My trouble isn’t with being a good descender; it is with cornering and stopping – and sometimes both. Or, as G’rilla puts it, “Descending is like sex; how good I am at it has nothing to do with how much I enjoy it.”
Descending is demanding and requires great skill. It is not a time for resting or taking it easy; getting down the mountain should be every bit as hard as getting up it. Merckx was himself a good climber, but his bikes were all designed to be stable and fast on the descents so he would be able to get off the mountain faster than the mountain goats he was chasing.
On the way down, we are compelled to smoothly spin the pedals at 120 or more rpms in pursuit of maximum speed. Once escape velocity is reached, we contort our bodies into the most aero tuck possible, causing our muscles to scream out in agony from the unnatural position. Cornering, we push on the pedals and bars in an effort to maximize friction between tire and pavement as an alternative to finding too much friction in the ditches at the roadside. The mind is consumed in the total concentration of keeping the rickshaw in one piece.
We hereby hand down Rule #93, plucked from the ether by @urbanwhitetrash in a moment of clair-V-ance after the VVhidbey Island Cogal.
Descents are meant to be as hard and demanding as – and much more dangerous than – the climbs. Climb hard, descend to close a gap or open one. Descents should hurt, not be a time for recovery. Recovery is designated only for the pub and for shit-talking.
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@wiscot
I thought you were SW Wisconsin; there is enough technical descending on roads that may or may not stop being pave mid-corner and what may or may not be free of pebbles even if it is paved all the way through.
@Siri
I always thought you lived in Cupertino; I didn't realized you moved to Chicago.
You're still kinda hot though.
For reference, from a Youngster with an Immortality Complex:
And another from an Immortal with a Youngster Complex.
I cannot join the ranks of those who boast of potent descending skills. Whilst I have ample kinetic energy stored, the roads are too rough and narrow, the consequences of cocking it up too dire (a choice between, hitting a gum tree, going over a cliff, or, best case, being cushioned by a barbed-wire stock fence), the local drivers are too bad, and mostly, I'm spoilt by years of riding Ducatis. On a motorbike, there are these huge fat tyres, and amazing suspensions, and brakes that actually work. On a carbon race bike, there are none of those things. Call me a sook,if you will. There is one great local descent, where the road is smooth and wide, and I tap it open and leave the brakes alone though. I do crack on a bit on other hills, but by and large, prefer to arrive at my destination, not in an ambulance.
@8-0 - In my experience, flipping your stem from positive to negative moves your bars ~1cm forward as well as dropping them lower. Unless you're young and flexible, take your time with this; change one thing at a time, no more than a cm at a time, and give yourself time to get used to it. It works - I've gone from a 10cm stem flipped up on top of 3cm of spacers to an 11cm stem flipped down and slammed, and will probably switch to a 12cm stem soon. It took almost a year to make the metamorphosis.
Oh, and re: descending - I suck, largely due to the fact that I can do a 100km ride and not get 100m of elevation change where I live (south Louisiana).
@frank
Hmmm....well, since I couldn't wait for a US edition and have the UK edition...I shall amend my copy with the new Rules
On long descents I always find my arms tiring. It's hard work keeping things upright once you have spun out you largest gear. The end result is that at least my legs get some recovery time.
I'm a barely average descender.
Descending is one thing where a bike you ride can make a big difference. Around here, the roads are shocking, and having a bit of flex in your bike makes the wheels stay on the ground more, which is a good thing. My current bike is STIFF, and I can feel the back wheel jump around.
I imagine a titanium bike would be perfect.
I HAVE to descend quickly, its a simple mathematical equation which states that as Im so shit at going up, i need to make up for it going down.
Ive even begun to slacken off the front and rear brakes so that there is no possible chance of slowing down!
Battling going up makes for the ecstasy of going down ! (so to speak)
@The Grande Fondue
What roads you riding on? South Oz ?
I loves me a good descent, and am just about back at the point where I'm actually confident that the wheels will do what I want them to & keep me upright. Those who took part in this year's Adelaide Cogal should regognise the following descent, this footage is from the last ride before I got a very painful reminder of the limits of Rule #64!
<a href="http://vimeo.com/49375421">Greenhill Rd Descent from <a href="http://vimeo.com/user11348985">Mikael Liddy on <a href="https://vimeo.com">Vimeo.>