To be a successful collegiate mountain biker, having good speed and fitness isn’t enough. Even though these two things are indispensable to becoming a good mountain biker, to be a successful one, you need more than that. To be a successful collegiate cyclist, you also need to possess some technical riding skills to conquer those trails confidently. Technical riding skills, as the name suggests, are skills that help you comfortably navigate rough and challenging terrain.
These skills not only help you tackle obstacles but also boost your confidence while cycling on rough mountain terrain. Thus, learning these technical biking skills is crucial for you to fly your bike high with confidence on these trails while flaunting your college sports apparel.
Besides acquiring these technical riding skills, you must also possess expert bike handling skills to conquer trails effortlessly. In the same way that you train to be more fit to ride your bike, you can also work on refining your bike handling skills to become a more competent cyclist. These bike handling skills won’t just further elevate your cycling skill set but also make your mountain biking explorations more fun and fulfilling.
Therefore, let’s explore some essential tech hacks to help you conquer trails with confidence and skill.
Essential Tech Hacks for Peak Performance on Trails
1. Dropper Post Utilization
You must’ve noticed while riding your bike on the trails that while climbing up you need a different height seat post and while descending a different one. That’s because climbing up requires you to have a higher-height seat post so that you can easily extend your legs and pedal more effectively. While descending you need to have a lower seat post so that you can lower your center of gravity and gain more stability while riding on rough terrain. Thus, you can make use of a dropper post instead of a regular seat post as they allow you to quickly adjust your height when you’re on the fly. To buy a good-quality dropper post or other cycling accessories and apparel you can explore any collegiate store that’s renowned for its quality.
2. Suspension Setup
Suspension setup skills are another crucial technical riding skill you must learn to make your mountain biking experience more fun, fulfilling, and exciting. Suspension setups are crucial for riding your bike more comfortably on rough terrain, and they also help you handle your bike in a much better way. So, you must make sure they’re properly set up before you go on a ride. To check their settings, first start by adjusting the air pressure of your sag to align it with your trail’s condition. Besides that, check your rebound and compression settings, as they can also make or break your riding experience.
3. Tubeless Tire Conversion
Tires are an essential part of every mountain bike. That’s why having good-quality tires is crucial so that you can have an effortless and comfortable riding experience in the mountains. Mountain trails are rough and full of obstacles, so they not only demand that you have good-quality tires but also ones that won’t puncture easily. That’s why you must convert your regular tires into tubeless ones so that you can fly your bike effortlessly without worrying about your tires getting punctured. Another reason why you must change your tires is that if your tires get punctured while riding, it may cause an accident. Thus, while navigating difficult terrain, you must use tubeless tires.
4. Tire Pressure Optimization
To ride comfortably, having good-quality tires is crucial because they not only provide you with better traction but also absorb shocks to give you a smoother and more stable ride. So, before you pick up your mountain bike for your next mountainous adventure or any college competition, make sure to check your tire pressure first. Doing so will help you ensure your tire has the right amount of air to give a better ride quality and keep up with your speed’s momentum. Furthermore, to find out the optimum tire pressure for your tires, you can experiment with different air pressures before riding.
5. GPS and Tracking Apps
GPS and tracking apps can significantly boost your mountain biking experience. Using these apps, you can easily discover new trails to ride along with fellow cyclists riding with you on the same terrain. Exploring new trails every time you go out for a ride with your mountain bike can be fun, and meeting new friends and competing with them can make it even more exciting. Besides that, these apps can also help you track your rides and provide you with performance analytics and detailed offline trail maps. So, you must install these apps so you can track your progress and discover new trails every time you go for a ride.
Final Thoughts
To be a successful collegiate mountain biker, you need more than just physical vigor. Having technical riding and bike handling skills is just as necessary to conquer every trail you set your eyes on confidently. Therefore, we hope that by embracing the above-mentioned essential hacks, you can conquer every trail while elevating your cycling skills. Happy riding!
Top Image by freepik
