MeetUp Skills clinics

So I've been organizing skills rides on the website MeetUp. It's been a way to start introducing people to skills. Mostly the rides have been casual where we ride and I am sure to give instructions as we go, but we avoid doing official drills and skills like I'd do for a more formal setting.

I've decided to expand on the MeetUps and start adding skills clinics. These have a modest charge of $30 per person and the clinic sizes are limited to 5 people. This keeps it small and manageable. If you are interested in joining and seeing what I can offer come out! There will be one this Saturday at 1:30 in the Belmont Plateau and next Saturday at the same time.

There is also a free ride session next Saturday the 8th at 9:30am in the Wissahickon. This one will concentrate on log hopping and cornering.

Come join us!

New things to play with!

I just got a Cardo Bluetooth communications system to play with. It will allow two way communications with clients so I can give instant clear feedback as we ride and do skills. It's for one on one interaction so no groups yet, but the possibilities are exciting!
I'll be in your ear like all coaches should be!

http://www.cardosystems.com/us/cardo-bk/cardo-bk-1-duo

Taking it to Michaux!

TakeAim Cycling is going to be a coach at Fast Forward Racing's Michaux Mountain Bike Camp.
The line-up of instructors is going to great.
Checkout the schedule and see if it's something for you!

http://www.fastforwardracingproductions.com/p/michaux-mtb-school.html

Drain the face! Get slack-jawed!

Here is a little technique I like to use to help myself relax on the bike. Often when we're riding or even just living, we don't realize the little muscle engagements that are going on.

A perfect example are the muscles in your face. As we stress under hard loads, or squint into the sun for to long you may not realize that that squinting, or that slight grimace actually uses extra muscles. Those muscles aren't actually doing any work for you so engaging them means your body is working more than it needs too. The goal is to put all your energy into the work that needs to be done. Letting a little energy disappear though unproductive muscles is like leaving a window cracked open in the winter when trying to heat the house. At the risk of exposing my true identity these two pictures show what I mean..

Strained face

Drained Face

Next time you are working hard on the bike for an extended amount of time remember to try and let the stress drain out of your face. That means relaxing the muscles around your forehead, eyes, cheeks, and mouth. I sometimes like to use my hand as a cue to do this by wiping from the widow's peak down. You can help relieve stress on the face by wearing those shades too. They're not just for safety. Reducing glare and eye stress helps the body stay relaxed... 

Also, relaxing the jaw and letting it slack a little can improve breathing by removing constriction from the airway. 

Try this and let me know your experience! 

 

TAC racers at Iron Hill!

Congrats to Nathalie and Jesse on their spectacular rides in some sloppy conditions. Even though the rain held off the course was still wet and sloppy. The mud was sticky and energy tapping while the wet made every corner and rock an opportunity to use some body english to hold a line.

Since I've been back I've given a few lessons and am currently in the middle of a two day clinic with the Whiskey Springs Junior MTB Team. A rider who took a lesson last week sent me this very nice email soon after our first session. Dan has been riding for years...

"I went for my first ride since the lesson today (round the Wiss) and so it was my first opportunity to put into practice the different points we covered. I noticed a significant difference in how confident and relaxed I felt, not just on the downhill sections but generally. Pretty cool.

The adjustment to my tire pressure also made a noticeable difference, allowing me to get up rocky sections with less slipping of the back tire than usual, and, not sure if it was my imagination but I felt more stable when cornering in what were fairly slippery conditions." Dan

That kind of feedback makes me feel great teaching skills to people.

Two Day's of Sessions!

The past couple days have been great! I had two new clients that really saw some areas for improvement and we made some good progress in that direction.

I just want to point out a quick exercise for understanding handlebar control and what finger to brake with. This was demonstrated to me in class at Endless Biking!

1. Stand on your non-drive side and hold the grips with 4 fingers and a thumb, then pull up on the bars a couple times toward your chest.
2. Now do it without your index finger a couple times.
3. Then try it without just your middle finger.
4. How about without your index or your middle finger around the bars?

Most people will find that the index finger braking gives them more handlebar control than middle finger braking. And if you are two finger braking you really need to make the switch to one finger!

Which finger do you brake with?

Officially North Shore Trained

Exciting news for Take Aim Cycling! I spent the last 10 days in North Vancouver taking classes from Darren Butler at Endless Biking. What kind of classes?..Coaching classes! You might think that just because I have a ton of riding experience and coaching as well, I'd be fine doing what I do. Well, I'll say that there is nothing like getting educated by someone who has been doing it as long and as well as Darren.
I'll elaborate later, but now I have  a  client I have to meet. Just know, that I invested in me so I can invest in you!