# Critique my riding.



## PaulSecteur (1 Sep 2014)

Hi,

The koi have finished chewing on my GoPro (http://www.cyclechat.net/threads/koi-carp-eat-gopro.163584/ ) so I took it for a ride around Cannock Chase.

Getting my excuses in early...

It was damper than it looks on the clip

I hadn't been out for a decent ride for about 2 weeks


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xSOeJ5w_oMg


I have a little oopsie moment at 1.20 when I get myself in the wrong position for a corner.

Some fireroads are fast forwarded to save time, and a fade to black is a breather or Im chatting.

Please keep all criticism constructive, or at least be funny about it!


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## Psycolist (1 Sep 2014)

I reckon its virtually impossible to gauge how you are riding. The video would need to show you & the bike rather than what you are seeing from the bike, if you follow my gist. It would be more useful to be filmed from ahead (REAR FACING CAMERA) or behind by another rider to really get any idea of your style and competence, IMHO


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## Cubist (2 Sep 2014)

Psycolist said:


> I reckon its virtually impossible to gauge how you are riding. The video would need to show you & the bike rather than what you are seeing from the bike, if you follow my gist. It would be more useful to be filmed from ahead (REAR FACING CAMERA) or behind by another rider to really get any idea of your style and competence, IMHO


Unless of course you know the trails, then you can think back to how you ride them
A chest mounted GoPro gives a good indication of speed and so on, but flattens apparent gradient, even more so than a headcam. It also flattens trail features, so where the rider appears to lose flow, it's more likely because he's pedalling on the flat or uphill. One way to gauge is to see whether you can see him pedalling, and whether the bars are wagging. 

@PaulSecteur ... good speed on the berms, and you obviously know the trail well. Your confidence on a lot of the features shows, but in places you scrubbed off more speed than you needed to (Let Loose springs to mind) .... stand up and use body weight to steer when it gets nadgery, and the bike will do the work for you. I enjoyed "Are we There Yet" (apart from the big step you steered round.... it's no worse than anything else you've ridden there, so have confidence in yourself) and Rock and Rollers- good speed!

You're certainly ready for the Monkey.... go on, you know you want to!


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## Crackle (2 Sep 2014)

I can only watch so much of these things before a peculiar kind of motion sickness hits me. It looks good though. I like the look of the trails. Point me at where the tricky bits are so I can watch those bits without feeling sick.


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## djb1971 (2 Sep 2014)

I heard the music but where were the half naked women and the little bald man that gets a slap on the head


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## PaulSecteur (2 Sep 2014)

djb1971 said:


> I heard the music but where were the half naked women and the little bald man that gets a slap on the head


They were running next to me up cardiac hill, slapping my helmet...

They couldnt get to my slap-head!


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## PaulSecteur (2 Sep 2014)

Cubist said:


> (apart from the big step you steered round.... it's no worse than anything else you've ridden there, so have confidence in yourself)


 
Yeah, that's a bit of a nemesis of mine. "Im gonna do it, Im Gonna do it... IM GONNA DO IT THIS TIME!!!! .... I wussed it"



Cubist said:


> You're certainly ready for the Monkey.... go on, you know you want to!


 
The bike is going in the back of the car and a trip tomorrow could see an attempt on the monkey, probably with a fire road trip back to birches valley.



Psycolist said:


> I reckon its virtually impossible to gauge how you are riding. The video would need to show you & the bike rather than what you are seeing from the bike, if you follow my gist. It would be more useful to be filmed from ahead (REAR FACING CAMERA) or behind by another rider to really get any idea of your style and competence, IMHO


 
Failing that, I will try to fix the gopro to a tree and get some external footage, it would be interesting to see if I look how I feel on the bike.

Its corners like the one at 2.28 and 13.52 that I would like to imrove on. Its a matter of tilting the bike in and really weighing the outside pedal. See how easy that was from behind a keyboard?


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## up hill struggle (2 Sep 2014)

PaulSecteur said:


> They were running next to me up cardiac hill, slapping my helmet



that's bound to get abit sore.



PaulSecteur said:


> They couldnt get to my slap-head!



oh right, that helmet.


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## Psycolist (3 Sep 2014)

To Cubist :- Good point well taken !


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## I like Skol (5 Sep 2014)

PaulSecteur said:


> Critique my riding.



You're a crap rider, please don't ask my opinion again! Oh wait, is there a video I'm supposed to watch?


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## Motozulu (5 Sep 2014)

As has been said Paul - hard to judge off that but look fine to me! the step you have a block on - remember speed is your friend and much easier to roll over that than go around it. good stuff though! when are we having this ride together then?


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## e-rider (5 Sep 2014)

The sound on such videos really annoys me! Why not put some music to it?


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## PaulSecteur (6 Sep 2014)

Motozulu said:


> when are we having this ride together then?



I never seem to be able to plan a ride, I just get a a 2 hour free slot and Im off! I really wish I could get organised. (This is a lie, Im secretly becoming a monkey trail expert and practicing looking nonchalant about it!)


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## PaulSecteur (6 Sep 2014)

e-rider said:


> The sound on such videos really annoys me! Why not put some music to it?



Because...

1- I have some crap taste in music and that will annoy more people
2-Youtube censor copyrighted stuff anyway.

The mix I would put on this would be...


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjyBUEEtIvI



View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tVL1u1eLX3I



View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmQq6yLe2ww



View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJLIiF15wjQ



View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2CQLAhNlbfQ


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=waacof2saZw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76wSk1j02_4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hIdp5UaQDGY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oH_yivWallk

Is more annoying, yes?

