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What worked for me was to keep my legs at 179* (almost dead straight) and rock back and fore on the pegs to achieve neutral balance. You should have almost no weight on your hands, and you should not be holding yourself up with your arms. Your knees should be lightly gripping the bike to keep your balance. Perfect fore and aft balance is tough to explain, but once you find it you pop right up and stay there. I got 2.2 hours on my meter on my first trail ride in two months, and I was not even close to sore when we got back to the truck. Let me tell you the 2.2 hours was not an easy ride. But, by keeping my balance in all situations, I was able to stay up rather easily.
__________________
Phil (New bike pending...) |
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#43
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Rereading a bit of this thread...thought I'd make a final notation. I still find it hard to swallow, that in Oct. 2011, I bought a beat up 2t bike and went riding. Riding quad trails(not much over idle in 2nd gear) scared the crap out of me. As of late, I took up a bit of racing...I'm hooked! I took a beating last week, and can't wait for the next round. Many people have helped me along the way...in person and by way of dirtbike forums. Thanks to all! I've come along from a timid beginning casual trail rider, to racing with the B class guys. Not bad for a guy who decided to take up dirtbikes at 42.
__________________
All healed up, and ready to burn some fat. |
#44
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You should be able to read your own number plate(upside down hopefully). Pivot pegs really help develop good form, IMO.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD |
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I've also taken the same journey mechanically, going from not owning a hammer and struggling to remove a front wheel axle with my first bike, through to having a variety of tools, including some specialised, and the ability to just about service and tune everything on my bike. Its a good feeling. |
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#47
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Sample principal, less risk. Relax your grip on the bars. They are called the controls because thats what you use them for. If you find yourself holding on, or supporting your body weight through your arms you're doin it wrong. |
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#49
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Great read, lots of good info. Good to see others have progressed through their dedication.
I'm in the same boat as many here, picking up trail riding late, after many years of riding on the road. I've gone from getting a good deal from a neighbor on a Honda CRF450R "setup for the woods", to a KTM 450, and now Phil's old EC300. I'm by no means fast, but mid pack in our groups which include all different skill levels usually. I wanted to add a little about mental approach, since I feel it is a big part of being successful when riding more advanced terrain. Being prepared for the mental challenge of line selection is key, as one of my buddies likes to say "this ain't piano lessons". It is in your best interest to be sharp and on point when getting into tight woods. My approach started at: 1) be tentative about every obstacle (normal when starting out) 2) hope there wasn't something ahead I couldn't get past forcing me to turn around. Has now progressed into: 1) I'm not going to stop until the next road intersection or I find the wheel in front of me 2) How can I use those SAME obstacles in my favor to HELP me through the trail 3) You're not there until you're there, too many times the last, easiest root or rock reaches out to bite you because you let your guard down Just having a different mentality has helped me quite a bit. Some of my buddies think it's the bike, but that's probably because they still ride MX bikes. Also I found that a book from one of my old baseball coaches has come in very handy. Sports Psyching: Playing your best game all of the time by Thomas Tutko |
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