What's the best tactic after falling off at age 46?

Dignitas sounding good in maybe 30 or so years …Inshallah. I reckon I’d rather leave my loot to the kids to enjoy than spend it on £100/night nursing home to get my ass wiped.

I think the problem with the table top is that rather than doing the usual smooth glide in, I accelerated onto it, causing a bit of wobble…

The truth is I like the feeling of relief after I’ve landed from a jump but I ain’t no natural. I still can’t do a decent manual, and I stick to reds, so maybe I’ve just had some insight….ie I’m no MTB talent but it still makes me smile, keeps me fit-ish, and allows me to fiddle in the garage.

You’re right, I’m in the public sector – after all I live in Scotland where most people are. But, I am self-employed in the public sector, if that makes sense, so I do have to pay for my stand-in. It’s just that I can’t drive or get my hand above nipple height.

The tech questions were mainly predicated on the are full sudsers easier/safer/kinder for 40+ debate.

mikewsmith – Member
…Sometimes getting a bit of air is the way out of the nasty crash not the cause

I’d regard that as going too fast to react in time for emergent circumstances.

My view is that on a full suss you need to go faster to get the same buzz as a rigid- fwiw I’ve just back from a quick blast with my son and fell off twice but low speed tetchy falls not otb ones

In case its not been mentioned

Rule #5

late in … but e) … jumps seem to be compulsory in most of the new built trails these days, so if you are planning on riding that sort of stuff then go get some training. You don’t have to go big, just get the confidence to ride them fluidly/ judge your speed etc. The fact that you kinda already know what you did wrong means that you probably are better at it than you are giving yourself credit for. And besides we can’t let the younguns have all the fun 🙂

Just ride. Everyone who jumps ends up **** in their 50’s/60’s.

Future-proof yourself. I dont get the obsession with grown men (20’s+) learning to jump = sad grab at youth.

Act you age 😆
At this point in life forget about sus and big discs and forks and go for aesthetics instead.
I cannot offroad for toffee so my bike is for pottering about going from A- B and occasionally stopping off at P(Pfor Pub 😀 )
So i ride a mirror finished titanium. with Sram XX/XO drivetrain,Hope tech X2 brakes with full red ano and Ti upgrades. Titanium Chris King headset,hope pro 2’s on DT swiss rims,Hope skewers,stem and clamp in ano red and a red ano USE sus post.
The manitou r7 pro isnt the best at just under £400 but it does the job and is pretty light
I may not ride well but at least the bike looks fing amazing 😀

the more grey hair you have means the less air you need to get :D, at the end of the day riding with your boy is where it is just ride but dont go daft. Stick with the forks/bike as it is just ride and enjoy it.

Sounds like you may have a rotator cuff injury or seperated shoulder I have had both and had simular lack of movement issues have a google and possibly see your doc you might want to get on the ibuprofen and ice packs. I have no medical training at all other than some first aid years ago so take my advice/comments with caution but I would advice getting it checked out

When you are strong enough, go back and work out what went wrong. Then try again. Oh, and get well. Ibuprofen and paracetamol and you best friends at this point.

Get some physio quick – I piled onto my shoulder in a CX race and had similar symptoms. It got a lot better on its own but then just wouldn’t improve more than 80%. I had some physio and wished I’d just got it at the start rather than waiting. Oh and don’t sleep on that side – it really helps.

46 – get the full suss and the skills course before you get any older!

I'”m 47 and I went OTB about 5 weeks ago, still hurts a bit, but you need to just get on with it.

With 15 years of karting and now taking this MTB stuff up, my body has had quite a beating. You do take longer to heal the older you get, but grit your teeth and keep going.

BTW I have a full susser and a Soul

Go and see the jedi, he coaches blokes well into their sixties..

i did more or less the same thing 2 yrs ago with my son, i said to my son watch this, tried to jump over a gap on the mountain bike ended up in a lump on my arse, two cracked ribs, but my son hasnt laughed so much for ages , so its not all bad, as an ex-rugby player im used to all the aches n pains, my solution loads of pain killers, when you get to my age 52 you tend not to bounce too well, but i always say that if you dont get injured every now and then you aint doing it fast enough, it may take longer to recover but at least it gives someone a good laugh

(e) and (f) take it a bit easier… jump the stuff you are confident you can jump and give things a miss if you aren’t 99% confident. No you no longer bounce you need to take fewer risks… no no risks, but fewer of them.

