When to "graduate"?

[indysteel]

you don't necessarily need clipless ever, btw

Absolutely!

[Swan]

Irulan, thank goodness!

indysteel, thanks for the input. I have to ride the dirt hills to get to the paved roads because I live in the woods. There isn't a safe place to park unless I drive for a good half hour, so it would seem a ridiculous waste of gas to me to drive out, park, ride my bike for a bit, and drive back.

My bike handles the roads (even the scary dirt hills) just fine, it's just that I'm a wuss and like the added comfort of knowing I can dig my heels into the dirt to help slow me down if I need to. When I was young and mountain biking I pressed my brakes too hard and went head over handlebars (with a helmet on) and right into a tree, so now I like to balance brakes with dragging heels to avoid that. I'm not saying that there is anything wrong with the brakes or the bike since they seem to work just fine on the roads, just that I'm afraid of relying solely on brakes. Even on paved roads I brake slowly and like to make turns with one foot sticking out to catch myself just in case. Picture me as the kid who just got her training wheels off; I'm going to be using my feet to balance and stop for a while yet until I feel comfortable moving at that height and at that speed.

I'll look into the YT vids, though. I don't know why I didn't think of it myself.

[OakLeaf]

I have to ride the dirt hills to get to the paved roads because I live in the woods. There isn't a safe place to park unless I drive for a good half hour...

I live in the woods too. I would strongly recommend that you either ride out the same way you'd take your car out, walk your bike down your lane, or drive to the end and park by your mailbox. I'm not sure how long your lane is, but however long and steep it is, it's got to be safer and less technical than what you describe! I live on a 1/2-mile crushed stone lane with a couple of steep sections, and I might do any one of the above three on my skinny-tire road bike, depending on conditions (both the condition of the lane and the condition of my head).

I pressed my brakes too hard and went head over handlebars

You squeezed your FRONT brake too hard and your rear brake not enough, and forgot to shift your weight back behind the saddle. That's exactly one of those kinds of skills Indy is suggesting that you learn. I did an endo two years ago myself, after decades of believing it wasn't possible on a road bike. That belief was what made me too lazy to learn better braking technique. I was lucky enough to escape with seven stitches in my face and two sprained wrists and thank goodness a neck that was only jammed, not broken. You can bet that I've been working on my braking technique ever since then!

I would second everything Indy said, though I know zilch about mountain biking, technique is important for everyone to learn, and as someone who's also dealing with irritated spinal nerve roots, you don't need to be putting yourself at risk.

[Irulan]

When I was young and mountain biking I pressed my brakes too hard and went head over handlebars (with a helmet on) and right into a tree, so now I like to balance brakes with dragging heels to avoid that.

That sounds horrible.
Wouldn't walking your bike be preferable to that? .

Instead of walking you through brake skills, I suggest you take your bike in, get the brake checked, get your saddle height corrected, and find out if they have a basic skills clinic

I am a mountain bike coach and one of the very first things we teach is correct braking. Your front brake is 60% of your braking power, but the rear brake balances that out. You have to use both of them together to brake successfully ( no endos, skidding etc) If you are on a crap wal mart bike, chances are the brakes are not installed correctly and/or don't function properly.

I am really surprised you aren't having knee pain with a saddle too low.

Go to the mountain biking section of this forum, use the forum tools to search and search the mountain bike forum for "braking". You will find a bazillion threads on mtb skills and techniques, with lots and lots of information. This may be the link to the search, not sure if this will work or not. http://forums.teamestrogen.com/searc...searchid=90686

[indysteel]

Thanks for elaborating, Swan, but I stand by my original advice. Stopping your bike with your feet is a bad, unsafe habit. The sooner you learn better techniques, the better off you'll be. Those techniques include understanding when to use your front and rear brakes, brake modulation, body position and weight transfer. Again, there are plenty of good videos on YouTube to get you started.

As a relatively new mountain biker, I cannot stress enough how big of a difference--in terms of safety and enjoyment--a few
basic skills can make, safe braking chief among them. Google basic mountain bike skills/drills and start reading and watching. If you have to go offroad to ride, take the time and effort to learn how to do it right.

[Swan]

I live in the woods too. I would strongly recommend that you either ride out the same way you'd take your car out, walk your bike down your lane, or drive to the end and park by your mailbox. I'm not sure how long your lane is, but however long and steep it is, it's got to be safer and less technical than what you describe!

Thanks, but I mean that the roads themselves past my mailbox are paved with washed out dirt until you reach the "city" part of the town which is half an hour's drive away. There is a stretch of paved road between here and there, but the access is too narrow to park on the side of the road so I can bike solely on that stretch. I bike the same paths I drive, but for some reason it's a little more frightening on a bike than in a car. Thanks for the tip on the brakes Wish I'd have known that as a ten year old.


Irulan, Yes, I always push both brakes simultaneously when trying to stop. Nope, haven't had any knee problems whatsoever. I've opened the MTB forums and will read all I can. I'll take the bike in to adjust it to the proper height when I no longer feel terrified of doing so.


Indysteel It just seems odd to me and came as a huge surprise that people's feet aren't supposed to touch the ground when cycling. In my town, everyone rides with their feet available for emergency stops/catches, and I've not ever seen anyone who doesn't aside from video clips of professional cycling races. It's certainly been interesting learning all these things on this forum.

[goldfinch]

It really isn't safe to try to stop by dragging your feet. It isn't going to help in an emergency and probably would just result in an injury to your foot. Sticking your foot out when you turn is especially unsafe. If there isn't a skills class where you are (I know most places where I go there isn't any classes like that) then maybe start by first going for slow and easy rides where you practice not putting your feet down until you stop. Get up a little speed, coast a bit, brake lightly to stop. Then put your feet on the ground. Try that for a while. Until you are comfortable braking. Then raise your seat just a little. And then a little more, gradually working your way up to where you should be. You might need some help getting the seat height right.

[TigerMom]

I ride clipless on my road bike.

But I personally would NEVER ride clipless on dirt. I hear too many tails of broken ankles with MTB because people can't unclip fast enough in an emergency, which there is more of due to the very unpredictable terrain of dirt/mountain. I'm clumsy enough with my road bike (20+ falls)
______________________________________________________
2012 Specialized Amira Elite, upgraded carbon handle bars, Jett saddle 143mm switched to 145mm 2012 Selle Italia Max SLR Gel Flow saddle
2010 Santa Cruz Juliana with R kit and Crampon pedals
2011 Specialized Ariel Sport,suspension post,Serfas Rx Women's Microfiber saddle (sold)

[Irulan]

It really isn't safe to try to stop by dragging your feet. It isn't going to help in an emergency and probably would just result in an injury to your foot. Sticking your foot out when you turn is especially unsafe. If there isn't a skills class where you are (I know most places where I go there isn't any classes like that) then maybe start by first going for slow and easy rides where you practice not putting your feet down until you stop. Get up a little speed, coast a bit, brake lightly to stop. Then put your feet on the ground. Try that for a while. Until you are comfortable braking. Then raise your seat just a little. And then a little more, gradually working your way up to where you should be. You might need some help getting the seat height right.

This sounds like a really good plan. I'd add in, practice on the brakes on flat areas and pavement, just so you can get the feel for them.

[Swan]

This sounds like a really good plan. I'd add in, practice on the brakes on flat areas and pavement, just so you can get the feel for them.

Agreed. I'll go with goldfinch's advice. Thanks everyone.