My wife is going downhill slowly

[User269]

Mrs Whiskywheels, competent downhill/crosscountry skier, marathon runner, fitness instructor, skater, agile etc. etc. but put her on a bike facing downhill and it's panic time! We sold her road bike recently, and despite a low mileage the wheel rims were dangerously worn due to excessive braking. Uphill, and she's not as far behind as some I ride with.

To some extent it's just a matter of practice and experience. I also think she needs a damn good slapping to relax and go at what ever speed she likes. After all, what does it matter how slow she goes downhill as long as she enjoys it? Apart from the fact I've got hypothermia after waiting at the foot of a long descent for ages, I mean , that's nothing compared to her never putting the rubbish out, and leaving the top off the toothpaste, oh, and have you seen the state of her car?? Well , I can tell you, the amount of rotting food in the fridge beggars belief, and another thing...............(cont. on P94).

 

[Fab Foodie]

Mrs FF almost went through a set of discs in N Italy this summer on her hybrid and we only went out a couple of times. When I get to the bottom of a hill I've time for a beer and anti-pasti whilts I wait - so it's not all bad!
Some people don't like going fast I guess ....

 

[Fab Foodie]

Practice and relax. One of the pros - can't remember which one - was a poor decender. To help him relax he would listen to classical music on decents on training rides

Relaxing is key. Modern bikes generally become more stable the faster they go as long as you don't hold it in a death grip.
The 80s 531 Holdsworth can get a little out of shape changing direction or hitting the brakes above 40 mph, on the other hand the 2004 TCR is steady as a rock up to 50mph (and probably beyond) even if you hit the brakes hard for a tight turn it does exactly as asked without any fuss.

 

[steveindenmark]

I cant see where the problem is. Jannie is the same but I just wait for her.

 

[fossyant]

Just come and follow @dan_bo down a hill. Fast as f...

 

[byegad]

The first Mrs Byegad did the same as the OP's lady. Eventually she blew the tyre off a rear rim after a long slow descent and nearly frightened herself and me to death!

 

[HelenD123]

I can totally empathise with Mrs HarrytheDog. I'm pretty nervous going downhill and can be slower than on the flat, on the brakes all the way down. It's very early days so don't push her to do more than she's comfortable with or she could completely lose her nerve. If she has drops, teach her to get down on the drops going downhill. I found I could get much more power on the brakes than from the hoods and that helped my confidence. Also try her on rolling hills. If she can see an uphill ahead which will act as a natural brake she may feel more able to let go and pick up some speed. For me, I'd also start to panic slightly when the wind started rushing as the speed increased, fearing it was a horrible side wind which would buffett(?) me around. It may sound silly to the fearless cyclists out there who can bomb downhill but these are some of the things that may be going through your wife's head.

I'm still not great at descending but after months of practice and the right conditions (a straight, smooth downhill with an incline at the end) I got up to 37.5 mph. Just give your wife some time to get used to her bike and she'll improve.

 

[fossyant]

It's often about getting to know your bike and it's handling !

 

[HarryTheDog]

Thanks for your comments so far. I think that time and experience will be the key. On answer to some of the comments, Yes her going slow downhill is fine if the aim was to just enjoy the country air and each others company, and I am quite happy to pootle along behind letting her go at her own speed, She claims to be completely non competitive but she has already shown signs of trying to chase people down who overtake, as they overtake, her speed rapidly rises which makes me grin. The speed stays up till they are out of sight or go downhill. She wants to do a decent time at the Velothon, also she wants to end up going out on club rides with my club which averages around 18mph over 50-80 miles with no slow group. Cross brakes on the handlebar was mentioned, Yes she does ride a road bike a second hand Kuota Kom Evo. My wife is a petite 5ft 1 and Kuota do a 50cm TT in all their bikes.My wife tends to go down on the drops for braking downhill, I showed her where the cross brakes would go but she pointed out that would move her hands in towards the stem and she would not be happy with that . Also relaxing was mentioned, yes the KOM is a bit a hardcore race bike and maybe just a bit over the top, my wife has already noticed that if you tense up on it , it becomes a bit twitchy and it completely changes to a lovely bike when relaxed. I have shod it with the grippiest tyres I know Vittoria open Pasvesto increase confidence. I have ridden it ( cos I am short arse as well) and I love the way it tracks the road, but yes maybe something more forgiving would have been better, she tried a Kuota K Lite ( my daughters winter bike) and found that less twitchy and preferred it but the bikes been bought now and she thinks she will get used to it. This afternoon my wife informed me she has booked up the Hypnotist for next week. We will go for a ride tomorrow and see if we can go for the same ride next weekend to see if the hypnotism actually works. I am a skeptic but if it does work brilliant! Again thanks for the comments.

 

[Pat "5mph"]

I'm terrified of downhill too, especial long twisty ones on unknown country roads.
Don't mind up and downs with good visibility ahead.
Maximum speed I've ever reached is probably 30mph.
I don't think this will cause Mrs HtD any problems on the sportive, unless of course she hits her brakes suddenly. The fast ones will just ride round her, let her be and enjoy the event.

 

[ColinJ]

Long straights are great for building up confidence as you don't have to worry about steering / balance issues.

Best not to mention severe gusting crosswinds though ...

 

[vickster]

Why would she not be happy to move her hands towards the stem for a short time while braking? It also puts you in a more upright position so you can see the road better in my opinion

 

[Gravity Aided]

Best not to mention severe gusting crosswinds though ...

With Panniers!

 

[ColinJ]

With Panniers!

I have only ridden with a very large saddlebag and even that made a big difference to the bike's handling.

I do take it easy on windy descents now after almost being blown off the road once when hit by a sudden gust of crosswind when I was doing about 45 mph!

 

[coffeejo]

Why would she not be happy to move her hands towards the stem for a short time while braking? It also puts you in a more upright position so you can see the road better in my opinion

I'm of the opposite opinion. I feel much more balanced when I'm on the drops vs hoods / tops on a descent and the bike seems much more responsive. I guess it's different for everyone. My cross lever brakes on the tourer are fabulous for keeping the bike stationary when waiting on a hill for traffic lights to change or keeping it controlled wheeling it fully loaded on and off ferries but there's no way I'd use them for a descent - I have given it a go and felt top heavy and out of kilter with the bike.