I’m 52 grab as much “air ” as I can, nothing huge, but it hurts enough when it goes wrong 😀

Get back on the bike asap & give Jedi a call, worth the money and the time, he can teach an old dog new tricks. B-)

he can teach an old dog new tricks.

Keep hearing this but how?

I have done a skills day with a well known/respected company. Last weekend spent some time with mates who were “sessioning” jumps, still cannot get my head around doing anything higher than a kerb 🙄

Approaching 60 with knackered ankle, knees, back, have broken collar bone and scaphoid in the past and just generally stiff/worn out all over 😕

Auld age dont come on its own 😉

I’m 46 as well, I’d work on the theory that one fall ‘that bad’ in say 25 years means you’ll be 71 before the next one and then you’d probably think about giving up.

I badly broke several ribs just before Christmas coming off on some black ice. This went on to a bad chest infection and I spent Christmas Day on Morphine, unable to help out my wife or lift my kids. I actually healed pretty quickly but for the first time I’ve decided to wear a bit of body amour and slow down a bit. Nothing could have stopped by fall but its screwed my fitness up completely.

I’d stop trying to get air and get some coaching to get yourself out of those suprise air situations

hora – Member
Just ride. Everyone who jumps ends up **** in their 50’s/60’s.

Future-proof yourself…

Well said. I’m 67, and none of my old riding friends are still capable of riding, and it’s been that way for over 10 years.

Crashing takes a price from you that you won’t be paying for many years, and it’s not worth it. Don’t sacrifice tomorrow’s mobility – it’s really depressing seeing a friend who was adventurous, daring and highly skilled need assistance to get out of a chair.

The last thing you want in life is to end up in a care home while you still have a mind.

?Nice one! I hope I’m riding in 12 years time too,

I dont get the obsession with grown men (20’s+) learning to jump = sad grab at youth.

Or maybe they just realise how fun it is? Jumps are the best thing about biking!

I broke my ankle a couple of years ago stepping out of the front door.

Hasn’t stopped me using doors.

Always ride like the Devil himself is chasing you.

I fully intend to deliver a shattered and broken body too the furnace.

I dont get the obsession with grown men (20’s+) learning to jump = sad grab at youth.

The important bit of that statement “I dont get”

By jumping do you mean bmx/dirt jumps or just launching off normal trail obstacles?

Ming the Merciless – Member
Always ride like the Devil himself is chasing you.

I fully intend to deliver a shattered and broken body too the furnace.

Hate to keep harping on about this – kind of sucks the fun out of riding.

But the odds are that shattered and broken body means you’ll spend the last 10-15 years of your life with limited mobility, and that really really sucks. Take a look at those old guys tottering around with sticks – they weren’t always like that.

You may bounce when you’re young, but ride like a teenager in your 40s and you break.

That’ll be my last word on this subject – promise. 🙂

My retirement is going to be shit anyway, so I’ll enjoy myself now if you don’t mind.

I’m 44, currently recovering from a broken knee(skiing). The previously separated shoulder (MX), broken acromion(MX), torn ACL/MCL(MX), unresolved plantar fasciitis(snowboarding), and broken lateral malleolus(front door!) do ache a bit, but, and here’s the kicker, I enjoy doing things where the consequence of getting it wrong has a price.

I’m not going to plod around the trails ‘just in case’ if life can throw a curve ball whilst I’m doing something sensible.

However, this is my choice and as such is only one of many valid viewpoints, so do whatever feels right for you 🙂

“I’m 56 & came off on Good Friday, landed on me nut & hurt my neck & I’m still not right.”

Hopefully you’ll be OK for the Scottish?

epicyclo I bumped into a mountain biker ontop of one of the descents in the Peaks. He grumbled that he had a bit of a chesty cough that morning. I asked him how old he was…..then told him right now my Father in Law was the same age and hasn’t left his house for two years and counting.

