Mark and Jamie's 2 to 1 skills session

Mark and Jamie made the short journey from Essex and on arrival we chatted about their expectations and aspirations before finally getting started with the skills check. I found between them they had body, feet and looking missing skills and I made the set up changes to correct some of this before moving on, as ever to the drops.
In no time at all they were both riding all 3 drops and using their new mental skills too.



We moved onto the skills trail and I worked on pumping and connecting to the trails energy before linking it to the following berm and flat corner. before long the rock garden and two more corners sailed past and I moved onto the fly out to show why their skill set applied here also. They were now riding 9 sections and controlling their speed in the correct areas. Any errors were self diagnosed now as they knew why It went wrong.

I worked hard on linking drops into corners and the associated line choices and before long they were riding the 14 sections on the trail smoother and faster than they previous could have.


We moved onto the 6ft tabletop to do something they had never did previous to today, jump!
To their amazement they were flying through the air and landing effortlessly.

They even moved over to the gap jump side and happily rode that also a few times before mentally tired, they called an end to the session and I gave them a riding demo of the same skill set I teach in use in my own riding on the herts woodwork.
Awesome session!

Ian's singletrack session pt 1

Ian came arrived as arranged and I knew from our emails that I had to work both on his physical skills but also his mental skills too. I found that Ian needed looking and body position faults corrected in his cornering technique and also in anything straight on so I made the necessary set up changes and set to work.
This session was to focus on cornering and linking sections of singletrack together to enhance flow. I worked on pumping and using the energy to maintain speed on the trail. We linked the bumps at the top of the trail to the following berm and switchback corners and after a body positioning correction exercise he began to ride them smoother and faster than before . I added in the rock garden and another berm and switchback turn and once again worked on Ian's looking and body position before moving onto the next segment of trail which contains a fly out jump and corner with a step on the exit. It surprised Ian how his new skill set made things simpler and also were more effective. Now Ian was riding 9 sections and the top sections that we began with were really going well as he was moving through conscious reaction into unconcious action. lastly, I worked on rolling drop offs into corners and I worked on the effect of line choice.
The session ended after a few complete runs of the trail and I am really looking forward to seeing Ian for part 2 in June!
High5!

Finding Malc's mojo

Malc made his way to me from worthing and over a coffee we chatted about his time as a GB athlete and American footballer etc and I explained that I could use such experience to develop his riding which he thought was weird.
The skills check revealed looking and body positioning faults and I made the set up changes too which had a profound effect on him.



Malc has never got any airtime before and when I said we will start with the drop technique he was worried, but that soon eased as he landed perfect 1st time and that set the tone for the session. I worked on the 4 mental questions I teach and the joy of riding was returning to malc in from of my eyes.
We moved onto the skills trail and began working on linking all fourteen sections on the trail together. I began with advanced pumping as Malc's uptake was very fast and he used this free speed to ride the berm and flat corner faster than he ever thought he could. I added in the rock garden, which he said look scary but he soon rode them and linked the following berm and switchback corner in too! Things were really coming on.
I moved to the fly out jump and showed why his new skill set applied to get air on this too and after a couple of runs, he was in the air comfortably and controlled.

I worked on linking his new drop technique to the cornering technique and also line choice and Malc was loving it, linking his largest ever drop into a berm with ease.
We rode the trail end to end and with each run he was smoother and faster than before.
We had a coffee break as he was feeling mentally drained and after Malc called an end to session with a big grin on his face. An awesome session with a cool guy and I can't wait to hear of his future rides.
High5!

A new beginning for Mark

Mark is a triathlete and wanting to get into riding mtb too. He decided to get some coaching and his path led him to me. On meeting he said to treat him as a total beginner but i explained I teach everyone the same way. We began and the skills check showed me what was missing in his riding and I made some set up changes to enhance the corrected skills further.
I began with drops and Mark's new looking ,feet and body positioning really made the difference. I discovered that he was a natural right foot forward rider even though he tried to ride left foot. once corrected he never missed a beat on the drops, riding all 3 easily and with a control he had never experienced before.


