So went mountain biking with a couple of friends and I come up to a part of the trail where I jumped up onto a bridge but it was very small and I lost balance fell off left the front of the bike stuck and threw me right over the handle bars. Bike luckily was not damaged which was my first concern but it kinda shook me up and I was uncomfortable the rest of the ride. No broken bones just real scraped up. Just wondering what you guys do to get back up the confidence. I know it will probably just take more riding just curious if yall had any tips.
The more I ride the more crash stories I have to tell - after a while you realize "mountainbiking and crashing sorta go hand in hand, good thing i wear this helmet"
i know, this isn't really good advice, i'm just telling you how it worked out for me personally :)
about a month ago i crashed on a trail i know like the back of my hand after i had already gone through the tech section and switchbacks... i was on flat ground on the way back to the parking lot and while turning a corner my front wheel slipped out - that's the last thing I remember. next thing i know im riding again thinking to myself "ah, there is my car, wait, i missed some of the trail"... I look down and my knee is "open", my arm is rashed from wrist to shoulder, and my head hurts accompanied by a dizzy feeling, sorta like i was lost, and in a dream at the same time. i get back to my car, take off my helmet, and it's cracked, look at my watch and i've lost an hour (must have been "sleeping"...) what's the point? you never know when you might go down, no matter how long you've been riding, or how solid of a rider you are, it's just part of the gig :)
Get back on the horse, wear a helmet, don't ride alone :)
Crashes are all part of the cycling life, you just get on with it. You wouldn't stop going out of your front door just cos you got your thumb stuck in it, apply the same to the bike.
I've been lucky on my road bike; any crashes I've had have just skinned me. Worst crash I had was on the track in the Manchester velodrome while racing there (no brakes or freewheel on the bikes)- was ahead of my competitor in a 2k pursuit when my bike slipped on the banking then began to buck about...I was thrown over the top of it (at approx 30mph) and landed very heavily on my side. Fractured 2 ribs and nearly fractured my hip. Was back on there 2wks later training for my next race!
Yeah it'll hurt to come off, both physically and your pride, but if you don't get straight back on you'll get more and more nervous and never will!
I've been playing this game for a long, long time. Despite all the affection I've heaped on my bikes over the years, they always bite the hand that feeds them.
2 paraphrased quotes. Somebody will know who to attribute them to as I cannot remember - maybe Greg Herbold and Missy Giove?
"If you don't crash, you're not riding hard enough."
and
"If you're crashing all the time you're just being stupid"
I have the scars to show for 25+ years of riding mtb and road bikes. One real piece of advice is to know that wrecking is a skill. Sounds silly, but there's a lot to it. Learn to roll. Maintain your flexibility. Don't allow your upper body to get too gaunt b/c that strength can keep you out of a wreck. If you aren't a master at cornering, practice it in all kinds of conditions. If a low speed crash where you just fall over like an axed tree, maintain the grip on your bars and throw the bars into the ground to break the fall - don't stick your hand out. Carry a phone, ID and medical info. Let someone know what you're doing and when you'll be back.
If at all possible, don't wreck your road bike. Ever.
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