Not sure it's a skills thing tbh though as OP says he corners better on other bikes? Could be suspension set up, or an issue with the actual bike?.
Mibbe worth getting someone that's has a decent eye for a rider watching you riding it and your other bikes in similar corners, see if you're doing anything differently.
nobeer - no worries sorry I thought it was aimed at me - oven is just the same as charity lane pretty much, but narrowe, shorter very very loose and steep
the context is it is steep and rocky, its a fast rocky descent, id imagine its a very intimidating descent if your a newbie, you can mince down it if need be, but the whole point of this thread from what he said was hes lost confidence on it riding it faster, so the things that would help me ride it faster are as above, similar position to that pic in the steeper sections
its not a DH level track, but its all natural rocky blast with a good degree of elevation loss and it does require some level of skill to ride it fast, a lad broke his neck and died on it many years ago as the rocks below threw him off into a wall brick wall, so its very very loose, I know of a few others who've had nasty accidents on it, all good riders, its one of those type tracks
its one of the fastest rockiest tracks around here though that's for sure
‘Weight back’ means different things to different people. Many try to stay as upright as possible while being off the back of the saddle which results in a light front end and being bounced all over. It will often get you down but you’re not really in control at any point. The guy in the picture does have his arse off the back of the saddle but is low and ‘in the bike’ resulting in plenty of weight still available for keeping the front under control.
Low, loose, knees out and chin up!
Yeah video it and post it up 🙂
Have a look at Dirt School on YouTube. Not the same trails but all the same principles.
As above, practice, concentrate on getting the 'attack' position as in the video and you'll soon get it.
Heavy cock - lazer hands
oh, and maybe stick some air in your front tyre - i've had flat tyres with more than 20psi in them 😀 (ignore that if you weigh <10st)
Mmhhh. I have hardtails, also a 29" one and a Bossnut V2 full suspension. And all these bikes are - of course - different. Possible that your 29" bike is indeed one of these extremely stable bikes ... and you 27.5" full suspension is a more playful bike - where you feel the danger of going over the bar in some situations...?
Very possible. And you say you bike a lot.
My - maybe strange - advice: start again learning mtb "like a beginner". Look for youtube training videos and start training again. Ask a friend to watch you or to make a video of your "training".
My guess: you will detect very quickly what's wrong. For you it's difficult to judge your "bike position" - but on video you will see right away what's wrong.
And then it takes 3 weeks maybe to get the convidence back.
Great already: you know that you doing something wrong. Guess in half a year you will be very happy that you bought the full suspension bike and you will bike "on an other level" than with your older, very stable 29 inch bikes.
When I was more of a beginner, and riding a 26” hardtail, I used to approach rock gardens by staying low, somewhat rearwards, heavy feet, light hands, look well ahead and plough through, maybe sure the front wheel was light so it could climb over stuff and wouldn’t hook up and stop dead.
Nowadays I’m on a much slacker, longer full-sus bike but also I pump and jump more. So I’d also come in low, heavy feet but more centred and I’d be looking ahead for braking spots, things to air off and things I want to jump or get very light over. It’s then a sequence of pumping, jumping, skimming, braking, mixed up as the trail requires. My body position is constantly changing as I load and unload the bike.
Lots of great advice here. Plus one for chest low, elbows and knees wide, allow the bike to move under you, remember the rocks and wheels will skitter about under you until they reach a bite point - remaining loose and mobile around the bike helps that happen more smoothly. Sadly missed the chance now but riding in snow is brilliant for teaching you to relax into drifting.
In terms of suspension setup tho, I found this https://www.bikerumor.com/2014/07/24/suspension-setup-series-1-set-your-sag-properly
Explained the parameters and how they feel nicely. Tyre pressure is a funny one, lower is usually good but the fat Albert on my 26 HT rolls horribly if much below 30psi, tho that might be the narrow rims.
[GEEK]The Ft William pic is Brook MacDonald
The terrain shown in the pic is a manmade very short rocky chute/drop you have to scrub speed on or preferably before as the landing/base of the chute is into a FLAT right hand corner. Brook has pre-jumped after scrubbing just enough speed on the straight. You can see this from the fact his wheels are not touching the ground, his body positioning and the fact his bike is matching the angle of the chute. He's chosen to landing at the base of the chute ready to make the turn. There is loose gravel in the corner (not yet in view) when the track is dry but no large loose rocks. This would all make far more sense to you if you knew the straight leading into the chute and the corner after it[/GEEK]
Hope this info helps your discussion.
Party on.
Tried the bottom of the oven again albeit on an xc hardtail 29er which i never really had a problem with however i went down heals down, weight slightly back and loosened my grip and upper body
I felt more confident than ive done in ages so im ready to try again on the 650b 🙂
I must have picked up 3 large rocks though which hit the bike, i dont think there really is a line so maybe unavoidable
Thankyou all very much for your help