Critique my musical taste

PS- One of those choons is a hoax and doesn't belong... but I`ll leave you lot to decide which one...


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## PaulSecteur (7 Sep 2014)

Another day over the chase...

...Thing is... Dog or Monkey...?

@Cubist @Motozulu



View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7H6eGO3hnAo

It was a very bright day, and the shadows cast on the trail made it hard to see the trail at times.
More excuses as I think of them...


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## Motozulu (13 Sep 2014)

Well done, you've cracked the Monkey - no stopping you now. You made T,D and H look easy and I had a bad off on there last summer.

Kudos.


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## PaulSecteur (13 Sep 2014)

I wouldn't say "cracked" so much as "made it round"!

I ended up following a group round for some of the lap, so I had the chance to see a lot of people go through T,D & H before I got to go. I would say warewolf drops has more faceplant potential. There was a lot of climbing, but the decents make up for it.


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## Motozulu (14 Sep 2014)

Strange how we all have different phobias, I barely notice werewolf these days, yet every time I appraoch T,D and H there is a definite tightening of the sphincter! S'pose that's cos of the bad off. I approached too slow and stalled halfway down one of them, unfortunately (clipped in) toppled the wrong way and went for a long slide on my face down the hill.


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## PaulSecteur (14 Sep 2014)

There was a black run (Le Singe noir?) that was closed.

That looked interesting!


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## Motozulu (15 Sep 2014)

Never done it - very very technical my mate says!


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## PaulSecteur (15 Sep 2014)

Motozulu said:


> ...very very technical...



Yup... I bit passed my ability...


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uxwwy4-iYec


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## Motozulu (17 Sep 2014)

Same here I'd say - I ain't the greatest on rock gardens (hence the TD and H fall) plus I don't do the Monkey much these days as I prefer the off piste trails around the Chase. Funnily enough though I had the whole day at Degla yesterday and did every black option/ trail there was off the reds, though none of them were as technical as Singe Noir (imo).

3rd time at Llandegla and it is the best trail centre within reach of the midlands I think - much more 'fun' than the Donkey.


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## Shadowfax (17 Sep 2014)

I think the OP has spectacularly missed the point of off road riding, however before he berates me.... bless! For enjoying himself.


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## Cubist (17 Sep 2014)

Care to enlighten us @Shadowfax ?


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## Motozulu (18 Sep 2014)

Yes same here - what does that mean Shadowfax?


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## Cubist (19 Sep 2014)

Ok, I'll bite . It looks to me like @PaulSecteur is a) riding, b) a bike , c) off road. He appears very much to be enjoying himself, and challenging himself to ride more adventurously on the trail that has been built for that purpose near to where he lives. Would you like to explain how that is "spectacularly missing the point" @Shadowfax ? Two people have now asked the same question. Perhaps you would like to answer the questions, as they are genuinely mean to discover why you posted what you did. I for o e think you may have something interesting to say about your personal opinion of what MountainBiking is all about, but at the moment it just appears that you are being a bit negative.


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## PaulSecteur (19 Sep 2014)

Cubist said:


> Ok, I'll bite . It looks to me like @PaulSecteur is a) riding, b) a bike , c) off road. He appears very much to be enjoying himself, and challenging himself to ride more adventurously on the trail that has been built for that purpose near to where he lives. Would you like to explain how that is "spectacularly missing the point" @Shadowfax ? Two people have now asked the same question. Perhaps you would like to answer the questions, as they are genuinely mean to discover why you posted what you did. I for o e think you may have something interesting to say about your personal opinion of what MountainBiking is all about, but at the moment it just appears that you are being a bit negative.



Nail on the head there!

Im not sure if he means i should get get XC race lycra, or if he means im trying too hard and should chill at the cafe and do more talking than riding.

When im on my bike im having fun. I dont bully slower riders and i try not to hinder faster ones. After that, im not overly concerned what other riders or forum jockeys think of me.


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## Motozulu (19 Sep 2014)

I've heard the view in the past that trail centre riding isn't 'real' MTBing. I hope shadowfax isn't about to come out with the same old tired rubbish. I do both trail centre and off piste stuff and people who look down on trail centre riding are, IMO of course, just bike snobs.

Of course he hasn't actually said as such so I'll hold fire a bit.


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## Cubist (19 Sep 2014)

We'll probably have to wait until she answers to be honest. Shame really, because she occasionally hints that she has quite a bit of Mtb experience to share.


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## Motozulu (19 Sep 2014)

AHH he's a she, apologies...not that it changes anything, tbf


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## Motozulu (22 Sep 2014)

Looks like we'll never know.

Great posting that was.


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## PaulSecteur (22 Sep 2014)

I wanna know what point I have missed!

Im on a bike, Im enjoying myself (even if Im not that skilful) and Im off road.

Im really interested* to know what point I`ve missed.

Paul.

*I am not really interested.


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## luckyfox (10 Oct 2014)

This makes me want to invest in a GoPro, ideal day for it, very jealous


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## PaulSecteur (10 Oct 2014)

luckyfox said:


> This makes me want to invest in a GoPro, ideal day for it, very jealous



They have (or are about to) release the next gopro, the Hero4.

The cheapy of the range is £100. I think it doesn't have wifi, and does without some options but the video is very similar.

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/gopro/hero-camera-ec074187


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