Why do I keep crashing/wiping out?

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by mpapet on September 28, 2009 at 1:33pm

You need to turn:
1. with your hips.
2. learn counter-steering

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Permalink Reply by Hank on September 28, 2009 at 1:49pm

I know how to turn with my hips and counter-steering from a few years of crit racing but was always taught to steer with the handlebars in cross to avoid wiping out. Maybe I am over doing it.

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Permalink Reply by Monkeybusiness on September 28, 2009 at 2:08pm

Sounds to me like you just need to work on your dirt skills.

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Permalink Reply by Phil Oppenheimer on September 28, 2009 at 3:11pm

Sounds to me like you are trying to rail the bike like on the road. You need to try to keep the bike more upright and turn with your knee swung out as a counterbalance. Take your turns wider and scrub speed into the turn not with brakes but by slowing. Just my two cents.

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Permalink Reply by Cincicycles on October 6, 2009 at 10:38am

Also keeping weight on the outside leg in the turn puts more pressure downward increasing the contact patch of the tire to the ground. Are you washing out, falling inside the turn... or bucking over the bike to the outside?

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Permalink Reply by Katsu Tanda on September 28, 2009 at 6:29pm

You are just going in too hot in the corners. Back it off a bit. Crashing and being on the ground is a lot slower than slowing down a little bit more and making it through clean

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Permalink Reply by Booksy on October 2, 2009 at 7:55am

First, don't build a new bike, those Singlecross' are badass and you're a badass for racing a SS.
But the real advice I'd give is to ride a mountain bike occasionally during the summer. You'll learn how to feel when the front tire is about to break loose, how to comfortably drift both wheels through turns and you'll learn how to handle a bike in every type of turn imaginable. The guys who only ride road and cross always suffer when conditions get weird, like in sand transitions and wherever there's loose gravel, singletrack that requires braking or uneven/offcamber grass turns. A mountain bike ride even just every other week during the summer will really hook you up. AND you won't be such a dork! just kidding. We're all complete dweebs when we put our lycra on and go racing around a park on skinny tire bikes, no getting around it...

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Permalink Reply by Hank on October 2, 2009 at 9:37am

Wow thanks for all the great advice everyone! My new bike is actually almost done already, its another single speed... ROCK LOBSTER!
I have focused on putting my knee out for counter balance and leaning leaning a bit more. Results have been fantastic. If I don't get a mountain bike by next year, during the summer I am going to put on fatty tires, flat bars, a bigger cog, and take it up into the headlands to learn how to really ride a bike.

Thanks for all the great advice everyone.

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Permalink Reply by FallDownGoBoom on October 2, 2009 at 10:05am

Hey Hank, I think the reason you crashed in your photo and again later that race just below the parking lot was that you were being pushed by far superior skilled riders (ok, it was me, Troy, and that "superior" crap is totally BS, you beat me fair and square).

In all seriousness, I've seen the lines you've taken, and the only suggestion I would have is to not overload the front wheel entering tight turns - dump speed at the VERY last second with the front brake (only so much can be done with the rear) while the bike is upright, then when diving into the corners get totally off the front brake and use your body and rear wheel while pedaling to balance the weighting and pull the front end around as much as push it around the corner. I've seen you come in hot, overbrake with the front while initiating the turn, and then "push" the front wheel right over (beyond it's traction ability) going into a turn. Especially on the gravel, get off that front brake when the bike is leaned over, there's almost no chance of recovery once that front wheel breaks free.

The body movement and cornering is a skill rapidly learned on the MTB or 'cross bike and especially with the new bike, grab a few sticks, make a corner with boundaries, then go hotter and hotter until you get the feel - but ride on grass perhaps at Crissy Field because you should expect to dump a couple times.

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Permalink Reply by Hank on October 2, 2009 at 10:18am

For the record I only crashed once in that race (coyote point) and that was really the only crash I had last year. Popped my shoulder out and in but still finished 4th. Woot. My handling skills have gone down the drain for some reason this year. Maybe I am just pushing the turns a lot harder trying to keep up with the SSA guys.

Thanks for the lengthy advice. I read it like 5 times and think I have a good idea of what you mean but I will have to ask for a demonstration at Mclaren this weekend.

Good Luck.

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Permalink Reply by Rich on October 4, 2009 at 9:30pm

From a fellow noob:
From Hank's reply it sounds like you need to get all your braking done before the corner, and make sure you are apexing the corners right. You can really push the front end of a road bike hard, and even brake to the apex, like in a a crit race, but the traction is not there in CX. In Mt biking I made up a lot of ground in a collegiate short track race against one of my much younger teammates on the twisty downhill section by being smooth and apexing the corners right. It made me feel good when the guys in the faster classes were using my line through one of the trickier corners. Hope this helps.

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Permalink Reply by Hank on October 5, 2009 at 9:34am

All the tips really helped guys. I raced SSA at BASPS #1 and Mclaren in SF this weekend and while unfortunately I dropped my chain on the first turn of the first lap, I raced really well taking all the turns super tight. As those of you know that were there, it was a pretty technical course and I had a blast.

Thanks again for all the advice I hope other people having issues with taking turns find this thread.

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