We moved onto the skills trail and I focused heavily on his cornering. I used a few correction techniques to enhance his body positioning and soon he was riding fluidly.
I covered pumping as always and we applied both his mental and physical skill sets in all the 14 sections contained along the trail. Pumping was linked to flat, bermed, switchback and off camber turns, rock gardens, steps, fly out jumps and drops. Mark worked really hard on getting it all right and it paid dividends. I broke the trail into bite sized chunks so we could concentrate on small areas before linking them all together. Mark began to struggle with the final corner and I could see that mental tiredness was fast approaching and after a few more complete runs I called an end to a real fun session. Great riding Mark and I look forward to your updates.
High5!

Smiler and Hannah's return

Having coached both Hannah and Jo (smiler) before, this time they wanted to come up for a 2 to 1 session and even Jo munden popped up to practice after her sessions and lend support.
The skills check Revealed that they had worked on their previous session and I uncovered an area in corners that needed work but also found that I needed to work on their psychological skill sets.



We went back to the drop technique and using only the first drop I worked on their control which enhanced confidence and commitment and from there we moved onto to our main focus, corners and pumping.



I demonstrated advanced pumping and gaining speed through the trail and we used this speed to ride the following berm and flat corner. Their new body positioning took time to get the hang of but soon they were smiling as they rode and the smile never left their faces.
I added a rock garden, a feature that had previously given them concern and now they rolled over them with control and confidence, linking the following berm and switchback too.
After a break we moved onto the fly out and I showed why the skill set could be used to pump and absorb slopes to stick to the ground instead of taking off to maintain speed.

Lastly, I showed them the end of the trail and I worked hard online choice and brake control when linking drop offs into corners before it was time for us to ride the trail end to end a few times. The control and speed was awesome to see as they flowed through sections and any error they could identify without me needing to say. The girls rode the trail individually and also as a group with Jo joining in too to replicate trail riding conditions and it was awesome for me just to see their confidence go sky high.
The session ended as they grew mentally tired and we ended the session to @hasbean coffee and A walnut and coffee cake made from the master cake maker, smiler.

Chris and Anita's 2 to 1 session

Chris and Anita turned up at the skills area as arranged and over a coffee we chatted about their xc racing and their aspirations for the session.
The skills check revealed everything I needed to know about their missing skills and i set to work.
We began with the drop technique and although neither had previously got air comfortably before they both flew into the air and began landing perfectly as their new looking and body positions took effect. They applied their mental skill sets to ride all 3 drops to whoops of joy from Anita.




Chris was loving the ease of it all too.


We moved onto the skills trail and I began working on footwork, looking and body positioning in corners too. Pumping, rock gardens, steps, drops and fly out jumps were linked with bermed, switchback, off camber and flat corners.


I worked on both taking off on the fly out jump and also pumping it to stay on the ground and speed up. I worked hard on line choice when cornering and linking drops into corners and in time they went from rolling into the corner to dropping into it.

In time they were riding the entire trail end to end and faster and smoother than before. Each run, although there were errors was faster than the previous and any mistakes were recognized by the riders as they now knew why it ever felt wrong.
To end our session I moved onto the steeps and applying the mental skills to decide whether to ride them or not .
The session ended with a riding demonstration by myself so they could see the exact same skill set in use in my own riding.
Great session!

A 1 to 1 for Greg

Greg turned up as arranged for his session and over a coffee we chatted about his aspirations with his riding and I gave him an outline for our day. During the skills check I discovered the missing skills and found he had perfect foot positioning but had body positioning and looking faults.



We moved onto the drops and applying his new mental and physical skill set. The effect was quite profound as he was landing perfectly on all 3 drops and the smile on his face never left.
We moved onto the skills trail and worked on linking the fourteen sections on it together.
Flat, bermed, switchback and off camber turns were linked to pump bumps, drops, rock gardens, fly out jumps and steps.

I showed why the skill set applies in every technique we covered and that included pumping, which Greg got to grips with and linked it to half the trail and his new skills meant he was starting to travel fast!
As we moved down the trail piece by piece we always added the previous sections to it and before long we were linking drops into corners too.



It soon came time to ride the trail end to end and Greg got faster and faster but always in control. Any errors were identified by himself now.
We moved off the trail to the 6ft tabletop and I worked hard on Greg's mental skills to enable him after a while to sail into the air and land on the transition, 6ft away.

I then used part of another trail to develop his pumping the trail to generate speed to jump and he really connected with it and his speed was increasing as it should with each pump.
To end our session I showed why his new skills could be used to ride over logs/fallen trees. Our session ended after over 5 hours with smiles all round. Great improvements Greg and I can't wait to hear your updates on your future rides.
High5!