[Closed] Are you a serp rider? morzine content.

you are teh awsumZ

You are awesome.

could this be the Mutzig talking ?

It is because you are a riding god.

..and what?

[img] [/img]

How did you do on the Champery WC DH track? Tough isnt it! So so steep. Would not like to race it! Did you do the final part after you get to the road? Theres a really nasty drop into the woods there. Must admit, I didnt make that - was end of day though 🙂

Is that two steering dampers on that Scott?

I used to take some of my clients down the serpentine, let me tell you, it's a great way for them to improve their skills, as using the berms to pump and increase your speed without the need for pedaling, I always ensure they wear full protective gear not only for the main reason of safety but also for one that is is very much over looked, 'confidence' this is the main key to building skills on the bike, and when your armoured up you feel confident...

I see the school holidays have started.

Obvious troll is etc these posts really are getting dull op.

SWOONS

i bet he posted mid air....

You lot bite too easy

You rode everything in Chatel?
What bike are you on?

So I can avoid you.

RealMan - where'd you get the pic of me on my communter?

This will probably be me next year :$

Hopefully only for a while though!

but, c'mon, serpentine is ace fun.

Did it on XC hardtails. Only 100mm up front too. Both Panoramique and Serpentine were fun.

It does piss me off why some people rag down Blue and Greens without any regard for small children, less experienced/confident yet when I potter down a Red/black they're pretty empty. Suits me but the wife gets pissed off so much that she tends to chase them down and undertake them on corners if they've been rude.
Nothing as satisfying as watching a small woman on a AM bike showing up the 'big boys'.

Serpentine is quality. Great warm up track.

OP is GW and I claim my five pounds.

Hmm- I tend to find my crashes are bigger and more painful on smoother bermy runs compared to super steep, gnarly natural ones. Reason for this is the speeds you can achieve are so much greater.

I like to ride on the edge whatever Im riding so crashes are inevitable (especially since my surname isn't Atherton) whether im doing 8mph down super techy rock garden or 20+ mph down dusty man made berms - but you're more likely to find me wearing a full face lid on the "easier" runs than the more technical ones.

On the topic of full face helmets.....
The only time iv ever been thankful of a chin guard was doing the blue run at Alpe d'Huez. The track is smooth and bermy so I was nailing it but lost it on a dusty berm - crash happened so quick my face was in the dirt before I even realized I was off the bike. Conversely crashing on gnarly technical stuff I find I always have time to put my hands up to protect my face - so don't bother with full face and often ride without pads at all.

I can't decide who's more awesome, Pussywillow or Surfmat. Pls advise.

I think it's also worth noting that these Stormtroopers may actually in fact ride other stuff as well as the Serp?

ndthornton - Member
Hmm- I tend to find my crashes are bigger and more painful on smoother bermy runs compared to super steep, gnarly natural ones. Reason for this is the speeds you can achieve are so much greater.

I like to ride on the edge whatever Im riding so crashes are inevitable (especially since my surname isn't Atherton) whether im doing 8mph down super techy rock garden or 20+ mph down dusty man made berms - but you're more likely to find me wearing a full face lid on the "easier" runs than the more technical ones.

On the topic of full face helmets.....
The only time iv ever been thankful of a chin guard was doing the blue run at Alpe d'Huez. The track is smooth and bermy so I was nailing it but lost it on a dusty berm - crash happened so quick my face was in the dirt before I even realized I was off the bike. Conversely crashing on gnarly technical stuff I find I always have time to put my hands up to protect my face - so don't bother with full face and often ride without pads at all.

Hmmm, perhaps your not riding the berms properly, also, if you have time to put your hands on your face when you fall off down steep technical terrain then I really don't think your going fast enough, many of my clients tell me I ride too fast over technical ground but in actual fact this will help you 'skim' over things much easier.
I'm thinking about doing some skills coaching soon, keep an eye out for my up coming thread where I'll give Singletrackers the chance to ride with me, thinking maybe a peaks pootle get together.

Serpentine is a nice run no matter what your skill level but you do have to respect the mixture of abilities you'll find on that sort of trail. It's not the kind of trail most people would do lots of laps of as It's quite long and the lift queues can be epic.

The way Chatel bike park is laid out gives you a lot of options for the second half of the hill, but a lot of the reds (and all of the blacks) on the top section of the park are quite challenging - if you're not on your game or you just want to preserve your arms/brakes/tyres it's not a bad idea to "poach" one of the easier trails, but respect it for what it is.

"Stormtrooper" is just a outfit - not a mindset. It's the kids in wife-beaters and neck braces you need to watch.

Northwind - Member
I can't decide who's more awesome, Pussywillow or Surfmat. Pls advise.

Definitely Pussywillow. I quite liked SurfMatt he did come across a bit full of himself but then so do [s]most[/s] all big hitters.

I use a simple theory.
If someone posts on stw, they can't ride for toffee.
And yes, me too. 😀
+1 for the pic if pussywillow. I'm out there next week and i'd like to be able to recognise pussywillow.
So i can avoid being knocked off by his awesumness...

