Should I Take Mountain Bike Lessons?
Whether you’re a skier, snowboarder, or guitarist, you’d benefit from a lesson to two, no matter your skill level. So you may be wondering, “Should I take mountain bike lessons?”
Well, this is exactly what I’ve been doing this summer. In this article, I’ll explain why, if they were any good, and what I got out of them.
Why I Took Mountain Bike Lessons
First, I’ll give you a quick rundown of my mountain biking history. My wife and I used to be weekend warriors at Llandegla in North Wales and often took our bikes with us when we holidayed in the UK. But we never did anything too techy or scary.
We moved out to the French Alps for a summer in Morzine, and the terrain was a shock to the system. The trails out here are more technical and steeper than we were used to. But we soon fell in love with riding our bikes in the Alps, and the fear began to fade on familiar trails.
We became more confident and ambitious, heading to the EWS trails of La Thuile and Finale Ligure. Tackling these trails helped boost confidence further, but our progress soon began to stall. We found that we stopped challenging ourselves.
Even with all the terrain available, mountain biking in the area isn’t very consistent. This is because the mountains are covered in snow all winter, which is great for snowboarding. But autumn is arguably too dangerous to pedal into the mountains, as it’s hunting season.
A Lack Of MTB Mojo And Other Commitments
My mountain bike mojo has been pretty low for a couple of years. The first reason was that I slightly broke my back at a party (I know, I know!). I was recovering quickly, but my physio said I should be OK as long as I didn’t fall off my bike. This made me super nervous while riding, so I dialed everything back for a summer.
The following summer, we had to build our new apartment. Therefore, all our spare time was spent painting and getting building supplies, so mountain biking had to take a back seat. The result was a lack of confidence leading up to this summer, so I had to do something about it.
Going Back To School
Morzine has a few mountain bike schools. Most of them are owned and run by ski instructors who don’t spend their summers building chalets. We chose to book several sessions with Rideability, owned by local legend Jo.
Jo is incredibly laidback and has the most calming voice of any Frenchman I’ve met. This calmness instilled confidence within our group of 5 or 6 MTB students, all in our 30s, 40s, and 50s.
Stripping It Back To The Basics
Jo started each session by making us do a warm-up ride around some cones, feeling like little kids riding around a playground. We then went into basic skills that we should all practice but don’t. Track stands, braking techniques, pumping, manuals, bunny-hops, stoppies, riding steep sections properly, etc.
We then took these basic skills to the trails to incorporate them into actual mountain biking. Jo told us to ride a specific trail without pedaling or jumping so we could ride more smoothly and find momentum by using the terrain.
Doing this made a surprising difference to my riding straight away. I thought I was already doing this, but I learned that I could have been doing it more effectively.
Slowing Down To Go Faster
Jo then broke down the fundamentals of cornering techniques. Slowing everything down and actually thinking about line choice rather than just riding fast meant we could find fun, safe, and faster lines through berms. We stood at the top of berms and critiqued other riders as they passed us. This way, we could see clear differences between good and bad techniques, so we had something to aim for.
This may sound a bit too basic, but being forced to ride slowly and smoother was invaluable; I soon started to see the benefits.
In fact, my low confidence rocketed after the first session. I started to feel comfortable on my bike again and was looking forward to how I would feel after the following lessons.
Jumping
After a couple of sessions, Jo allowed us to leave the ground. We took our improved bunny-hop skills to jumps and tabletops. After a few practice runs, I found myself clearing tabletops that I had previously cased. This resulted from timing the movements correctly with control rather than throwing myself at them, hoping for the best.
How I Felt After Taking Mountain Bike Lessons
Riding around cones at the start of the first session made me feel like the lesson would be too basic. But, after about 20 minutes, I learned my basic skills were not up to scratch, and I certainly needed help.
As I said earlier, I felt comfortable on my bike again after the first session. My confidence increased over the three sessions, giving me itchy feet rather than cold feet for riding. In fact, I have been looking for the “interesting” way home when going for simple fitness rides rather than the safe option.
Another thing I’ve noticed is that my Strava times have been coming down. The strange thing is that I’ve been faster when I’ve felt like I was hanging back a bit. I think this is down to riding smoother rather than aggressively.
Should I Take Mountain Bike Lessons? - Answered
Taking mountain bike lessons is an excellent thing to do. Even if you’re an excellent rider, the right instructor can teach you something. Whether you want to tackle your first blue trail or tail whip over a road gap, there is always something new to learn.
I can vouch for the benefits of mountain bike lessons. I feel like I’m returning to my previous mojo level, and I don’t think it would take much more to improve.
