silverclaws
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Granny gear, sit in the saddle and just peddle, as to the nose lifting up, not much chance of that, it's a Rigid GT. If no go, get off and walk the more technical the walk, sling the bike over the shoulder.
Steep technical climb - how you tackle them?
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old skool babe
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Weaving side to side will help...as in zig zag from side to side..
Landrovers do it for traction... And a low centre of gravity
Will make the journey longer....but will help
Used to work on some trails on ridgeway.
Landrovers do it for traction... And a low centre of gravity
Will make the journey longer....but will help
Used to work on some trails on ridgeway.
old skool babe
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Worth a try i say...
Wish i had places like that.. Looks very nice.
Especially coming down...
Full armour and go for it.
Wish i had places like that.. Looks very nice.
Especially coming down...
Full armour and go for it.
Ride that route the other way round, so the mothertrucker of a climb turns into a pant-browning downhill
seriously though, it's about balancing power and weight distribution, if you really want to beat the hill then practice it... Lots!
You may find you can conquer the climb eventually, just remember though that sometimes you do get hills that are "unclimbable" or it may actually be faster to get off and push up.
seriously though, it's about balancing power and weight distribution, if you really want to beat the hill then practice it... Lots!
You may find you can conquer the climb eventually, just remember though that sometimes you do get hills that are "unclimbable" or it may actually be faster to get off and push up.
Pick a route, avoiding the steps and loose gravel as much as possible, pull the front wheel up over any significant obstacles, sometimes the hit is enough to stall you, or throw the front wheel up into a wheelie which veers off to one side, as said by others ease off where you know traction is limited.
Don't try to hard, go up in the easiest gear at 70% effort (if possible of course) leaving reserves for control and manaeuvering the bike.
If (when) you stand up it's important to keep your legs pedalling cicles rather then jumping on top of each power stroke and letting your weight do the work, this is a vital tactic to avoiding wheelspin. If you
have got front suspension, try and keep your upper body as still as you can, if your forks are bouncing up and down like mad then you're using your weight instead of pedalling circles.
Depending on how steep it is you may not be able to sit down and keep the front wheel down for any of it, having to stand all the way. This is really hard work so practice standing up and pedalling circles for a duration long enough to get you to the top of said hill, even if it's top gear on the flat to get your legs used to that riding position.
Full sus is often not great on the steepest of steeps, with your weight pushing backwards due to the hill, the rear compresses and the front raises (without lockout) effectively raising the bars making it nigh on impossible to keep the front down, I find they can bog down eating all your effort into the suspension instead of managing to go forwards at 3mph, give me a rigid for hill climbing any day.
edit - Don't forget to breathe, it's easy to find yourself holding your breath whilst concentrating, I did this for the first 10m of a climbing wall once, suffice to say i didn't make the remaining 10m!!!
Tyres - Full fat knobblies are the order of the day, worn or semi slicks, give up accept you're ride average will be faster despite the walk up the hill.
Don't try to hard, go up in the easiest gear at 70% effort (if possible of course) leaving reserves for control and manaeuvering the bike.
If (when) you stand up it's important to keep your legs pedalling cicles rather then jumping on top of each power stroke and letting your weight do the work, this is a vital tactic to avoiding wheelspin. If you
have got front suspension, try and keep your upper body as still as you can, if your forks are bouncing up and down like mad then you're using your weight instead of pedalling circles.
Depending on how steep it is you may not be able to sit down and keep the front wheel down for any of it, having to stand all the way. This is really hard work so practice standing up and pedalling circles for a duration long enough to get you to the top of said hill, even if it's top gear on the flat to get your legs used to that riding position.
Full sus is often not great on the steepest of steeps, with your weight pushing backwards due to the hill, the rear compresses and the front raises (without lockout) effectively raising the bars making it nigh on impossible to keep the front down, I find they can bog down eating all your effort into the suspension instead of managing to go forwards at 3mph, give me a rigid for hill climbing any day.
edit - Don't forget to breathe, it's easy to find yourself holding your breath whilst concentrating, I did this for the first 10m of a climbing wall once, suffice to say i didn't make the remaining 10m!!!
Tyres - Full fat knobblies are the order of the day, worn or semi slicks, give up accept you're ride average will be faster despite the walk up the hill.
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No idea as I tend to just ride and for some reason get up things, it helps to listen to Andy's profanities while you do it.
I only ever go into the lowest gear if it is really needed, i.e. I'm knackered. I find too low and it's much harder if it's technical and a bit slippy/bumpy. Real technical stuff and you actual use your body to get the bike up and over objects. Like a route, you don't just pedal through it, you'll find the bike stops or the tyre slips. So pull the bike over it with a quick jerk action sort of thing, but that looks a bit different to that slope.
Oh and always have a camera with you, that we when you stop 'it is for pictures'
I only ever go into the lowest gear if it is really needed, i.e. I'm knackered. I find too low and it's much harder if it's technical and a bit slippy/bumpy. Real technical stuff and you actual use your body to get the bike up and over objects. Like a route, you don't just pedal through it, you'll find the bike stops or the tyre slips. So pull the bike over it with a quick jerk action sort of thing, but that looks a bit different to that slope.
Oh and always have a camera with you, that we when you stop 'it is for pictures'
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I find the best way of climbing stuff like that (and do you really think it's technical - doesn't look it!) is to be the rider of a Rocky Mountain Experience. I kid you not, the traction uphill my bike has is better than my modern Specialized FSR linkage full sus bike. And I'm using old style tyres too.
Basically, move your weight round so your rear tyre doesn't slip, then as long as you can keep pedalling you'll get to the top eventually. I see a lot of people out of the saddle over the front of the bike but if you do that the first slippy bit stops you flat, sometimes with your nuts on the stem... :shock:
Basically, move your weight round so your rear tyre doesn't slip, then as long as you can keep pedalling you'll get to the top eventually. I see a lot of people out of the saddle over the front of the bike but if you do that the first slippy bit stops you flat, sometimes with your nuts on the stem... :shock:
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