I don't have a problem with people in armour and on big bikes riding the easier trails. It's more about the ones that are blasting down overtaking less experienced/confident people without any common decency. And don't get me started on the people who seem to wait around for ages at the start of a section and then decide to go just after the slower group starts so they can overtake them and feel all manly.
If I'm out with a less experienced group I'll often ride at the back as I'm not as easy to pass (due to size, elbows and sheer commitment to line, etc) just so they get to ride a trail in peace and progress without interference.

I've know of at least one person who gave up mountain biking and her main reason was it 'was full of macho bullshit boys acting like t##ts'.

The funniest people are the french dudes on major DH rigs, with loads of body armour and lycra shorts

The way i look at it is as long as everyone is having fun, who cares what people are riding, skill levels or excessive body armour

However, i always have a wry smile when i pass someone who is fully tooled up, yet mincing down the trail

Moreover, since playing on some of the black runs in Chatel last month in the wet - i have total respect for the boys on their big rigs with their utter commitment on some utterly insane trails 🙂

superfli - Member
How did you do on the Champery WC DH track? Tough isnt it! So so steep. Would not like to race it! Did you do the final part after you get to the road? Theres a really nasty drop into the woods there. Must admit, I didnt make that - was end of day though

POSTED 1 DAY AGO # REPORT-POST

Yeah was good man! Made it a bit harder cos it was pissing it down, certainly not the hardest thing I've rode down but was fun passing all the serps who had pushed in front of me at the top cos they were disillusioned cos I didn't have the neck brace or full face on, 😆

One of my best memories of morzine is racing mates down serpentine for a whole afternoon, skidding to cut inside on a berm only to get overtaken next corner. Proper fun. It's not all about gnar and speed.

And on the storm trooper thing, I suppose it depends on how many accidents and broken bones you've had. I don't want any more thank you

[url=

u're faster than me[/url]

Pics or STFU.

Yeah was good man! Made it a bit harder cos it was pissing it down, certainly not the hardest thing I've rode down but was fun passing all the serps who had pushed in front of me at the top cos they were disillusioned cos I didn't have the neck brace or full face on,

Think it was the toughest trail I've ever ridden, I fell off twice (same places as where Rob W said "wheres the fkg line?"!). We didnt see anyone on it as its a bit tucked away - especially the last section over the road, which the locals try to convince you isnt there.

if you have time to put your hands on your face when you fall off down steep technical terrain then I really don't think your going fast enough

Perhaps you're not going technical enough 😉

Wouldn't I be right in saying serpentine is the only route down to that double black with all the drops to berms who's name I forget..

Not sure which Black you mean, but there are 4 or 5 blacks running from the top of the Serpentine

been a while but just had to google the Serp... is that all he is going on about ffs....

I am not bothered by what people are wearing or riding and whatever I hope they are having a really good time. However there is some truth in what the OP is saying. Having returned recently from Morzine, there are a lot of people riding blue and green runs with on full on DH bikes and full armour etc... Many of them were riding very slowly - in fact much more slowly than people ride at more technical UK downhill routes. In the UK I am pretty damn slow on a proper DH course on my all mountain bike - I doubt I would be much faster on a DH bike either. In Morzine I was overtaking some of these guys and that definitely doesn't happen at home! Let me re-emphasise, this was the case and I am as far from a DH god as it gets!

Wysiwyg, the old trail down is still there, but it's shit. So Serpentine is really the only way worth going to get to that trail...... that I also can't remember the name of

Well, on 6inch trail bike, I must confess to always hitting up the blues and greens, many of them are awesome trails. The one on the opposite side of Les Gets, and you're not allowed to pedal. Its a hoot, and they tend to be less chewed up than the 'DH' runs, which are usually ****ed by the time I get there. I like that I'll sail by some guy on DH bike who's just refused the same rock garden for the fifth time. It gives a smug little, 'yeah who's gnar now' moment in my head, even though I know deep down he's hired a bike and never been on more than Dalby before. But hell he's having a go. **** it, it’s a holiday, not a dick measuring exercise.

it’s a holiday, not a dick measuring exercise.

Deleted my comment, because its already been said but betterer 😀

jamj1974 - Member

However there is some truth in what the OP is saying. Having returned recently from Morzine, there are a lot of people riding blue and green runs with on full on DH bikes and full armour etc... Many of them were riding very slowly

Yeah, but... So what? Hard to see what's to complain about, people on blues and greens that aren't very good? People who mostly ride uplifted trails so might as well wear armour and ride a big bike? People who're not very good therefore wear lots of armour because they know they might crash?

There's a different mindset, in the UK if you're a noob you generally buy a cheap hardtail and go and ride at trail centres or round a field. Uplifts are pretty much just for capable enthusiasts. But it's not like that everywhere, and why should it be? They've got it more sorted than us IMO, we'd not be struggling to justify new trails and new uplifts if we were as inclusive. And maybe we'd be getting more people on bikes too, by taking away some of the fitness barriers.