Posts Tagged ‘MTB Skills clinic’
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:
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…
