Related Links

Featured Links





Recommended Products



 

 
Featured Articles

Get Started Exercising Now, But Take It Easy!
So you're overweight, "fat"--to be honest--and you want to start exercising. Before you take off like an overlarge airplane and start preparing for the Olympics trials, stop right there. You may have it all figured out by now, after checking with your ...

Mojave Dunes- Golfing The Arizona Indian Reservation
Mojave Dunes- Golfing The Arizona Indian ReservationRead Jetsetters Magazine at www.jetsettersmagazine.comTo read this entire feature FREE with photos cut and paste this ...

Poop Bags On Mount Shasta
Topped by snow and glaciers, Mount Shasta rises up above everything else when you approach it from the north.As soon as I saw it, I wanted to be up there. We were coming south from Oregon, after driving across the country from Michigan. A detour to ...


Google
Balancing Act- Ten Tips for Never Tipping
 

Here are a few such exercises…

* Start at a very slight slope, point your bike downwards and move as slowly as possible.

* Make a figure ‘8’, progressing in a constantly tauter and slower formation.

* Paint an enormously long line on a flat surface and slowly roll over it.

A regular practice of the above mentioned exercises would give would perk up your balance to a great deal bestowing you a confidence, which would be a great help when learning to maintain balance in trails.

Here are a few tips to help you with balancing while mountain biking…

1. The Platform: Maintaining your feet level, i.e., at 3 and 9 o'clock position is your platform position. You are well balanced in platform position and it is the best position while biking unless you have to traverse a tight corner. So try to be in the position as long as plausible.

2. Once you’re in a platform position, the position of the rest of your body parts relevant to balancing should be: hands gripping the handlebars (but not very tightly), your back should be bent at an angle of 45 degrees, your elbows bent at an angle of 90 degrees, while your knees at 30-50 degrees. Your head should be straight, eyes looking


ahead and your chin parallel to top tube.

3. The foot that you leave in the frontward position while descend a steep hill or while coasting is your ‘good foot.’ While balancing, either maintain a platform position or keep your ‘good foot’ ahead.

4. Turning your foot away from the side you have your forward foot is called ‘Trackstanding.’ For instance, in case you have your left foot forward, turn your wheel clockwise. Once you have acquired this position, with your weight centered over the bike, tilt slightly and make pedal adjustments. Doing so would maintain your center of gravity and you will be a balanced position. This technique is useful in flat surfaces.

5. If you are to balance on uneven surfaces, ‘Rocking’ can help you. This is done by weight shifts and/or raising the front and back wheels in a series, making some alterations to maintain your bike balanced; all alterations that you do have to be subtle.

6. Be seated unless you are coursing a rough terrain.

7. Do not grip the handlebar very tight, especially when clearing obstacles, climbing or descending. You should be able to drum your fingers.

8. While climbing, have your weight rearwards, and to maintain the traction of front wheel, lean to shift some weight to your front wheel (this aspect is explained in details in chapter 12).

9. Just focus on where you have to go, not anywhere, you do not have to go.

10. Restore your balance soon. In case you wait long, probably you will not be able to do it afterward and possibly end up falling.

About the Author
This article is an excert from a new downloadable ebook. For more information see http://www.terrainskills.com/


News



Cancer patient climbs enough hospital stairs to reach Mt. Everest
KTVB
While undergoing treatment, he's been climbing thousands of flights of stairs. On Saturday, he reached his goal of climbing the equivalent of climbing Mt. Everest. It started with a headache over Thanksgiving. Then, on a yurt trip in the mountains for ...

and more »

Climbing Everest
Toronto Star (blog)
Canada's Davis Cup doubles team of Daniel Nestor and Milos Raonic, hurriedly thrown together on Saturday, were whipped in three sets by the French tandem of Michael Llodra and Julien Benneteau in a match that started off looking like a marathon and ...

and more »

RealVail

summer athletes finding winter wonderland
Denver Post
But with events such as the Winter Teva Mountain Games and new designs in bikes and ice tools, summer athletes are able to keep pedaling, climbing and racing in the snowiest months. "I see a lot of people turning their heads, like 'what you are doing ...
Lesser-known sport goes big in VailVail Daily News
Nordic skiing, climbing champions crowned on first day of Winter Teva Games in ...RealVail
Winter Teva Mountain Games: Day 1 - Nordic Skiing & Eddie Bauer Mixed ClimbingSki Channel

all 20 news articles »

Houston Chronicle (blog)

Man who climbed Los Angeles tower lured down by McDonald's
Houston Chronicle (blog)
The bizarre tale of a man who climbed a tower in Los Angeles as he shed his clothes got even more bizarre Thursday, as the Los Angeles Times reported he was convinced by burgers to end the incident. At one point, police sources said, ...
Naked man atop tower in police custodySan Jose Mercury News
Naked man atop tower in downtown LASan Francisco Chronicle
Police Use McDonald's To Coax Naked Dude Off TowerCinema Blend
mediabistro.com
all 103 news articles »

New York Times

Entrepreneurs, Climbing Mt. Paperwork
New York Times
TEPID economic growth has left many people out of work or underemployed. While some wait for a better job, or any job at all, to come along, others will try to create their own jobs from scratch by starting a business. What budding entrepreneurs may ...