LanceB Posted December 18, 2014 Share "I rode out in the Tygerberg area 4 weeks ago, and the trails are so groomed/dummed down Id call it a complete waste to ride anything more than 5'' on any of the trails we rode at Merendal, Hillcrest or Contermans, even Majik forest..(not talking about the HD track at contermans)There were no natural obsticles left to jump or push off, after the 50th switchback at merendal I was bored out my mind!! the only thing I enjoyed was the little flowing bit by the stream at the end.Trailbuilders PLEEEESE leave some gnarl or take the trails over some steeper stuff even for us with 95mm travel.. " If you venture to the Tygerberg network without riding the north facing bit of Hoogekraal, what is the point: really? Headshot 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hackster Posted December 18, 2014 Share Of course, the bigger question is, can courage (balls) make up for skills? popcorn_skollie 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hairy Posted December 18, 2014 Share Early 90's were 52mm forks on hardtails. Bas de Bever won the Stellenbosh Worldcup DH in 1997 on 4' Beone FS bike.what a awesome day that was watching the dh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robodog Posted December 19, 2014 Share I used to think that learning to ride on a hard tail improves skills faster as you learn to read lines etc. But teaching mtb skills over the years has proved me wrong. The riders who learn on a dualsus trail bike progress much faster than those on a XC bike. Relaxed geometry, saddle down and longer travel gives riders confidence to conquer bigger and steeper obstacles. I have a friend who started his GF riding on a downhill bike. She is now one of the most skilled ladies I know. Skott5, Skylark and Captain Fastbastard Mayhem 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bos Posted December 19, 2014 Share Of course, the bigger question is, can courage (balls) make up for skills? More often than not, this ends up in hospital Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raydek Posted December 19, 2014 Share I used to think that learning to ride on a hard tail improves skills faster as you learn to read lines etc. But teaching mtb skills over the years has proved me wrong. The riders who learn on a dualsus trail bike progress much faster than those on a XC bike. Relaxed geometry, saddle down and longer travel gives riders confidence to conquer bigger and steeper obstacles. I have a friend who started his GF riding on a downhill bike. She is now one of the most skilled ladies I know. Interesting, not many with this view... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Fastbastard Mayhem Posted December 19, 2014 Share Interesting, not many with this view...It's right, though. A hardtail rigid will teach you to be smooth and look for lines that won't buck you. But a suspension bike will give you more confidence to hit bigger things, faster. Robodog and Raydek 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skott5 Posted December 19, 2014 Share I used to think that learning to ride on a hard tail improves skills faster as you learn to read lines etc. But teaching mtb skills over the years has proved me wrong. The riders who learn on a dualsus trail bike progress much faster than those on a XC bike. Relaxed geometry, saddle down and longer travel gives riders confidence to conquer bigger and steeper obstacles. I have a friend who started his GF riding on a downhill bike. She is now one of the most skilled ladies I know. Hundred percent. My riding progressed so much faster when I moved onto a longer travel bike. The bikes are more forgiving, so allow you to push it a little harder and let you recover from a badly chosen line. With that comes confidence, and you start learning that momentum is your friend. But mostly a fully dialed, full suspension trail / all mountain bike is so much more forgiving than a hardcore racing snake hardtail, especially when you lack natural ability. I watch those pinkbike video's and see myself carving the North Shore like Brendog and Stevie Smith ... The reality is, I dont have that kind of talent. I need spome help from my equipment .. I rode my local trails ( GIBA ) on my old GT Hardtail, for sh1ts and giggles the other day just too see if I was any better than I used to be. Jaysus, I nearly killed myself trying to ride the same lines, at the same speed that I do on my other bikes. Whilst I had the cofidence to try and tackle it, I just didnt have the same amount of fun I normally do. Riding for me is about having fun with my mates. The health benefits are just a bonus for me. Edited December 19, 2014 by Skott5 EmptyB, Robodog and Raydek 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmptyB Posted December 19, 2014 Share Hundred percent. My riding progressed so much faster when I moved onto a longer travel bike.The bikes are more forgiving, so allow you to push it a little harder and let you recover from a badly chosen line.With that comes confidence, and you start learning that momentum is your friend.But mostly a fulled dialed full suspension trail / all mountain bike is so much more forgiving than a hardcore racing snake hardtail, especially when you lack natural ability.I watch those pinkbike video's and see myself carving the North Shore like Brendog and Stevie Smith ... The reality is, I dont have that kind of talent. I need spome help from my equipment .. I rode my local trails ( GIBA ) on my old GT Hardtail, for sh1ts and giggles the other day just too see if I was any better than I used to be. Jaysus, I nearly killed myself trying to ride the same lines, at the same speed that I do on my other bikes. Whilst I had the cofidence to try and tackle it, I just didnt have the same amount of fun I normally do. Riding for me is about having fun with my mates. The health benefits are just a bonus for me. This guy needed more travel.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Headshot Posted December 19, 2014 Share This guy needed more travel....That looks like Golefty :-) Captain Fastbastard Mayhem 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rudi-h Posted December 19, 2014 Share Of course, the bigger question is, can courage (balls) make up for skills? answer is a definite NO! i think i have more "balls" than skill and I have many scars to show. The thing is that you might be confident going into a turn or jump or whatever, but the moment that stuff starts to go wrong, you will stiffen up and that is when it all goes badly wrong! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Headshot Posted December 19, 2014 Share answer is a definite NO! i think i have more "balls" than skill and I have many scars to show. The thing is that you might be confident going into a turn or jump or whatever, but the moment that stuff starts to go wrong, you will stiffen up and that is when it all goes badly wrong! Its a bit more complicated than that. The two work together. You have to have the courage to apply the skills you learn. For instance, if you want to ride a bigger drop off than you have ever tried, you need to have the courage or faith in your skills to go off the edge. Your fear must motivate you and not debilitate you ie you must be able to apply your skills even when frightened. The opposite is also true - if you realize that your skills or technique are lacking you need to know when to say no and work out the technical issues. The main thing is to skill up and apply what you learn gradually. Once you have the basics, stuff that scares other people shitless becomes a piece of cake and you can move onto the next challenge... Videos and books help with the skills but if you want to learn quicker and be pushed to try harder stuff, a skills clinic is invaluable. You'll probably only need one session to get teh confidence to progress. Captain Fastbastard Mayhem, Hairy and Raydek 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raydek Posted December 19, 2014 Share Just curious.... Are there benchmark trails in Cape Town.. i.e. If you can ride X trail without killing yourself you're an ok rider, but if you can ride Y trail you are bloody good... Know this is probably a vague question, but curious. Edit: Maybe it should be written differently. Trail X = entry level skillsTrail Y = mediocre skillsTrail Z = above average skills Edited December 19, 2014 by Raydek Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cadenceblur Posted December 19, 2014 Share Excellent question. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bos Posted December 20, 2014 Share Just curious.... Are there benchmark trails in Cape Town.. i.e. If you can ride X trail without killing yourself you're an ok rider, but if you can ride Y trail you are bloody good... Know this is probably a vague question, but curious. Edit: Maybe it should be written differently. Trail X = entry level skills Trail Y = mediocre skills Trail Z = above average skills I think the best benchmark is Strava Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dicky DQ Posted December 20, 2014 Share I think the ratings are:Green - Go there with your grandmaBlue - Go there with a cyclocross bikeBlack - Got to start thinking about what you are doingBlack Diamond - Need to have a squishy bike.DH - Downhill trail Most trails in and around Ctn are green or blue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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