Bike
MTB
Sweden’s DH Coach explains how to get faster at Downhill
Pro tips on how to get back up to speed after winter and how to go even faster after that.
Feeling a bit rusty on the bike after winter? That’s completely normal. It always takes a little getting used to smashing down rough terrain at downhill speed again. There are, however, a few things you can do to get back up to speed quicker - and plenty more ways to practice going even faster after that.
We asked professional bike coach Adrian Hörnqvist for some of his best tips on how to find speed and seconds on downhill tracks. He has over 10 years of coaching experience, a diploma in Riksidrottsförbundet’s elite training program and currently works as a bike coach for Dala Sports Academy, the national bike education program at Vansbro, and the Swedish MTB Downhill Team.
As a keen rider and racer himself he knows where seconds are gained (and lost) on a Downhill track and also how to best get up to race pace. He has previously raced both Downhill, 4X and Slopestyle with several Swedish Championship medals to prove it. Safe to say - this guy know’s what he is talking about.
How to increase your downhill MTB speed after a winter break
After a long winter, both you and your bike might be a little rusty but don't worry, you’ll be back drifting corners and sending jumps in no time. But before you go foot-out-flat-out make sure you don’t go too crazy to minimise the risk of injury (and a bruised ego). Adrian explains how to do it:
01
Have patience
If you haven’t been riding your Downhill bike all winter, have some patience. It is not strange that you don’t feel as fast or confident as you did before putting the bike away for winter.
DH World Cup racer Adam Eriksson followed by Adrian in Spain last winter.
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02
Ride through winter
In a way, my first advice would be to not let number 1 (see above) happen at all. You don’t have to put the bike away - practise technical skills on the bike throughout winter instead. Even if you live in the more snowy parts, you can always clear a trail of snow and ride with studded tyres. That way you can keep a higher level and pace once spring comes around.
03
Ride a lot
Riding through winter is great for skills and fitness, but it is obviously slightly different from doing full laps. So, once the bike season hits for real and bike parks start opening up, the best thing to do is to ride… a lot.
You will feel so much more confident on the bike after one or two weeks of intensive riding. Ride as much as you possibly can but don't go overboard with it, so you don’t start the season with unnecessary injury.
04
Perfect your braking technique
It is easy to think that you will go faster if you brake less, but I always say that to go faster you have to brake better. To do so, practise using brake spots. It means that you have certain spots on the course where you brake and sections in-between where you don’t use your brakes at all. That way you can, in a controlled way, practise going full throttle in sections.
It is easy to think that you will go faster if you brake less, but I always say that to go faster you have to brake better.
Once you’ve practised that, you can try to improve your brake spots by braking less or for a shorter amount of time in order to carry more speed into the next “brake-free” section. Also, try putting it all together in a full run.
Adrian keeping a watchful eye on the Swedish DH Team.
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05
Go pump tracking
It is always good to ride a hardtail from time to time, so find a BMX or pump track where you can practice pumping and jumping skills. It will help with your timing and balance which will transfer directly onto the downhill track.
06
Break it down
A downhill run consists of many little components - you have to brake right, pump right, use the right weight distribution, take the right line, use the right jump technique, and so on. Therefore I believe it is important to train one thing at a time, giving attention to each and every skill.
If you, for example, feel like you have to work on your cornering technique, then find a track with some challenging corners to practise on. Before setting off, think about what you need to do and how to do it and then start practising over and over again.
Visualising the next run.
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07
Go faster on sections you find “easy”
If you want to chase seconds on a race track it is important to analyse your riding skills - know where your strength and weaknesses are on the track. An interesting approach is to try and go faster on the sections you find easy, and then slow down a little on the ones you find hard or scary. A common mistake is to see the easy sections as a transition into the hard parts - you ride past it without too much engagement and instead go full throttle into the track’s biggest rock garden. You could earn lots of seconds by simply riding faster on the sections where you feel confident and safe.
A common mistake is to see the easy bits as a transition section into the hard parts - you ride past it without too much engagement and then go full throttle into the track’s biggest rock garden instead.
08
Practise the hard sections
That said, you shouldn’t forget about the harder sections on a track either. When you come to such a spot, take it steady at first, build up your confidence and then try to hit it faster and faster.
Think of it as the likelihood principle - if your brain knows that you’ve crashed and hurt yourself on a section three times out of five, there is a risk that you feel more scared than confident the next time you hit it. And the mindset you have riding down will impact your riding technique and outcome. So before you ride a section decide where and how you are going to ride down it, then start off slowly and increase your speed successively.
Practice makes perfect.
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