A Women's Guide to Mountain Biking!
Mountain biking is a great way to get in shape, make new friends and, most importantly, escape the urban landscape and have fun! Here are some woman-to-woman tips to make your mountain biking adventures fun and successful. |
What can you Expect Riding Off Road?
Contemplating these questions and having the answers will help us help you select the right bicycle. And, when you visit our store be sure to wear comfortable riding clothing and shoes so we can put you on some bikes to find a perfect fit. Today, some manufacturer's offer women's-specific mountain bikes and all our bicycles can be adjusted to fit a wide range of women nicely. Be sure to wear full gloves, too, for comfort and protection. Mountain-bike gloves have light padding to provide an optimum grip and excellent control, and they're typically reinforced on the backs and feature terry panels for wiping your face. They breathe well, too, even on hot summer days. Practice 1. While moving in a straight line and standing up out of the saddle, move your weight and hips forward toward your handlebars and then back behind your rear tire. This stretches your 2. While using your front and rear brakes equally, practice stopping quickly. The harder you brake the more you'll have to push your weight behind the saddle to oppose the braking forces, which try to throw you forward. Start slowly and gradually work up to the point where you can stop really quickly, remain balanced and in control, and not skid your rear tire at all. 3. Have a slow race with friends. In other words, see who can be the last to the finish line. This drill forces you to go as slowly as you can, even balance in one spot if you can. If you go backwards, though, you lose. You'll find that the slower you go, the more it helps to get up out of the saddle, relax and balance your weight equally on your hands and the balls of your feet. 7. If you decide to use clipless pedals be sure to practice getting in and out of them repeatedly. Do this on grass. Straddle the bike and click your right foot into and out of the right pedal about 100 times (seriously). Repeat with your left foot. This fun little exercise may entertain your neighbors but it's important because it trains your muscle memory so your feet will do the right thing when needed. Translation: you won't crash because your feet were stuck in the pedals.
Ride with Friends Please feel free to ask us any and all women's cycling questions you may have. We're here to help! |