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Hi,
I was curious how most of you learned the techniques necessary for all those obstacles in cyclocross. From another racer? From observation? A camp? Obviously, practice makes perfect, but I was just curious. What do you think is the best way to learn? Thanks!
If you have someone in your area who is a racer, learning from them is the best way. I am lucky in that where I live, I have a large group of 'cross racers from whom to learn. Once you learn the basic moves, it takes A LOT of practice to get it right (I'm still working on that 4 years later!).
A clinic is also a GREAT place to learn these skills - see if your local shop puts one on or knows of one in the area.
There are some videos you could watch, but I think having the first hand experience is the best.
SheFly
I watched videos that were linked on this site, then went and practiced on my own in a field. I'm still not very good at it, but it was enough to get me through my first season!
I went to a clinic offered by some local racers. It was pretty funny watching the guy demonstrate mounts and dismounts on my dinky little bike.... he could pretty much walk right over top of the whole thing...
My hubby taught me - I'm still much better getting on than off - sometimes I just can't come through with my leg as I dismount - but I'm kind of a spazz.
Years ago as I was looking for instructions online I happened upon this slightly goofy site called Big Shark. I read carefully and practiced what it said. The stuff they said to do really worked. It was hard at first (I missed the mount more than a few of times. ouch), but after a couple of seasons it was easy.
BF taught me in a soccer field. It was really hard at first--only managed to do it once without falling that first day. Then for a few weeks I would go down to that field occasionally to practice on my own. It only took me a couple days to figure it out, but all this time I was riding very slowly. I think it's not so hard if you start decelerating with plenty of room to spare.
Unfortunately I never got "proficient". The dismounts were by far my weakest area when racing. I would have to slow WAY down prior to the barrier so that i was comfortable dismounting. I would always get passed at the barriers :rolleyes: And i'm sure it didn't help that i crashed in my first race by botching a dismount.
BUT! It was still awesome! And this year i'm going to practice practice practice until I can do it at speed. If fact, I may start practicing tomorrow--after all, CX season is just around the corner :D
certainly would be cool if I could possibly dismount while bike is rolling along. somehow my short legs and type of bike (more upright) seems less likely I could do it without crashing my groin or leg on saddle somewhere..
Like probably many here, I did do dismounts on a rolling step-through bike, as child for getting on and off.
You could probably do it with a little practice - your leg goes over the rear wheel, not through the middle, so the limiting factor isn't the height of the front of your bike, but the back, so having an upright bike shouldn't make too much of a difference. I will admit I am hesitant to try it on my bikes with larger wheels though... (my cross bike has 24"ers.... I'm too small to ride a normal sized cross bike). If you practice on grass it doesn't really hurt much if you fall down.Quote:
Originally Posted by shootingstar
I did my first successful dismount, today--woot! It was so fun/easy that I did it 5 times, just to make sure that it wasn't just beginner's luck. I just did the basic dismount--not going to mess around with trying to get my left leg between my right and the bike, just yet.
Mounts...not sure about that, yet. I have such stubby legs that I can't figure out how to get my right thigh up on the saddle while standing still...the thought of trying to do that while moving doesn't seem possible. I have a couple of short-legged friends who also ride 'cross, so I'm going to pick their brains.
Hooray! And from someone who has been racing 'cross since 2006 - forget about the leg between bike and other leg dismount. I only ever use the basic, and it serves me well on the 'cross bike and MTB! The mounts are more of a challenge - start at a walking pace before speeding it up.Quote:
Originally Posted by zoom-zoom
SheFly
(I'm dismounting to the left, I referred to my legs in reverse, above, I see...)Quote:
Originally Posted by SheFly
What sort of mount do you use? A fellow shortie friend of mine somehow manages to clip her left foot in while moving, then hops herself up onto the saddle, I think. I can barely get my foot clipped-in from a standstill and when I'm road riding I clip my right foot in first and unclip my left at stops. I think this is going to mess with my head for trying the sort of mount that she does.
Another question is re: pedal systems. I have Shimano 2-bolt SPD (I think m520). I really struggle finding my pedals and frequently end up pedaling for a while without being clipped-in...is it me, or the pedals, or both?
I noticed the reversal ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by zoom-zoom
I do NOT try to clip in before mounting. Like you, I use SPD pedals. The way I explain it to people from a walking perspective is: Step (left), Step (right) Step (left and kind of push off) and Over (with right). You want the inside of your right thigh to brush the saddle. What I learned this year, is that when you are doing this, you want the bike to be IN FRONT of you, otherwise, you are trying to catch up to it.
I don't worry about being clipped in right away, but find my pedals eventually (pretty quickly) once I am pedalling.
This like doesn't make a lot of sense in writing - it's much easier to demonstrate.
SheFly
It's too bad I don't live near you...all of the CX training sessions in this area are still an hour away. We pretty much live an hour away from everything. :p