Every year, I find that I enjoy going mountain biking a little bit more. As my knowledge of the sport increases I like to share a bit of what I've picked up regarding mountain biking techniques and general knowledge that has really saved me on the trails biking. Everyone likes to think they have progressed in their knowledge on a subject and I've written about this one numerous times. I won't cover the basics in this article, so if your looking for them go to the link below for my "Bike Skills" hub.

One of the most important things that seasoned bikers learn is very basic and also not much fun at all. This is to keep your mountain bike gears, deraileurs, and flywheel free of mud, sand, and other debris that it can accumulate while you ride. Nobody enjoys cleaning the bike as it will get ugly after every ride. The problem is that if you don't take care of this stuff, you can't shift. If you can't shift the ride is ruined and you'll be stuck in the middle of the woods until you push the bike out or do a little maintenence. I've learned the hard way.

Being on the trails biking, is very strenuous on the tires and tubes as they are ridden over rocks, sticks and many times glass from partying teenagers. My tire tubes don't last very long and usually get a flat once every few months from punctures. When this happens, Murphy's law states that it will occur in the most inopportune of places such as in a rainstorm, on a very hot day, or while your in the middle of nowhere. To prevent this simple job from becoming an epic hindrance, practice putting a tire on and off the rim while lining it with a tube until you've got it down well. Removing it can be very difficult even with tire levers and it is very easy to slip and cut your knuckles open in the process. Some basic items to add to what your already bringing with you are a small bike pump, tire levers, a multi-tool, a spare tire tube and maybe a patch kit. I'd like to say that these won't be necessary as they are a pain to carry but just today I used the multitool to adjust the seat as it kept turning while riding trails. A few other items that I've learned to carry from experience are bandanas and packs of gauze. If you can't see where your going while barrelling down a evil looking trail you may crash. I've found that when I have excessive sweat in my eyes, it stings and it's difficult to keep them open.  This usually happens when I'm doing something tricky that could hurt a bit if not done correctly. I started wearing a bandana under my helmet to absorb this sweat and haven't had a problem since. Extra bandanas can be swapped out for soaked ones or used to tie gauze to a freely bleeding wound if necessary. This hasn't been an issue just yet as all my injuries to date have been fairly minor abrasions. The thing is that if your miles from any medical care and hurt, being able to use something to exert a fair amount of pressure on a wound, aka a gauze filled bandana, life may be a lot easier.

Many novice bikers don't realize how much water they will actually consume while out in the woods. Being on the trails biking is far more difficult than being on the road because there is constant resistance, hills, and rough terrain to deal with. As a result, bringing more water than you think is necessary is always a good idea. Two full water bottles minimum for a three hour trip has been what works for me. I stuff these in a biking backpack situated in the very center of my back for balance. A hollowed out hydration pack works great as it has a low profile and can hold the necessary items. Also, the padded straps and backing help immensely and the waist strap combined with one around the chest means it is far easier to swing the pack around to get inside of it. Just remove the chest and shoulder straps while sitting on the bike keeping one around your middle fastened. Then swing the bag around and open it. The waist strap keeps you from needing to hold up the bag so everything is nicely balanced. To get it back on in three seconds, reverse the process. Although water is very important, don't put a bottle in the cage on the bike. It will fall out and possibly get in the way at a very unfortunate time causing you some serious grief. Try and counterbalance the water supply in your bag to the best of your ability by keeping it the same on both sides so you will have better balance.

