Steep, rocky sections on a hardtail?

[Ed von Schleck]

Hey,

Some of our local trails feature some very steep and rocky parts; I wouldn

[kalisto]

Pretty much same boat at you. If you try to pick a line down some gnar, try not to turn the wheel too much, keep it straight as possible... Or else shit hits the fan.

[blunt boy]

Just do what your doing with less brakes. Best advice I ever got was brake when its easy and roll whe its tough. Control your speed entering the hazzard, let er roll over it and get on the brakes when you're past it.

[Hack On Wheels]

Depending on the section, as much speed as you dare can help to carry you through, and if you can jump over or otherwise avoid the worst parts, do it, You will find that you have to really finesse and work with the bike to get through the sections smoothly. Move the big with your arms and legs to flow with the rough stuff and let your limbs be your suspension as much as possible. Good on you for toughing it out and working to improve, many people like me take the easy out of a full suspension.

[TheGiggler]

Originally Posted by blunt boy

Just do what your doing with less brakes. Best advice I ever got was brake when its easy and roll whe its tough. Control your speed entering the hazzard, let er roll over it and get on the brakes when you're past it.

this is VERY good advice for any bike, but even more so on a hardtail.

on a hardtail, i find that when i'm on the back break i feel every bump in a big way. but when i'm able to only use the back break where the trail is smooth, things feel soooo much better. on a hardtail, when possible, i tend to use a lot more front break because of this.

hardtail riding on some trails can be a little rough, to say the least. but keep practising, keep looking for smoother lines (you can always find new and better lines) and experiment with breaking only where it's smooth ...

[Neal]

First off, let's all remember the basics. Hardtail riding is good. I love passing a fatty on a dually going down a trail [or up a trail for that matter]

Like Hack on Wheels said, jump it if you can land it - or - hang your ass off the back of the bike, knees bent and suck up the badness - or - bend your elbows and knees like crazy and hang on.

Any way ya slice it, you're doing the right thing. PA rocks.

[LeeLau]

Like HackonWheels said, stay loose and finesse your way around.

Vision lines that let you go around and over things and not through them. Really relax your upper body = don't get too far back or your arms will be stretched out and you won't be able to absorb with your elbows.

Also absorb with knees.

Hope that helps

[smoochy]

the smoother you ride, the faster you will go.
think smooth and you will ride smooth.
in the same boat as the giggler, all other comments and my own are true for any riding, squish or no. on a hardtail you just have to accept that you will get tossed around a little bit more - don't let it hamper your enjoyment and life goes on.

[Smoke]

Check the Endless Biking article on the main page, it explains a lot about centered stance. Basically, get forward, flex the arms and legs, and crouch down low WITHOUT sitting. Sort of like you're taking a constipated crap in an outhouse.

Always keep your weight at 90 degrees to the slope, so if it gets steeper, get on the front more. If you tend to get out of control and then take big endo's, you're probably leaning back. Bikes are always backwards like that.

If you're really stumped, pick up the book that Lopes put out last year. IT's awesome and right on the money for technique.

[TheGiggler]

the other hardtail specific suggestion that works for me, is that it helps to ride the hardtail with a group of riders who are also on hardtails. if you are riding with a crew of fast people on duallies, it can be pretty tough to try and keep pace.

whereas riding by yourself or a slower crew you won't be pressured to ride fast, and thus, ride a heck of a lot smoother. hardtail you really need to focus on smoothness and forget about going fast (tho going fast will come with smoothness, but not vice versa).

ahhh, all this talk of hardtails makes me want to do some hard time ...

[Silk]

Originally Posted by TheGiggler

the other hardtail specific suggestion that works for me, is that it helps to ride the hardtail with a group of riders who are also on hardtails. if you are riding with a crew of fast people on duallies, it can be pretty tough to try and keep pace.

whereas riding by yourself or a slower crew you won't be pressured to ride fast, and thus, ride a heck of a lot smoother. hardtail you really need to focus on smoothness and forget about going fast (tho going fast will come with smoothness, but not vice versa).

ahhh, all this talk of hardtails makes me want to do some hard time ...

This suggestion from a guy that burns down CBC faster on a hardtail than a dually!

I got the Foreplay all read with a new X9 drivetrain giggles, lets ride some fromme night action!

[TheGiggler]

Originally Posted by Silk

I got the Foreplay all read with a new X9 drivetrain giggles, lets ride some fromme night action!

sounds good, but, i'm scared of the dark. what happens if your light goes out during a night ride?

[Silk]

Originally Posted by TheGiggler

sounds good, but, i'm scared of the dark. what happens if your light goes out during a night ride?

halogen backup

[Jay T.]

when i ride my ht on trails i ride it like my fully, the thought i am on a ht never crosses my mind, so just pick your line and dont let the fact you dont have rear suspension cross your mind

[Air Supplier]

Yah, its kinda hard on a hardtail, when I had a hardtail I always looked for the easiest route around. Now since I have a full sus. I look for the funnest line (more sketchy or not). Another thing I suggest is not to grab your brakes alot. When I see a ride down, I sometimes don't use my brakes (or feather them lightly) so that I can gluide over the sketchyness.