Category: Caveman Skills Clinic
Caveman MTB Skill clinics – Pretoria
Caveman hits Pretoria on June 20 & 21.
Build FREE SPEED!
No matter how fast (or slow) you are, I teach basic MTB skills. (I still practice them myself) The more you practice these skills, the sooner you will: Ride faster, ride safer, ride hairier trails, have more fun!
What to expect: This is about learning, not about “jaag-ing” till everyone is dropped and/or bleeding. We cultivate a low pressure, low key, relaxed atmosphere where you can best learn the basic skills in a safe environment. We spend most of our time on a smooth, flat surface. (ok, I may place soft obstacles in your way) Once you have a good handle on the skills, we break for drinks & snacks before we hit the trails & apply what we learned. We start with easy trails, we ride stop & go, so I can demonstrate and watch you convert “parking lot skills” to the trail. (For the Karate Kid fans, think: “Wax on, wax off, paint the fence etc” before you can kick ass)
You dont need to be super fit or tapered and carbo loaded. That said, I cater to the needs of the group, which is why its even better if we can fill the class with your riding friends. (Once or twice the ride has spiraled into a bit of a overtime smash-fest with silly grins at the end…)
You dont need to be in much of a shape to learn, BUT your bike needs to be in perfect working condition!
If you have knee pads, bring them. This is not a crash-fest, but somehow we just ride better with them on.
Clinics:
Saturday June 20:
Where: Buffelsdrift MTB Park. Why not race DualX off road duathlon with me in the morning, and learn skills on the new Buffelsdrift trails after lunch?
When: “After lunch” 2 – 5pm.
Depending on the needs of the group, we can include some duathlon skills and tips- fast transitions, nutrition, pacing & strategy, equipment, etc. Please indicate if you (or your kids) do duathlon.
Sunday June 21:
Where: Voortrekkermonument.
Intermediate: 9 – 12am
Beginners: 2 – 5pm
Price: R1200 pp
Goodie bag, healthy snacks & drinks included.
Bookings & info, email LiezelStoltz@me.com
Nobody gets dropped. Kanyisa’s first day on his “big bike”…
XTERRA Grabouw MTB course pre-ride with Caveman.
The XTERRA Grabouw bike course is a hairy one. Probably the best XTERRA bike course in the world!
Prepare for this epic race with a guided pre-ride of the bike course with the #Caveman.
– Learn the A, B & C lines.
– Learn the skills required to ace this course.
– Bike set up and equipment for safe, fast shredding.
– Nutrition, pacing etc.
– You bring the Q’s I’ll have the A’s. (Hopefully) Topics can include running, swimming etc.
– Snacks, drinks, signed Caveman posters and sample products from Bos Sport, Squirt lube & Enduren.
Dates:
Caveman Skills Clinic Groenkloof Nature Reserve, Pretoria
Surprisingly, the quest to mastering MTB skills starts in the parking lot. Even for a group of Intermediate riders with a few Cape Epics under the belt.
We spent a lot of time on the tar. Its all about mastering the basics:
Even “Stopping 101” is surprisingly hard at first. Here Deryck shows good form and brake modulation.
And he brought the right bike: Dropper post, chunkier tyres, corner friendly frame geometry and a bit more suspension than your typical XC bike. Too many folks are hell bent on riding the “lightest, fastest most responsive” XC bike – which is pretty hard to ride well on trail) and overlook the bikes made for trail riding. (Deryck is on a mid level Specialized Stumpjumper FSR (Elite, I think) for about R40k or US$3800)
Look and learn. Watching and following are powerful learning tools.
Reuben van Niekerk is an ace Para cyclist with a few Cape Epics under the belt, and as you can see, he now knows how to drop bar and rail a corner. (Also thanks in part, to the “trail bike” as described above)
Anton never stopped smiling!
The Dreaded Drop off: First in the classroom…
Then follow the example
Then DO IT! “Hesitation = Devastation!!”
Center of gravity over the BB, off the brakes, look ahead etc…
Text message from Robrecht after he got back from “Class”:
If your Afrikaans is a bit rusty:
“Conrad. Just rode down the stairs by my house for the first time ever. Was surprised how easy it was. Thanks! Robrecht”
Anton drops in on his Enduro…
Jos drops in on his hard tail…
Once we all had a good grip on the skills we hit the Groenkloof trails and put new moves to the test.
