The Pocket Mountain Bike Trail Guide: Your slope saviour

By Clive Forth

From the author of The Mountain Bike Skills Manual, this is a take-it-with-you trail guide that covers everything you need to know when you're out on your bike.

The emphasis is firmly on the practical, including changing your chain, adjusting your gears, fixing breaks and mending punctures - skills that a surprising number of riders lack.

There is a section on getting the best out of your bike and your ride - from cornering effectively to wheelies and bunny hops - as well as information on preparation, planning, weather, nutrition and trail etiquette. Last but not least, the book contains a easy-to-follow first-aid section.

Packed with colour photos and illustrations in a step-by-step format, compact, comprehensive and clear, this is a must-have companion for all mountain bikers heading out on the trail.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
• Release date: Jul 19, 2012
• ISBN: 9781408179345

Clive Forth

Clive Forth is a leading mountain bike racer and trainer and the author of The Mountain Bike Skills Manual. He competed in the first UK mountain bike series, took part in the World Championships and is currently involved in coaching and training novice and professional mountain bikers. He is the founder of MTBSkills: the Clive Forth Mountain Bike Academy.

Book preview

THE POCKET MOUNTAIN BIKE TRAIL GUIDE

YOUR SLOPE SAVIOUR

Clive Forth

Contents

Foreword

Introduction

1 Pre-ride

2 Trail etiquette

3 Trailside repairs

4 Skills & technique

5 Bike set-up guide

6 emergency procedures

Acknowledgements

Glossary

Resources

Foreword

It was about 1990 when I first heard of Clive Forth. In those days I was riding a duck-egg blue Raleigh Memphis – I believe they were made in a Russian gulag out of iron and Communists. It rode like a plough and I felt like the ox trying to pull it (most bikes were like that back then). My mate, John, kept saying, ‘Come and ride with Clive this weekend, he’s mental!’

Well, I met Clive on a standard autumn Saturday afternoon at the local woods. Margaret Thatcher was still running the country and the conversation soon turned to politics – although clearly Clive was much more focused on his bike… ‘What angle have you got your brake levers at?’ he asked out of nowhere. I was puzzled, what did this have to do with poll tax riots? ‘Oh it’s just you need to angle them so that they’re at a similar angle to your arms.’ You see, Clive loves the details – get the details right and the rest follows. He can not only tell you where to place your bike on every corner he’s ever ridden, but also what angle your hands should be on the bars, or why you don’t need to brake into that particular corner, or even how many bottles you should take into the shower.

Since those early days, we have been riding and talking bikes ever since. We moved on from domestic politics and drove around the country entering every mountain-bike race we could afford while discussing the finer points of bicycle evolution. Mountain biking back then was in its infancy; the bikes still wouldn’t hold up for long without something breaking. On any given ride you would generally hear something like, ‘Did anyone bring an adjustable spanner?’ or ‘You go on without me, I think I’ll have to walk home…’ Clive wasn’t bothered though – for him, this just added to the challenge. And he would always be the one trying a new crazy method of getting from A to B! Of course, we would all then give it a try. More often than not, this would end in a trip to the hospital or worse (a trip to the bike shop!)

We tried every form of mountain biking on these old contraptions and should be congratulated for sticking with it in the dark days before sealed bearings and full suspension! But as the bikes became more capable, so did Clive. I remember when disc brakes became a worthwhile investment; from this point on, following Clive became extremely dangerous. He just kept endoing everywhere! Down a steep bank, through a stile, on his dad’s bed… One minute you would be flying down a hill, the next thing you know, Clive is in front, back wheel in the air and you are about to have a face full of Panaracer Smoke tyre! Years later, while riding with him in the Alps, the reason behind all that endo practice became clear: lots of tight switchbacks that most people couldn’t even walk down and what do you know? Clive endos smoothly into the corner while swinging the back wheel out, drops into the switchback and he’s away.

For a long time, Clive has been the personal skills trainer to me and many of our friends. We have spent 20 years following Clive, watching what he does, copying his lines, trying to capture the moment as he does it. He has turned us all into skilled bikers and we thank him for that. During this time, Clive has also turned himself into a skilled teacher. I have to say though: this book does worry me! I’ve actually got quite good at mountain biking, and I like that. By following the tips and tricks in this book, there will be many more accomplished bikers on the trails, so please, whatever you do, ignore everything you read in this book. It’s nonsense!

Before I go, I would just like to ask Clive one final question: when are we riding next?

Barry Gell

Rider and friend

Introduction

Most children like bikes, though some more so than others. I was surrounded by engineering in my youth, from large industrial plant machinery to finely tuned racing cars, and this had a profound effect on how I looked at my bike and the possibilities of riding. My early bikes were hand-me-downs from my older brother Kevin. Growing up through the late 70s and early 80s and having an older brother meant I got to ride some cult classics, from the Striker onto the Grifter, then the legendary Burner. The Chopper eluded me, but a neighbour did have one so I got to savour its terrible handling on the odd occasion.

There was one bike though which defined what it was that I loved about riding: the Bomber, Raleigh’s mass-production klunker. All my early bikes had an upright riding position, which lent itself to motocross-style riding and drifting turns, but the Bomber’s larger wheels and chunky tyres made for a whole new era in goofing around on dirt. Those early play days in the garden, around the streets and up in the woods opened up a wonderful world to me.

I have been on a great many journeys with my friends since I started racing mountain bikes in the late 80s. Over those years I’ve ridden thousands of miles and had relatively few incidents, and fortunately I have been with quick-thinking friends or trained professionals at events when I’ve been injured (something we refer to as a ‘bio-mechanical’). And thanks to my early years and my inquisitive nature when it came to mechanical failures on the bike, I had the tools and ability to keep on riding – few rides reulted in me being stranded and unable to finish. In this book you will find hints and tips on how to prepare for a ride, look after yourself and others while out on the trails, improve your key riding techniques and get more from your mountain bike experience. I have had a great time dissecting the key elements that make for a great rider and I hope they bring you closer to the essence of mountain biking.

1 Pre-ride

Mountain biking is more than just a leisure pursuit or sport – for many it is a way of life. More and more people are taking to the hills to ride purpose-built and wild trails. When I started riding mountain bikes back in the 80s there was little outside influence; other than the occasional feature in the emerging American magazines, there were no real reference points. My early adventures with like-minded friends would take us away from our urban surroundings and out into the hills, where our days were spent searching for that all-important flowing single track. Having prepared a route on our map over a cup of tea, we would pack our bags and bikes with the essentials for the day and hit the road.

Equipment back then was less capable than it is today, and we often had to deal with mechanical failures, also called ‘mechanicals’ and the odd injury which we called ‘bio-mechanicals’. My friends and I soon became very capable at fixing most common faults and breakages; we also developed a high level of skill when it came to riding the bikes and an ability to navigate using a map and compass. I now take these skills for granted, so in this book I want to share that knowledge and help you to improve your mountain bike experience. The most