Quote Originally Posted by indysteel View Post
I experienced that when I went from a HT to a FS bike. Granted, I hadn't been riding long to begin with, but there was definitely a learning period. Zoom, are you out of saddle for this section of the trail? I can't tell from your description.
Nope. The stupid thing is that this spot is not the least bit technical, aside from the roots. It's a slight downhill with a slight camber down to the right, so my tires are sliding down the camber and I'm landing on the uphill...what little uphill there actually is. It really follows mostly where the hill meets the flatter ground. The sort of thing that would be completely and utterly unmemorable...were it not for the fact that now I'm scared sh!tless of the spot. When I hit it yesterday I didn't think it was possible that I'd crash there again. Then in that nanosecond of falling the thought that ran through my brain was "seriously...again...WTF is my defect?!"

So would being out of the saddle for this make a difference?

I am somewhat consoled to know that even skilled people have a certain learning curve with new bikes. I ride with a few women who hopped on mountain bikes for the first time in the past 6 months and immediately rode like they were born on a mountain bike saddle. It can be kind of demoralizing at times to ride with them and have them swooping gracefully around in the woods while I am struggling not to destroy myself on beginner stuff.