Dammit’s adventures in mountain biking

Why don’t you put the strap back on, once you’ve gone passed the balance point and the strap stops you, shift your weight to come back to the balance point. It’ll be more like real world and train different muscles required

Not sure I follow, the strap in this situation would be representing using the rear brake?

In the footage you’ve posted you keep going too far and jumping off the back, the strap would catch you after you’ve gone past the point of no return and you could then shift your weight to get back to the balance point and try not to let the front wheel go back to ground.

Any clearer? I know what I mean in my head🤔

Sure, I get that - I'd thought that what I needed to learn was how not to go too far, and have to jump off the back. Once I've cracked that, all I have to solve is not dropping the front wheel.

I did experiment yesterday (cam-girl fans will be desolated at the news that my GoPro failed to charge and therefore there is no footage) with using the rear brake, and it does work, stops the loop-out and gives me the time to move weight forwards. Does feel like cheating though.

What's interesting is that if I arrest the loop-out with the brake, then move my weight forward, it's not the same as moving my weight forward to "catch" the loop-out, as there's some kinetic energy involved in catching a moving object I imagine. i.e. weight as far forward as I can get it, that drops the front end if I catch the bike on the brake, won't stop a loop-out.

I think I need to move my weight forward more aggressively, or maybe earlier, to catch the bike as it comes up. That's what I'm going to try today anyway.

If I understand what you're saying there, I think the issue is that you have to move the bike backwards to move your own weight forwards. So mebbie be less aggressive getting the front wheel up, so you don't have to move forwards so much.

Or just use the brake..

I definately wouldn't think of using the brake as cheating. it's not nessecary, sure, but for years I scrubbed the brake when looping out to bring the front end down. the only issue is that with a u brake on a bmx it's far easier to modulate the pressure and with discs I think grabbing the brake would bring the front end down too fast

A couple of minutes of todays session, now featuring cheating.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVVBEKB92V0

I think what @furious_tiles means is that if you're suspended by the strap having "looped out", you can work out what muscle movement is required to get you back to balance point without dismounting. Then you can use that same muscle movement to stop you looping out in the first place.

Can't wait to see these clips compiled into a montage

Just need a suitable soundtrack...

I think what @furious_tiles means is that if you're suspended by the strap having "looped out", you can work out what muscle movement is required to get you back to balance point without dismounting. Then you can use that same muscle movement to stop you looping out in the first place.

I think those are different movements tbh. Since I decided to cheat and use the brake I can stop the loop-out very easily now.

Put the chain back on, rolled up and down in front of the garages - very different!

Things happen a lot faster when you're rolling, and it's much harder (for me) to get the front up to the balance point. I imagine a lot of that is instinctually moving to prevent the front coming up now that my subconscious registers "on bike" rather than "in garage".

Bit disappointed tbh in how different it suddenly feels when rolling. Hopefully I'll be able to blend the two sets of muscle memory rapidly.

My enthusiasm for making a manual machine has been waning the past few days.

Try not to get too disappointed. It took me riding every day for like 2 years to start getting used to manuals.

Can you wheelie consistently? Apparently learning to wheelie first helps you learn the balance point and brake control you need to for manuals.

No, so that might be a good thing to do next.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPFCHuEegsk

First thing in my head whenever I think of a montage :D

Every movie I watch now with a montage I sing that fucking song. Missus does it too now.

"Southpark ruined our lives!"

Nice review of the RC295 in MBR Magazine (May issue), chap is just under my height and said he’d pick the XL over the size L demo bike he had, which is reassuring as In waiting for an XL. He also said the only thing he would mark it down for is the lacquer scratching already- so the invisiframe may well have been a good idea.

The bike has a Pike Ultimate whereas the Hightower had a Lyrik, which of the two would people pick for a 150mm travel fork with the rear at 135? (Hightower was 140mm rear).

You're kind of in the middle there. If 140mm, I'd use a Pike, if 160mm then a Lyrik

Santa Cruz puts a Pike on the Tallboy, which is IIRC 130mm front travel.

I should probably just trust Pace to have specified the correct fork, eh?

Manual update?

I should probably just trust Pace to have specified the correct fork, eh?

Steady on there

Manual update?

Knackered my elbow, which made pulling back on the bars very painful, elbow is now almost fixed though.