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10 bad habits you need to cut out of your mountain biking
Whether you're a beginner mountain biker or trail veteran, it's easy to fall into bad habits. These are ten things NOT to do on and off the trails.
We all have our bad habits, both in life and on a mountain bike. When you first start riding, pretty much all you have are bad habits. But in time, you learn the rules of the trails, the techniques to keep you upright and slowly but surely, they go away.
All you can do is learn from experience, of course. So here are a few of the most common bad habits on a mountain bike, and why you should ditch them as soon as you can!
1. Standing in the middle of the trail
Step aside if you need to stop mid-trail
© Dan Griffiths
One of the most sacred rules of trail etiquette is that if you stop for a mechanical, a chat or some tea and biscuits, you should get off the trail as quickly as possible. This may not seem immediately obvious when you first start riding, but it becomes clear pretty quickly.
Stopping in the middle of the trail not only puts you at risk of having to dodge a bike going however-many mph on short notice, it also puts other riders in serious danger of crashing.
Solution: Anytime you need to stop, just make sure you hop off the trail. Simple!
2. Forgetting to properly maintain your bike
A recipe for expensive repairs
© Nathan Hughes
The word ‘forgetting’ typically means “failing to remember” to do something. But what forgetting really means in this context is “deciding not to do something because you can’t really be bothered, and it’ll take you time, money, effort or maybe all three”.
The unfortunate thing about bike maintenance though, is that the less you spend on it, the more it’s probably going to cost you in the long run. If you don’t lube the chain, you’ll have to put up with the noises it makes on the trail and need to replace it earlier than normal. If you don’t pump up the tyres before rides, you’ll spend more time fixing punctures. If you don’t clear the mud off your bike at the end of the ride, there’s all kinds of negative repercussions.
Solution: Start small, getting into the habit of pumping up your tyres, checking your chain and cleaning the bike after each ride. From there, you’re well on your way. Maybe even take a bike maintenance class, get to know your ride and make a hobby out of it?
3. Pushing the uphills
Be like Henrique Avancini and work those legs uphill
© Hudson Malta / Red Bull Content Pool
This hell – sorry, ‘hill’ – has been going on for what seems like forever. And you’re only halfway to the top. Your legs are burning. Sod it. There’s nobody looking. You climb off and push the rest of the way up. Success. The only problem is that you’re never going to seriously improve or get better at climbing that way. If you want to be able to ride the whole hill eventually, you’ve got to get a little further up it each time.
Solution: Challenge yourself on climbs. Set mini targets on the hills and push yourself a few more metres before you push. You’ll see your stamina and climbing skills grow quickly.
4. Forgetting to say hello
A polite hello goes a long way
© Sebastian Marko/Red Bull Content Pool
One of the nicest things about the mountain biking world is that everyone seems to be a bit nicer when they’re in the great outdoors. And because of that, most people you pass will either say hello, or give a wee wave or a nod as you cycle by. Some people however, will – and we know this sounds like pure and utter madness – ignore these waves or hellos, and just cycle on by. Where are their manners?
Solution: Like... just say hello! Or give a nod if you’re more of a silent, pensive type.
5. Excessive skidding
Unless you look this good, stop with the skidding
© Lukas Pilz/Red Bull Content Pool
We talked earlier about how a lot of bad habits come as soon as you start riding, and skidding is definitely one of them. When you’re a kid it’s the best thing in the world. When you’re an adult it’s... well, it’s still a lot of fun. However, it’s also the thing that tears up the trails that either your fine self or someone else has worked very hard to build, especially on a muddy day, so don’t overdo it! Skidding can be a useful technique, but too much isn’t a good sign.
Solution: If you're struggling to keep in control, try focusing on finding the perfect spot between your front and rear brakes on the corners, and not smashing the rear brake too hard. This hotspot will be different for each corner of course, but the more you think of it, the better you’ll get at cornering. Slowing down in the lead up to the corner rather than breaking on the corner can also help. Which brings us neatly onto...
6. Crawling through turns
Approach with the right speed and flow through the corner
© Bartek Wolinski / Red Bull Content Pool
We’re not talking about getting off your bike here and physically crawling round berms – though if you are doing that, you should probably stop, and seek help. What we mean here is that a lot of people have a bad habit of over-braking in their turns. This is an easy way to raise your chances of crashing and lose all momentum you had going into the corner.
Solution: Brake in the lead up to the turn so that you can go into the turn with a comfortable speed, flow through it, still braking lightly if you wish, and then flow out the other side.
7. Riding without a helmet
Imagine coming off on this trail without a helmet? Don't do it
© Paulo Maria / Red Bull Content Pool
This maybe isn’t as much of a thing as it used to be. Most budding riders won’t get on their rig without sticking a helmet on now – mostly because a helmet can make you feel a lot more secure in your riding, and worst come to worst, it could save your life. Not wearing a helmet is more common in beginners though, perhaps because they’re more likely to think of mountain biking as a commute without the cars rather than picture Nicholi Rogatkin’s crash from Rampage from 2015. Eeek. We’ve got our helmets on just thinking about it.
Solution: Go out and go shopping for a helmet. You’ll find that some fit you better than others, and some are pretty good looking too. Buy one you like, and you’ll want to wear it!
8. Not remembering a flat or your tools to fix it
When this happens, you'll be glad you brought tyre spares
© Sven Martin
We’re all agreed that getting a flat tyre is pretty much the most frustrating thing in the world, right? Right. So, the fact that not every mountain biker is in the habit of riding with the appropriate tools to fix one is pretty mad. At best, you’ll end up waiting by the side of the trail for an extended period of time, getting lucky and nicking the appropriate tools from a better prepared rider. At worst? It’s a long walk home. You learn this the hard way.
Solution: Buy a spare inner tube, tyre levers and a bike pump. Bring them places. Or if you don’t use a bag, get a small puncture repair kit and at least take that instead.
9. Sitting down while going down
Greg Callaghan has good form on the downhills
© Duncan Philpott / Red Bull Content Pool
If you’re going downhill on a mountain bike then a) lucky you! and b) you should be standing up on your bike, particularly if you’re going through a technical section on the trail. Sitting down in this situation is pretty much a sure-fire way to make sure you get booted off.
Solution: If you’re not pedalling, you should be standing up. ‘Simples!’, as that weird Russian meerkat off the telly says.
10. Making excuses/not going riding!
It's just a bit of rain!
© Saskia Dugon
A classic flaw of many modern mountain bikers is that they spend too many hours reading articles about mountain biking, and watching edits, and not enough time riding their bike.
Solution: Shut this tab. Grab your bike. Go for a cycle. See you on the trails!