My retirement is going to be shit anyway

It’ll be even worse if you can’t look after your grandchildren or even walk to the shop for a paper due to pain/subsequent weight issues etc. Being **** in your early 60’s will suck balls.

I was told one thing as a child, listen to your body. If I don’t think I can ride something now or it may gone wrong- I wont do it. Leave jumps to kids. Does that mean I lead a sedatory/dull life? No.

Same with drinking, why do some people in their 40’s think its ‘living it’ to be sinking 20yr old’s levels of alcohol?

You may bounce when you’re young, but ride like a teenager in your 40s and you break

I think this is a brilliant line, and very relevant to my 47yr old riding style too !

I’m 47, when I fall off now its more a thud rather than a youthful bounce..

Two rules ( regardless of age )

Know your limits

and

Use it or lose it

I’m 41. Hit a tabletop way too fast the week before Hit the North. Landed on head (2 chipped teeth and written off helmet – always wear a helmet kids!!), hand (deep, deep bruising) and knees (deepx2 bruising and cut to the bone). For me the lesson learnt was a) don’t take risks the week before an event you’ve been looking forward to for months, thereby denying yourself the opportunity to compete and b) learn how to jump better, so skills course is on the agenda for May.

To the OP I’d say carry on and take some lessons!

At the end of the day, we all do what we do for a multitude of different reasons. For me, learning how to balance and control a bike in the air is an integral part of mountain biking, that will actually help to improve my wheels-on-ground riding. That and I love the feeling of flying 😀

If I wanted to seriously mitigate against the prospect of incapacity in my old age I’d stick to exercise bikes in a gym, but life’s too short. That’s not to do down those advocating a more cautious approach. I guess at the end of the day you don’t understand those who want to go further to get thrills and improve their skills and in turn, I don’t fully understand people who take up an adrenaline-fuelled sport like mountain biking and then always ride well within their limits. Seems like a contradiction. Point is though that we’re both right. We’re all different and if you enjoy what you’re doing and it works for you, just keep right on doing it regardless..

funkrodent all I care about is flow. Nothing else. Flow is amazing.

hora – Member
funkrodent all I care about is flow. Nothing else. Flow is amazing.

And small amounts of air makes flow even better (trust me on that one if you don’t want to try)

Small amounts isn’t jumping though. A couple of hours tuition isn’t going to magically change someone with a certain amount of natural talent on a bike. Its dangerous-territory that encroaches on over-confidence, something will go wrong after a training session. No your limits. Live life to the full within them. Peace.

I’m more than happy to go with the flow..

No your limits. Live life to the full within them. Peace.

just keep pushing them limits otherwise it soon becomes a very small envelope…………

47 with props rugby neck aka two compressed vertabre, fused lower spine due to rugby, knackered right knee due to rugby all prior to 25 years old. Learnt to ride a bike at 25 yrs old never every rode before, back and neck take some months to recover at times but having been told not to bother running again at 22,one major factor to my health is active sport and exercise, bloodflow and conditioning to maintain what I have left, so i think we should push ourselves and agree with use it or lose!

Keep jumping but learn properly

Preserve what you have? Are you unhappy with your current riding standard?

I’m not- if it means I can keep my current ability long into the next two decades I’ll be happy with that.

I’m never going to be anywhere near a podium, ever. Learn to accept who you are. Revel in yourself. Men become bitter later in life when they feel begrudged, wronged etc. Be happy in your own skin.

I think you’re over thinking it a bit! Keeping your wheels on the ground all the time can get boring which is when its time to start pushing it a bit again. I’ve had the “never jumping again” thing after some bad crashes but always end up coming back and pushing my limits again. Its just no fun otherwise. And I still haven’t had a proper crash since my coaching day despite pushing myself a lot . When you know how and why you went wrong you can be a lot more relaxed which then opens up a whole new level of fun.

Then again I guess it depends whether you’re the kind of rider who likes to get some miles in and explore the countryside, or that who does it for the fun and adrenaline rush kinda thing. I was always into bmx so fall into the latter category. If I want to do miles and see the country I’ll do it on my road bike!

All I can remember about my days BMX was a world of pain involving laying on the floor holding my nuts for an hour.

By contrast as a kind I found investigating abandoned water works/building sites/homes mucho …..safer 😆