a fear of drops

[clifford_bgrddg]

i can get on top of picnic tables fairly easily now either by bunny hops or pedal kicks, but once im on top i sort of freak out. i'm afraid of dropping off of anything of that height, especially when i have to start from a stand still. i think its from when i tried to wheelie drop on my first mtb and gave myself a pretty big shin burger. any advice?

[AgrAde]

just harden up, really. go to a wall that gets progressively bigger and work your way up. don't think about the height, just do it quickly.

[rush]

Practise dropping off a curb for 10-30 minutes until you get it right every time. The do the same thing from the pic-a-nic table.

[gillyboy]

Ive only been riding for a little while but the thing that helped me the most was getting comfortable and controlled on my rear wheel. By that i mean being able to get on your rear from a stationary position and then being able to do controlled hops. It seriously took a solid few months of practice and alot of ugly riding.
But once you get it, it all starts making sense!

[Bryan]

pic-a-nichaha

Learn how to drop to the sides (and to some extent, how to drop off to the back as well) That way, once you are up on the picnic table, you aren't afraid of pivoting/hopping to the side if you lose your balance. Otherwise, just practice the pedal kick drop ad nauseum.

[decline]

for me my first thing that made me nervous was this 2.5 ft ledge...pretty much u have to fall off it first. it took me a little bit. but i realized that if i get on top of something that is reasonable...just get up and kick. not much thinking...its when you are in your trackstand and u psych yourself out. just man up and do it. its what i had to do. or give yourself more of a goal then just dropping. like i have a railroad tie about 7ft out from this table i use to practice on and do lurches to it. i feel a lot smoother doing that then droppin strait down. now my own personal prob is gettin up on the tables ive been riding like 2 months...maybe 3 w/ no help and gettin on the fuckin table is a deathtrap for me...down is a breeze.

oh and the thing about side hops helps a lot true. work on a curb sidehoping up and down. then work on doing rearwheel pivots up and down. i could side hop off stuff outa fear before i could lurch off it in control. but man just balls up to it...my shins are just torn to fuck. you eather take it like a man or at least put some shin pads on. we all tear up our shins. kinda like in baseball...your arms always gonna be a little sore but that just how you play the game deal with it or leave.

[trialsrider50]

pic-a-nic baskets...I mean tables can be pretty shaky too. Usually the reason you are scared to drop is because you haven't mastered wheel placement during a drop. Theoretically if you want to drop straight down (meaning not gaping anything in the process) you wheel should actually be hanging over the table a little before you start to drop the bike down. Like rush said, practice on a curb until you can get the tire right where you want it. if you drop properly, a picnic table is a very short drop. watch some vids with benito or tra or something. you want your tire at the edge, then lower the bike until it's about parallel with the ground and squat back. Then release the tire and kick it forward. if you do this as opposed to just getting on the rear tire and then pedal kicking off, you'll find the drop is significantly less. easier to show than explain but I hope it helped

also when i started you always get that, "o shit I'm high up" and your mind kicks in and tells your body this is a bad idea. why do think skills parks are fun. most people could ride a line a foot wide if it was drawn on the grown but once it's 5 feet or more in the air the consequence adds the thrill, and fear. this is just something you gotta get past. it takes time

[clifford_bgrddg]

wow thanks guys. i was kind of counting on the usual "start small and work you way up" replies, but what you said definitely helps. i can say that being just a little bit off the ground gets to my head and getting used to being up in the air is probably the biggest thing. thanks again.

[Mat_P]

pretty much like decline said, dont just do a drop, try and hit a mark...purely concentrate on it and dont even think about the drop. once you have got your confidence up you will find it much easier to do drops straight down as the height factor wont come into play any more as you will be used to doing decent sized drops.

[jobottDMB]

Prac-tiCe. As you get better with trials you will notice that as moves get bigger they get scarier, not with just drops. Front wheel gaps, sketch sidehops, they can all get pretty hairy but sometimes you just have to go for it, and you will surprise yourself sometimes. Then again if you are me you just crash sometimes.

[decline]

i have found that when i am in those panic situations on a ledge i can get off of it pretty well if im afraid of falling. keep your mind wandering while u ride if u can. that might sound stupid but it works well in a lot of practice. stay calm and dont get frustrated. i sing a song in my head or think about someone im having troubles with...solve problems in my head. but i dont think "ok pull up, kick, squat, launch" thats when i usually get hurt because i tense up...just stay relaxed and know you can do it.

[oicdn]

Wow...usually it's the other way around. Alot of people aren't scared to jump off something high, but can't even pedal up onto what they're dropping off of.

If you're nervous...honestly, dropping off that progressive wall is the best advice. Well, target fixation is also good. Concentrate on landing on a spot, and don't pay attention to how high you are.

Look at it this way, you can get up there, why can't you get down? You're not so much scared to get up there, or bail off, what's so difficult about dropping off? It's all mental. If you have enough up's to get up there, getting down should be no problem (skill wise).

[eturt9]

it all comes down to confidence on the rear wheel.

[Matty]

just harden up, really. go to a wall that gets progressively bigger and work your way up. don't think about the height, just do it quickly.

Yes, I do that, lol. It does work pretty good. :)

~Matty

[aki]

I'm comfortable going up but not down but it's definitely how comfortable you are on the rear wheel & know how to drop properly especially when you go higher.

Practice practice & gain confidence on rear wheel :)