I recently had my first coaching session and I loved it.
It opened my eyes to what might be possible for me on a bike and got me thinking differently about how I ride.
After 35 years of riding mountain bikes, I had a few bad habits that needed rectifying.
Not that I knew what these were. But within 20 minutes of the session starting, it wasn’t just one thing that was highlighted, but loads.
With my lengthy list jotted down, we set to work trying to sync mind and body in a bid to improve my technique.
Old dog, new tricks
I’ve ridden mountain bikes for a very long time. So why bother getting coaching now?
I’d been considering it for quite a while, but never managed to bite the bullet and get it arranged. When a guest on the MBUK TV podcast, Bernard Kerr, mentioned he was getting coaching I decided I needed to get myself in gear and sort out a session.
I’m self-aware and self-critical enough to know that my riding has room for improvement.
Every week, when I watch the very best racers in the world or some terrifyingly fast locals bombing through the woods with effortless flow, I know I’ve got things I can work on to better my technique.
I’m not a terrible rider, and can hit most jumps and tackle most trails without too many issues, I just want to be able to do it better and feel more confident while I’m doing it.
As I wrote recently, as I’ve aged, I’ve certainly found my self-preservation instinct kicking in a little more. If I’m riding something I’ve never set my tyres on previously, I can feel tense and nervous.
My goal with coaching was to try to create a tick list of things I could do on every ride, no matter the location or the bike I was riding (swapping bikes is a perk of the job, but can have an effect on technique). I wanted to ensure I was in the best position possible on the bike to ride confidently and safely… and hopefully fast.
Phones at the ready
My good friend and regular contributor to BikeRadar, Luke Marshall, was my coach for the morning.
Before Luke worked with us here, he was a professional ski instructor. Before that, he was a World Cup downhill mountain racer. They don’t really come more qualified than this.
After pedalling up to a trail I feel I know pretty well, Luke asked me to ride through a series of four or five turns while he stepped back and filmed me.
Easy. I know I can hit these pretty quick, so I came flying in at a decent lick.
As I pushed back up, he was already focused firmly on his phone screen, clearly whizzing back and forth through the footage.
In just a few turns, Luke had already picked up on my first issue. He explained what I was doing, what I needed to do differently and why. It was all very straightforward. Level your cranks here, straighten that back leg more and drop that trailing heel – that kind of thing.
I took another shot at the turns, this time a little more reserved. Any additional effort I could be putting in to riding faster was now being used to try to correct my mistakes and think about what I needed to do.
Processing that and trying to override 35 years of muscle memory was seriously taxing.
Each lap, Luke delivered more feedback and I set about riding the same five turns, trying to do what was being asked of me.
In only 20 minutes, Luke had pulled apart my cornering technique and got me thinking about how I position my body and feet through the turns in a totally different light. When he explained it, it made total sense.
Before I came anywhere near perfecting these corrections, though, we moved on to another trail. Here, he said, things would happen more quickly due to the nature of the turns. Plus, there was some line choice and scope to think about braking zones.
Again, I hit the section a couple of times. And again, Luke and his phone highlighted a couple of bad habits that needed correcting. On top of that, I was adjusting my braking points and trying to enter the final turn earlier.
I gave it a shot and felt I was making progress – maybe not on every lap, but certainly starting to feel some things working.
His adjustments to my stance on the bike gave me more room to play with and better braking traction when I needed to scrub speed off fast.
It was truly humbling, exciting and, more than anything, fun. I absolutely loved it.
Putting it into practice
As with anything of this nature, practising what you’ve learned is key to progressing.
Tom Marvin once mentioned to me he’d had coaching to help him jump, then spent the next couple of years actively avoiding jumps, quickly forgetting what he’d been taught. I was keen not to make the same mistake.
Because the skills I was looking to learn were a little more generalist and largely applicable any time you’re riding, practising them shouldn’t be such an issue.
My next outing was interesting. I found myself consciously having to think about placing myself in the new position, consider where my cranks and feet were and do my utmost to keep them where they needed to be.
It’s a lot easier said than done.
After a long day on the hill, I think some of Luke’s wisdom has set in and I do, at times, feel better on the bike. It’s early days yet, but covering off such fundamental skills as this feels like such a wise investment. I just wish I’d done it years ago.
No matter what, having something else for my brain to focus on helps to dissipate any nerves that might creep in. It’s a welcome distraction and one I relish.
Now I just need to find the time to get out there and practise even more.
Coaching is for everyone
As I mentioned earlier, when Bernard Kerr, a Red Bull Hardline winner and World Cup podium contender, is getting skills coaching, surely most of us should, right?
If you’re looking to feel better on the bike, polish existing skills or step things up a bit, coaching is easily the best bang for your buck you can get.
It’ll be way better than dropping a grand on a set of forks, that’s for sure.
So why don’t more people get coaching?
Maybe it’s down to the fact that mountain biking is, on the surface, easier to get into than something such as skiing.
It’s also a much younger, less-established sport, although things are changing and there are more and more coaching courses on offer.
Some people might not be aware of their faults, while others might be embarrassed to share them.
What I do know is that coaching can benefit everyone.
I would recommend having an idea of what you want out of the coaching session and making sure you book the right one for you.
Back for more
Although I’ve only had one session, I’m keen to go back for more.
I feel I’ve still got potential to unlock and this is the best way to do that.
After so many years of riding, it’s hard knowing exactly how to correct an issue, and that’s if you’re able to identify the issue in the first place.
But I’ll say it again, if you want to improve your riding, coaching is better than any upgrade you can buy for your bike… providing you have decent tyres and you’ve set up your suspension properly, that is.
Pro Ride Mountain Bike Skills Coaching – the business Luke works for – offers a variety of lessons, including jump and cornering sessions. Like most coaching businesses, you can keep costs down and join a three-hour group session for around £65, or book a full day of private coaching for £145.