Reuben crushing the rock section
Deryck showing good balance and posture. Elbows up & hips forward!
As confidence grew, the guys kept requesting harder and harder trails…
In fact, we kept riding till we hit Single Track Nirvana
There seems to be a great demand for “Free Speed” in the Gauteng area – stay tuned for more Caveman Skills Clinics- I’ll really get into it once my racing schedule calms down a bit later this summer.
#PrincessHotstuff did a great job helping with the coaching (shredding MTB and acing Netball is not far apart!) and for keeping the aid station stocked with cold BOS Sport and snacks, taking photos, organizing the admin, printing posters and organizing goodie bags: Squirt chain lube, Barrier Balm & tyre sealant and also Enduren products.
Hats off to the Groenkloof Nature Reserve, Pretoria for its fantastic trails and wildlife- it was quite a treat, and very far removed from the last time I rode there. Northern Transvaal MTB Champs, 1997 – Fritz Pienaar and I were racing head to head when I (largely due to lack of skill, but also the “single track” was a footpath) tangled in monkey vine and broke my collar bone. And thus put an eternal end to my status as a swimming ace.
Recon of Groenkloof with Frans the evening before – Africa at its best.
Conrad Stoltz MTB Skills clinic – Kids on wheels
When Liezel and I started advertising the Conrad Stoltz Skills Clinics, we had 2 groups in mind: Novice and Intermediate.
Since it was middle of South African racing season, we didnt have much lead time, but once word got out, we quickly had a full Intermediate group, a big, unexpected Expert group (in the Paul Roos Gym Highschool MTB racing team) and a full Novice group- which turned out to be a gaggle of eager, fear nothing kids! – mostly from the Banhoek Valley.
Some of us were so novice, we’ve only had our “BIG bike” for 7 days, and our hands barely went around the bars- never mind reach the brakes… Kanyisa van Tonder doing a duathlon on our way to the “training grounds”.
Kids keep you humble- you learn to talk to the point, keep it simple yet interresting and keep it fun. It also taught me a lot about what I was teaching: Why do we dismount on the left? Exactly how much front brake you use for an emergency stop? How do you turn?
Brake early, elbows wide, look at the exit… Carl Bekker and Kruger Marais about to bend it
Rocky uphill starts. Light gear, pedal at 2 o’clock, sit on nose of saddle, hold the brakes, lean forward. Let go of brakes, apply smooth pressure and pedal with 1 leg till other one is clipped in. Carl shows us how.
Emergency stop on a dime. (Same principal for any kind of braking- just to a lesser degree) Throw weight back and down while grabbing lots of front (and some) rear brake. If you’re skidding you’re doing it wrong.
Tom – the least fearful and the youngest. (5!) Tom didnt bother with the kiddie sized front wheel lift obstacles (lines on the ground) and went straight for the fore arm sized logs- reserved for the Advanced group. Proving that we learn fear, only try to unlearn it later…
Soon Kanyisa (Smile a Minute) was killing it in the corners. A number of times it all became too much and he did cartwheels into the undergrowth. Once Liezel had to pull the bike off him before he could get up. I think the only time Kanyisa wasnt talking was when he was crashing. Awesome spirit.
Thanks for the support.
Coming summer we’re looking at more clinics and a new venue. Stay tuned…
Caveman Skills Clinic- Paul Roos Mountain bike team
Back in March we had a few Caveman Mountain bike Skills clinics in Jonkershoek outside Stellenbosch.
Princess Hotstuff and I really enjoyed teaching, inspiring and making new friends. Its amazing how quick the youth and newbies is to soak up knowledge. (And shun fear!)
Fun was had, much was learnt and we hope to see riders young and old of all abilities prosper and grow in their riding.
Group of mostly Paul Roos Gymnasium MTB Team. Some XCO and XTERRA talent brewing in the ranks…
We learnt to carve corners
Hop over bunnies
And dive high speed into loose corners…
Learning from each other
and showing them how its done.
“Speed is your friend”
And the toughest part is going real slow. Or balancing on the spot- no hands
We talked tyres, racing tactics, training, motivation and even nutrition.
(2 weeks later I met with the Paul Roos MTB Team for a follow up- same skills, different terrain & some XCO racing starts)
And then we got thirsty. Cold, refreshing BOS Sport to the rescue.
What a backdrop!
Stay tuned for more Caveman Skills clinics to come.
