Sharp Turns

[lovelylibrarian]

Yesterday, I was on a downhill trail with a lot of switchbacks and found myself almost having to stop to negotiate the turns to prevent sliding. Any tips on technique for making sharp turns? I'm sure I'll improve with practice, but I'd appreciate any suggestions. Thanks.

[Irulan]

well if the switchbacks were built for hikers and not mountain bikers, you can forget riding them.

Down and up require different skill sets.
Here's some skills to try, play with them. I stay in the neutral position, and really feather my front brake if they are very tight.

* Look-look-look around the turn, and keep moving.
* Look beyond the exit of the turn, down the trail
* Remember to stay in the neutral position. Extend your legs(but don't lock them) and move your body back as needed.
* Go slow if you need to really control the turn, "rachet" if you need to but don't coast
* Your bike will turn tighter than you think it will!
* I've found it helps to keep the bike as upright as possible. A tight slow speed turn is not one you want to lean into unless you have a berm to rail. To do this keep the outside arm straight at the elbow and bend the inside arm. This'll lean the bike out of the turn with your weight in balance on the inside. This also maximizes tire contact with the ground."
* I found that after I had my brake levers adjusted in for a shorter reach, it improved my cornering especially on switchbacks. With a more comfortable reach, I have much more control with feathering and modulating my front brake. This has helped my cornering immensely: I use both front and back to control my turn.
* Be sure you are out of the saddle, move your weight back if it's steep.

[bluebug32]

What tires are you using and are they made for your riding conditions? Of course some specific skills are involved (as is feeling at ease on the bike) when making sharp turns, but I've found that the proper tires also make a huge difference.

[sundial]

well if the switchbacks were built for hikers and not mountain bikers, you can forget riding them.

Yeah, no kidding! Found out the hard way.

[ima_bleeder]

keep the outside arm straight at the elbow and bend the inside arm.

Absolutely. I can't tell you how long it took me to realize that I was keeping my inside arm stiff. And apparently when I was getting help from other riders they didn't notice it either. I'd always get around the turn, but it felt forced.

For some reason RH turns felt especially awkward to me, and I'd tighten up. Now when I see a switchback coming up I take a quick breath in, and when I exhale I think about keeping my shoulders loose and bending that inside arm.

[bounceswoosh]

Huh. Never thought about arm bend. I'll have to pay attention to what I do on my next ride. Thanks for the tip, guys!

[ikkin]

what about braking? what's the most effective braking technique for sharp turns? i'm wondering about both downhill and uphill. thanks ladies!

[OakLeaf]

this is an honest question from a non-MTBer, but a roadie who keeps hearing that dirt riding is the best way to learn to slide and improve handling skills on both road bicis and street motos.

Do you WANT to prevent sliding? Or is what you want, to learn to control it?

[Becky]

Do you WANT to prevent sliding? Or is what you want, to learn to control it?

This is just my opinion, but I think it's all about controlling the slide. It's going to happen sooner or later, so learning how to control it is a good idea and goes a long way towards skill development. Kind of like driving in snow- you're going to skid at some point, but learning how to steer through it makes you more comfortable in those conditions.

For me, sliding through a turn without falling is the biggest confidence boost ever! And knowing that I can hold a bike up under those conditions makes me more confident on my road bike (especially commuting!).

[Irulan]

what about braking? what's the most effective braking technique for sharp turns? i'm wondering about both downhill and uphill. thanks ladies!

Um, I wouldn't brake on the uphill but thats just me.

Feathering and modulation. Gently, light squeezes or pumping action.
I use the front brake more than the back to control the turn. Also, only one or two fingers on the brakes, ladies, no more is needed with discs.

Sidenote - most brake levers can be adjusted to fit women's hands. There are travel adjustment screws that will pull the levers in to fit short fingers.

as for practicing controlled sliding, please practice this only on gravel fireroads and not the trails.

(excuse me while I get out a soapbox) Skidding and sliding is very destructive to trails. It should be avoided at all costs. If you are skidding or locking up your tires, you are going too fast for conditions or out of control. It's also an indicator that you are braking too hard - let up on the brake just a bit. Unless you are on fireroads where it doesn't matter, there is no legitimate excuse for skidding or sliding while mountain biking.

/soapbox

[ima_bleeder]

(excuse me while I get out a soapbox) [I]Skidding and sliding is very destructive to trails. It should be avoided at all costs.
/soapbox

AMEN SISTAH!

I'm pretty vocal about asking people riding with me not to do that on the groomed trails that we share with hikers, walkers, families, equestrians ....

On the really remote ungroomed stuff, pretty much anything goes, and I'm good with that. Those trails are going to get destroyed next winter anyway with big mud, down trees, and logging. But if you're in a high traffic area, or you're riding on trails that someone is working to maintain, it's pretty rude.

[Becky]

(excuse me while I get out a soapbox) Skidding and sliding is very destructive to trails. It should be avoided at all costs. If you are skidding or locking up your tires, you are going too fast for conditions or out of control. It's also an indicator that you are braking too hard - let up on the brake just a bit. Unless you are on fireroads where it doesn't matter, there is no legitimate excuse for skidding or sliding while mountain biking.

/soapbox

Very good point about trail preservation- thanks for making it clear. I didn't really articulate that in my first post. I would never intentionally slide, but it's still important to know how to deal with slides when they happen.

Same thing with riding wet trails....it destroys them, so don't ride on them.

[OakLeaf]

please practice this only on gravel fireroads and not the trails.Skidding and sliding is very destructive to trails.

OIC... thanks!

[Irulan]

Very good point about trail preservation- thanks for making it clear. I didn't really articulate that in my first post. I would never intentionally slide, but it's still important to know how to deal with slides when they happen.

Same thing with riding wet trails....it destroys them, so don't ride on them.

At one of the camps I've been to, they had us practice skidding and sliding in the gravel parking lot. A great opportunity without tearing things up.

Re, not skidding/sliding on well used trails but saving it for farther out.... unless I knew an area was slated for destruction ( ie, clear cutting, ORV, dirtbike use) I would never, ever do this. I live in a region that is known for pristine mountain singletrack. Just because a trail is farther out or not heavily used doesn't mean we shouldn't take care of it for others that come behind us.

[bike4ever]

This information is very helpful. I have one tight switchback that I regularly ride with an evil, pointy rock that likes my bike too much. I am going to master this switchback (or just get a shovel and move the rock - no I won't alter the trail - just an idea).