31st March Public Jumps and Drops

Everyone arrived by 10 oclock, so we started our session with the skills check, filling in the missing skills within each riders skill set, and also made some set up changes to their bikes. We moved onto the drops, where we explained the importance of having a complete mental skills set to accompany their physical one. Soon everyone was riding off the largest drop, some feeling air beneath their wheels for the first time. We then worked on a bit of cornering with an exercise using a grassy slope, and then started to link their new techniques together, linking drops into corners. We next worked on jumping, we began on a fly out at first, and quickly moved onto the table top once everyone had the technique. Here we managed their speed individually to start working them across the jump. Some even rode the gap jump too. Our session ended on the pump and jump, where we worked on pumping in order to jump certain sections, and how to carry speed through the whole trail.

Nice one guys!

Tony (@ukbikeskills)

Nath (@ukbike_nath)

Building Shane's confidence in Jumping

We began our session as always with the skills check, where i discovered i needed to work mainly on looking, as well as body position in order to complete his set of riding skills. I also made the set up changes he needed to add that extra bit of control to his riding. We shortly moved onto drops, where he used his mental skills set in order to soon be landing off the largest drop perfectly. I then worked with him on linking drops into corners, where he used his new cornering technique to carry his speed through a corner. I moved him further up the trail, to link in a fly out and a step into his previously ridden section, and finally showed him top sections, involving a rock garden, and bermed, flat and switchbacked turns. I showed him dropping in steeper stuff, and the truth in the correct body position. We next moved over the the table top and gap jump, where i managed his speed, and soon was landing comfortably for the first time over both a 6ft table top and gap jump. We moved onto the pump and jump trail, where we worked on pumping through and jumping other sections to have flow through the whole trail, and we linked this with the two corners at the end. Our session finished on the ladders where i taught him control whilst being off the ground on his bike.

We celebrated a great session by enjoying a pint in a sunny pub garden. 

Nath (@ukbike_nath)

Tony (@ukbikeskills)

building nick's skills sets

Nick was bought this session as a present for his 40th birthday and today was the day we arranged to meet and awesome weather greeted us. The skills check showed me what was missing in his riding and I made a set up change to help correct his body position and looking skills. Once corrected all that was needed to work on were his mental skills and applying both skills sets to different techniques out on the trails.

We began with drops and Nick's confidence grew as he began landing perfectly, he rode the first two drops but his mental skills didn't respond positively to the 3rd larger drop at this time. However as the session progressed we returned to the drop where he rode it with ease and a big "yahoo!" as he landed.

On to the singletrack and we worked on cornering heavily and linking all the sections within the trail using line choice and braking areas. We worked on pumping, absorbing, jumping and drops. And while linking the 14 sections together Nick found himself naturally becoming fast rather than trying to be fast. We moved to jumping tabletops and used the 6ft tabletop for this and within a few short adjustments he was clearing the tabletop perfectly with a massive smile on his face. I knew he was tiring but we still had some time together so we moved on to the pump and jump trail. He was now choosing sections on the trail to either pump or jump and knowing why he made these choices, as well as carrying speed through the final berms on the trail. Even clearing a 9ft tabletop halfway down the trail comfortably. And after a few more runs, mental tiredness hit home and we brought the session to a close with me giving a demonstration of the same skillset on the high woodwork at Herts.