tips for going downhill

[gbs]

I probably shouldn't admit this, but, I'm nervy of going downhill. Steep downhills. I've always been afraid of heights, and have a deep fear of falling.

Seems like a sensible instinct for self preservation to me.

I think over time you may become accustomed to greater speed downhill. In my first season last yr I was not comfortable at speeeds in excess of 40kph; this year the comfort zone limit is around 55kph - in both cases I mean in good conditions with sweeping rather than tight turns.

IMO the keys to increased confidence are a) confidence in yr bike adoption of the technical advice from previous posters c) gradual familiarisation with speed.

I do not see the point of excess speed - we are too exposed to tyre failure and the actions of others.

 

[Matthames]

The advice about riding to how you feel comfortable is a good one. If you are not comfortable going at speed you are probably going to tense up on the bike making the likely hood of getting to trouble even greater. The secret for controlling the bike at speed is to be relaxed.

If you find yourself going into a bend too hot, the temptation would be there to brake, this is the worst thing you can do. Although if you do need to brake, just gently feather the back brake. If you grab the front brake you will overload the front tyre and before you know it you will be having an intimate moment with the tarmac. The best thing to do if you are going into a bend too fast is to lean the bike over harder. Keep the outside pedal at 6 o'clock and push the inside handlebar and remain relaxed.

I also don't recommend going flat out on a road you do not know. I learnt this the hard way. I went 40mph down into Cheddar gorge once. I reached the point where it is the steepest, which is also a really sharp 90 deg right and then left. I basically panicked and applied my brakes thinking I was about to crash into a rock face. If I was more familiar with the road I would of picked a braking point where to scrub off speed to take the corner and I would of known what speeds I could get away with on that corner.

I was too confident in my own ability to control my bike, this over confidence got me into trouble. You need to remember that being scared of something is a way of preventing you from doing something stupid.

 

[HLaB]

alecstilleyedye, funny you should say that, I'm usually one of the fastest down hill when I can see but as the visible road diminishes so does my descent speed. Often through the tighter & unsighted corners I'm one of the slowest.

I wouldn't be the fastest downhill but as it becomes more twisty, less visible my confidence goes also. Its probably because on one steep downhill with a blind 90deg left bend at the bottom. I went round fast and about 3/4 (or maybe more) of the lane out to find a van coming at me; it was cutting the corner !

 

[gbs]

The secret for controlling the bike at speed is to be relaxed.

if you do need to brake, just gently feather the back brake. If you grab the front brake you will overload the front tyre and before you know it you will be having an intimate moment with the tarmac. SPOT ON


The best thing to do if you are going into a bend too fast is to lean the bike over harder. Keep the outside pedal at 6 o'clock and push the inside handlebar and remain relaxed.

@mATT: push inside h/bar - in which direction?

 

[ChristinaJL]

I'm a bit nervy riding downhill too and I also go mountaineering, so no fear of heights here. I've now got to the stage where I don't brake all the time, I brake gently just approaching a bend and any time I need to knock off a bit of speed. My husband can always wait at the bottom of the hill for me, although since he also moved onto a road bike, I'm the one waiting for him.

Practise, practise, it will get better in time.

 

[gavintc]

I am glad you posted this as i am also nervous going downhill fast. I allways imagine a dog running out or someother disaster then apply the brakes as other riders fly past me.

Was on a Gran Fondo last week and a dog did just that. Thankfully, we were going uphill so speeds were lowish. It was actually quite funny. The dog got tangled with the bike and over he went. It allowed me to overtake about 10 riders as they all slowed for the loose dog.

But, downhill - just go for it. My max is 52 mph. It is the reward for the effort going up. An adrenaline rush.

 

[Matthames]

@mATT: push inside h/bar - in which direction?

If you were taking a left hander you would push the left handlebar away from you. If you were going right you would push the right handlebar away from you.

Sounds counter intuitive, but it how any single track vehicle is controlled at speed. It is called counter steering and it is what you would find motorcyclists harping on about a lot, mainly because the size and speed of them require a fair amount of counter steering force to be applied to get them to turn. With bicycles the amount of counter steering force that you would normally use is quite small in comparison, but it is still there. The faster you go the more critical it becomes that you become aware of it and use it. The majority of corners I take at speed I would consciously push the side I want to go in the direction of.

 

[zacklaws]

Don't think anyone has mentioned it in the previous posts looking through them, but you also need to plan ahead for what comes after the decent, is the terrain flat, which is no problem, or is there another hill to negotiate in the upwards direction and if so how steep and how high.

If there is a hill to climb, ideally you do not want to get to the bottom of the hill slow, as you then have to start from scratch peddaling upwards, its far better to have as much speed as you can and use all that kinetic energy stored to fly up the other side. If its a short steep hill, you may get to the top effortlessly, but if it is a long, very steep hill, then you may have to plan big gear changes in advance as sometimes your speed can bleed off that quick it becomes difficult to change down quick enough and you can end up in a gear too high to push, forcing you to dismount, or even worse have your chain thrown off the rings and jam, ask Colinj, when we flew down a hill, my eyes were watering that much (wearing glasses) I failed to see the steep hill ahead, flunked a rapid gear chain jamming everything up and rolling down the hill backwards before I did a dignified falling off as I could not unclip fast enough.

 

[navrat_biker]

but how do they know that there won't be cars pulling out in front of them, or potholes/speedbumps...

i just think to myself shut your eyes and hope for the best!!! lol noooo i dont.

i suppose it depends on your faith in handling a bike. if you hate heights like you say then a steep decent will also feel awful to you so, i say take it easy and your confidence will improve.
good luck

 

[marooncat]

I am the same, I did a charity cycle ride a few weeks ago (8 times round Hollyrood Park for anyone really that interested) and I was finding I was overtaking the same people going up hill only for them to fly past me on the downhill bit.

I blame my lack of "nerve" on the fact I horse ride and my instructor has spent ages getting me not to "lean into the corners" when I ride and I think this means I now stop being comfortable "leaning into the corner" when on my bike??

 

[Fab Foodie]

Everything you need to know about descending, by cycle-guru Jobst Brandt...

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/brandt/descending.html

 

[lukesdad]

Up on the pedals, Butt in the air..Its the only way to descend! Sorry,can t seem to get the Mtber out of me. Makes the lads laugh though

 

[GrasB]

I wouldn't be the fastest downhill but as it becomes more twisty, less visible my confidence goes also. Its probably because on one steep downhill with a blind 90deg left bend at the bottom. I went round fast and about 3/4 (or maybe more) of the lane out to find a van coming at me; it was cutting the corner !

I'd say that most people are scared of the high speeds but don't give enough consideration to what may be unseen on the other side of the corner. Result is they'll do 35mph on the open section where I'll be over 40mph but then charge round a corner partially sighted at 35mph where as I'll be down to 25mph or so.

 

[HLaB]

I'd say that most people are scared of the high speeds but don't give enough consideration to what may be unseen on the other side of the corner. Result is they'll do 35mph on the open section where I'll be over 40mph but then charge round a corner partially sighted at 35mph where as I'll be down to 25mph or so.

Yip. Although not technically my descending but similarly, I've had plenty of muppet drivers overtake me when going fast round a blind bend. 99.99% of the time they get away with it, unfortunately I was there that 0.01% of the time and the muppet rather than having a head on swerved into me.

 

[on the road]

I went down this hill yesterday

I'm normally good going down hills but I had to brake all the way going down. It's a very deep down hill and the road is narrow with lots of sharp bends. In some places it was almost like the road had a vertical drop, definately not for the light hearted.

You can see the rest of the road in the background.