There are, of course, certain mountain biking techniques that will make it easier for a biker to get up hills more easily and down hills in one piece. For climbing a hill, being in the proper gear makes all the difference in the world. Being in too high of a gear means that the biker is working far harder than they need to be and is blowing valuable energy as well as not having the necessary momentum to get over things in the way. Not all mountain bikes are created equal with regard to gears as how many teeth are in the cogs and rear cassette affect the feel of the bike. As a rule, I've found that setting the front deraileur on "2" so it uses the middle cog yields the best results. Going up hills, the first cog nearest the frame or "1" on the gear left selection lever would seem like a better choice. The problem I've found with this however is that it in such a low gear, standing to pedal becomes impossible. A rider lacks stability in this position because it becomes essential to pedal quickly to get anywhere at all and therefore balance is impossible. I find that for trail riding, setting the rear deraileur to use the third cog in the cassette, "3" on the right hand gear selection lever, works well for flat trails. Using "2" or "1" on the right hand gear selection lever works well for hills. This of course, will vary by rider leg strength and the bike being used. To make climbing hills easier, I installed a pair of bar ends on my handlebars. These allow a rider to reach out farther when climbing a hill therefore moving his or her body weight farther to the front and anchoring the front tire to the ground. Leaning backward may cause a rider to flip over backwards and also results in having less control while turning the front wheel to make the bike avoid obstacles it needs to in order to reach the top. Choosing a path for the bike is essential for productive hill climbing, as big rocks, flat slate, sticks, loose gravel and ruts are all best avoided because the tires will have no grip on them. If you look for the best path for the bike eight to ten feet before you get there things will be much easier. Also, by knowing exactly where you want to be and what type of terrain you'll be going across, you'll know how hard to pedal to clear it. For example, a choosing a steeper part of a the hill because its clear of debris probably means that you'll need to pedal harder to clear it without losing your momentum. Choosing a path with potentially lose rocks may mean you want to pedal a bit slower so the extra exertion won't displace them from under you. Every rider finds his or her groove when climbing hills, the most important thing is to keep the seat low and get ready to jump off the back if you lose momentum and can't regain it.

For going down hill, adopting certain techniques will keep you from killing yourself. As with uphill, seat adjustment is very important. Downhill is all about balance, to keep good balance means standing up and getting far back from the bars. Center your weight over that back tire and keep it planted. If it comes up you will do an "endo". This means that you will roll end over end which nobody wants. Careful application of the rear brake is also key to attempt to slow the descent when safe to do so. Don't lock your rear brake and don't ever use the front brake at all. Using the front brake going down hill will also result in an endo. Its like having a hockey stick shoved through the front spokes as it seizes up the tire when the entire bike has momentum. Bar ends although great for uphill, should never be used when going down because you can't touch the brakes. One hand always needs to be near the back brake to use it. As with going uphill, carefully choosing the best path for your front tire to take is essential to a safe descent. Big rocks, dips, and roots should be avoided if at all possible. As always, controlling speed is important to keep full control over the bike.

The older I get, knee health becomes much more important to mountain biking and everything else I do. I'll be writing about it more in the future and will link the article to this one. If you have bad knees, listen carefully to what they are telling you when you ride. If they are screaming up hills, it may mean that you need to downshift into a lower gear to relieve some of the tension on them. Also, seat height and the erogomics of the bike are important. If the bike is too small or the seat is adjusted too low, the knees will have to work harder to get the job done and the results could be disasterous. When riding a bike its best to have the seat up high enough that the knees are just slightly bent. Unfortunately, this seat height isn't optimal in the for when your on the trails biking as it it makes it hard to stand up and exert control over it.  Also, I've hurt myself this way by getting goosed by it.  The only comprimise I've been able to make here is to ride to the trails with the seat high and to lower the ride height enough before I hop on the trails. To keep them from getting worse, ride with knees up and down strictly and not kicked out to the sides. For the joint to operate as it was meant to, the femur and bones of the lower leg should be in alignment while pedaling. Bad knees can be brought back using specific types of yoga as they strengthen the correct muscles around the knee joint to relieve stress on it. I plan on writing articles as I attempt this to fix my own knees and will link them here when I do.

In addition to mountain biking being difficult on the knees, it is also tough on the butt. Even though I have trouble finding mountain biking shorts a cool item by any stretch, extra padding will always be welcome as that bike seat diggs deeper and harder into what you've got down there. This item can get very expensive so it really helps to shop around here. Another source of pain I've found occurs if the pedals spin around while negotiating rough terrain and hit you in the back of the ankle. This isn't so bad if your pedals are flat but if your bike has some nice spiked monsters like mine does to keep you from slipping off, you too will have some nice healthy gouges back there from them. For this the gauze and bandana might come in handy until you can get home but so far injury for me has been minimal. Preventing this is something I've yet to figure out how to do but someday I hope to.

Well, I hope I've helped everyone a little bit with my hard won pointers.  Although I talk about injury a great deal, I haven't hurt myself to badly because I've remained careful.  They key to safe mountain biking is to learn your limits, what you can about physics, and avoid trees.  Have fun everybody!!