go back to Cat and Fiddle, just so I can come back down image

  • Nursey ... at the Pirate Awards there is always an award for the fastest recorded speed, cue the garmins and bike computers being brandished by those who descend like a barrel on a zip wire    image

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