Building Confidence Climbing and Especially Decending

jetskr

Hey gals,

Sorry for crashing the party but this really seems the best place to turn for this question.  Some of you have met my fiance, Steph.  She is a triathlete as well and is about the same pace as me even though she some how manages to beat me in races.

She's never liked climbing but last summer I had her riding up and down the hills on the IMOO bike course and the some of the thougher climbs in the area.  She got a lot better and so did her riding.  Well, last weekend we took on the Arcadian Brute 200K bike ride. The ride is no joke with several of the climbs over a mile and the decents as fast as the climbs are hard.  Things were going well and she was boping up the hills pretty easily for the first 60 or 70 miles and riding her breaks hard on the decents.  Then the winds picked up to 20+mph.  They were so bad that at 170lbs I was getting pushed around on the road and at on point she was almost pushed into the ditch on the side of the road. 

After that she started to panic on the climbs knowing that she would have to decend with that wind either as a cross or head on.  It got so bad that she was crying a couple times and I walked down one rather long hill with her.  We made it to the last rest stop and then called in a SAG van to take us back.  She told me to go and finish but I chose to stay with her.

We have 2 more bike races like that scheduled this summer and the next one is in 3 or 4 weeks.  My question is how do we build her confidence back up to where she's able to ride and at least finish if not learn to not fear the decents as much?  I'm open to all suggestions.  Even hypnosis! 

Thanks!

Jess Withrow

Aw, Jeff - props to you for wanting to help Steph build her confidence and be a better cyclist AND to staying with her after the SAG came! Fiance of the Year Award!

I can only tell you to get out there riding with her as often as possible. The only way for her to be comfortable doing something is to just do it. Of course, it's probably best not to tackle something like a 5 mile descent at 12% grade her first time back in the saddle (not that you would, but just sayin'... ). Let me tell you - I went out with John a couple weeks ago and I rode his "hilly" course for the first time - I was NOT confident enough to try riding it last season (I had a bad crash at the Patriot Half Iron... ), but I LOVED it. The scenery at the top of that 5 mile climb alone was worth it! But yes, the descending can be scary. I'm not one to shy away from speed - I LOVE bombing down hills - but looking down and realizing that I had hit 47mph had me a little freaked out. And then I watched as a crosswind hit John and I hung on for dear life - I had my 808 rear on b/c something is up with the PT on my training wheel and it's being repaired - so I knew the wind was going to knock me around a little.... but I kept my head on straight and resisted the urge to hit the brakes.

So yeah... get out there with her. I was always more comfortable with company in the beginning and when I came back after my crash. Shorter rides in the beginning to build confidence. Let her go at her own pace - don't over-encourage. You guys always mean well and want to fix things for us girls!

One more thing - she doesn't have any issues getting unclipped in time to stop, does she? I have a friend who has a really hard time clipping/unclipping and can't climb out of the saddle - she really hates climbing (and descending!), too.

jetskr

Posted By Jessica Withrow on 24 May 2012 07:32 PM

. Let her go at her own pace - don't over-encourage. You guys always mean well and want to fix things for us girls!

Heh, maybe that's what I'm trying to do here. 

She doesn't have issues with clipping or getting out of the saddle. In fact, she stated to really enjoy climbing while we were out there and would frequently drop me going up those hills. It's mostly the descending that has her unsure. 

Good advise about getting back on the hills but just not as tough as the next ones.  Now to figure out the not over encourage part.....

mtlarson

Hey Jeff, my 5 cents for what it’s worth. I did the Triple Crown last year and ride the hills in the area routinely. It sound like she is getting to like the climbs and it really helps to have the right cassette for the hills, I ride with a 12-28 and this works well on the IMMoo course. I was also very afraid of the descents on some of the hills and used to ride on and off my breaks all the way down the hills, losing a lot of speed, but it was my comfort level. What finally helped me was listening to Rich discuss descending and free speed . He said that you need to look at where you want to go, i.e. 30 feet in front and not 2-3 feet. I think as she does hills more, she will get more comfortable. I have attached a document that might help.

Ok- I can't attach the doc so will e-mail to you.

Remind her how cool she will look with the personalized jersey.

penlynwilson

@Jeff: As others have said, don't pressure her. Depending on how she is, she may not even want you riding with her. If she does and you do, don't talk about helping her unless she asks. Just tell her "I'm here for you if you want to talk about it." then talk about other things.

And, as others have said, go back out on some easy hills to build her confidence back up. I have a feeling she'll be fine without the winds.

Nemo Brauch

X3 on not pressuring her. Sometimes being in front of the boy makes us more nervous. Send her out to do Horrible Hilly with Beth and Jo (or other Girlfriends). I'm also a scaredy cat when it comes to decending, but Kitima talked me through it at TOC two years ago and that really helped. The main thing that helped me was learning to look as far around the corner as I could and putting weight on the outside foot. Frankly, I also feel more comfortable descending big hills on my road bike in the drops- tri bikes tend to be more squirrely.

Beth_S

Jeff! Steph can totally fun ride Horribly Hill with Jo and me anytime.



A few weeks ago, I took Jo out to ride hills for the first time ever on a very windy day. I taught her how to descent just like I learned how to ski and what Mary said: pick a point far in front of you where you want to go and get there. In my head if I'm bobbling, I just say "hold, hold, hold." This advice works miracles on Jo, who didn't realize it was okay to brake anywhere on the IMWI course and was bombing hills. Another good lesson from sking? Have her follow someone who is really, really good at descending. it is easy to turn off the worry part of the brain that way -- or be okay with taking up lots of the road and making big "S"s instead of just going straight down. This is an excellent way to control one's speed. Take that lady skiing this winter!



Yeah, she probably has crash monkeys hanging around in her head. No pressure on doing this quickly! It might be good to tell her that it is okay with you if she quits and you will still love her and think she is amazing. Descending will be her important thing when it needs to be.

 

jburbatt

Repeat, repeat, repeat! And, having the oppotunity to go out with some different people that aren't you (sorry Jeff) would probably allow her to try somethings she might not otherwise. Also, trying it on a road bike and moving to the tri bike might also be a good idea for the stability factor. Finally, she has to embrace the fear. Acknowledging that she might fall and it might be minor or it might be serious and spectacular goes a long way to being smart on descents but not making them into a hinderance.