Taking on new and more difficult features on the trail
As mountain bikers we all like to improve our skills on a continuous basis, if not for ourselves then at least for our Strava times! But what do you do when you find yourself staring at a feature in the trail that you are not sure that you can handle? Do you just do it and risk breaking something (on your body or your bike) just to avoid looking like a wimp? Or do you simply say "pass" and avoid any potential pain and suffering and deal with the smack talk later?
When it comes to trying something new like a jump, drop or steep decent it's very important to check it out before attempting it. Sometimes this is hard to do if you are already in motion like at a bike park and don't have time to stop or may cause a traffic jam or accident if you do. In that case look for what they call a ride around which lets you bypass the obstacle and sometimes allows you to get a look at what's involved at riding it at the same time. If it is somewhere that you can stop safely without getting run over it's a good idea to watch others ride it and see if you think it's something you want to try yourself.
Or before riding the trail look for videos online so you can get an idea of what to expect before riding the actual trail yourself. Another thing you can do is try and find a smaller version of the drop or jump and work your way up to the bigger one. Once you do something enough times it becomes second nature and you will wonder how you ever thought it was difficult to begin with.
One of the biggest hurdles to get past is the mental aspect. If you aren't 100% committed then you probably shouldn't try to do the jump or drop etc. because if you second guess yourself in the middle of it you are asking for trouble. You would be amazed how being unsure of something on the trail will affect how you ride it. Being too cautious can be more dangerous than being too careless and thinking you are going to crash makes it more likely you will crash. So if you are having one of those off days where everything seems difficult and you don't have your "mojo" then it's not a good idea to try something new. The bottom line is look before you leap and work your way up to trying new things and don't let peer pressure get you into any trouble or the hospital!
Posted by Jim Bernstein