The Dreaded Speed Wobble

[Scousegaz]

Have we all experienced this phenomenom and how do you cope. Answers on a postcard please !!

 

[soulful dog]

This occurs when cycling at considerable speed?

In that case..... nope (clue is in the avatar)

 

[snorri]

Stop pedalling, don't panic, and squeeze the cross bar with your knees, well it worked for me.

 

[gavintc]

nope - never experienced it.

 

[HLaB]

nope - never experienced it.

+1 I've never been fast enough

 

[Scousegaz]

Happened to me a few times on fast descents and scares the s**t out of me. The 1st time, I took my bike back to the LBS were I bought it thinking something was loose but they checked it over and informed me it was probably the dreaded speed wobble and explained a few tips to try to prevent it but nothing seems to work, shifting weight forward or tucking one knee onto the top bar amongst others, oh and relaxing your hands on the bars whilst holding on for dear life trying to anticipate the moment you are about to be flipped off your seat

 

[Scousegaz]

Stop pedalling, don't panic, and squeeze the cross bar with your knees, well it worked for me.

I stopped pedalling at the top of the descent ! Dont Panic........oh ok ! and squeeze the crossbar with my knees..........i'll try, after i've unwrapped them from around my neck !

 

[Bicycle]

The instinct is to stop pedalling, but the whole plot seems a lot more stable if I keep pedalling.

Even when I'm dropping like a stone and my 53/12 gearing can no longer add speed, I keep pedalling (too slowly to affect my speed) just to keep things straight and stable.

If Mr Wobble does come for a visit, the instinct is to tense up and grip the Hell out of everything.

However, the best way to send Mr Wobble on his way seems to be to relax and loosen your grip.

Why this should be, I have no idea.

Another thing I do is just squeeze the rear brake very gently. Again, I have no idea why this helps.

The worst wobble I ever had, it turned out my rear wheel was just a touch out of alignment and I hadn't noticed. I was very cross with the person who tightened it up like that and I gave him a very stern look in the mirror when I got home.

 

[Scousegaz]

Well I've heard a lot of personal experiences locally with differing answers to the problem. I've ridden the same descents at similar speeds on 2 different days and experienced no wobble, then on another day a distinct wobble and tried various calming measures. I know a lot of factors have a bearing on the severity of it but its sooooo frustrating when it happens

 

[I like Skol]

Never experienced it despite piloting a good few bikes at speeds in excess of 45mph (MTB's, a Hybrid and road bikes) However, back in the very early 90's my older brother had a nice mid-range raleigh road bike which he swore was a deathtrap due to terrible speed wobble incidents. I carefully checked over the bike and could find nothing amiss and it always behaved impecibly for me. I think 'operator error' or 'user induced' are terms that could be applied to many cases?

He sold that beautiful bike that I am still convinced to this day was faultless and even had a fantastic set of handbuilt wheels (by me) that he thought might sort the problem.

 

[phil_hg_uk]

I got a bit of a wobble on when I was on one of colinj's forum rides once, on the hill back into hebden bridge and I suddenly noticed a large speed bump rapidly appearing in front of me when I wasnt prepared for it with no way to avoid it

 

[coffeejo]

Most of my recent wobbles have either been clipless moments at a standstill and/or the effect of too much cake.

 

[MacB]

I've had it twice now on two different bikes and neither time was down to excessive speed, they were both around the 30mph mark. The only common factor was the road surface was less than ideal on each occasion and both the hills were quite short. But the bikes had done that sort of speed loads of times, on a variety of surfaces, before and since and it's not been repeated.

The first time was really scary as I didn't have a clue and was sure I was about to crash as the bike disintegrated beneath me. When I managed to stop I was checking the bike over, expecting to find broken forks, or a cracked frame.

Second time I knew what it was and squeezed the top tube with my knees, kept my grip relaxed and applied the rear brake gently. Seemed to sort it no problem and I rode a further 25ish miles without a repeat.

I have read that larger frames are more susceptible to this but I don't know if there's anything to that.

 

[Scousegaz]

I think 'operator error' or 'user induced' are terms that could be applied to many cases?

Well I consider myself a competant rider and ride a new trek madone so I dont think its anything to do with the above although I do agree that it could be an issue in some cases. The guys at my LBS, some of whom race, say there are numerous scientific factors which take place when it occurs including oscillation, centre of mass etc etc. I think weather conditions, road conditions etc also play a part

 

[Scousegaz]

I have read that larger frames are more susceptible to this but I don't know if there's anything to that.

60 cm frame here with a 6ft4in passenger weighing 16 stone so it could have a bearing although I must add that it isnt a regular occurence but when it does happen it shakes you up a little especially when you still havent found your own cure