How To Ride Slow Drops on a Mountain Bike with Confidence, Control, & Consistency

In this tutorial, we talk about drops, not just any drops. We talk about how things need to change when we start doing slower, more technical drops. This is another great request that came from our Mental About MTB community on Telegram. I was asked what changes when we're riding slow drops versus riding in with a little bit more trail speed.

Specifically, they mentioned feeling a fear of nose-diving, while the back wheel is still hung-up on the ramp or on the upper surface of the drop. So we discuss some techniques to help avoid getting hung up on the drop, even when we're pedalling in at slower speeds.

This tutorial is for the rider who already feels comfortable riding off basic 1-2ft drops at a jogging pace. Those who understand the basic dropping technique, which we review, and you're ready to start taking on some more technical drops, and you're looking to do it in a way that feels controlled and inspires confidence.

We start by breaking down the technique, and then look at the nuances and what needs to change when we slow the speed down and ride some more committing features. From there, we head out and explore a bunch of drops of different shapes, speeds, and sizes in Squamish - while discussing the different things to keep in mind for each one. The intention here is to give you a broad overview of how this technique can apply to a variety of situations out on the trails. Want to know if how you think you're riding matches how you're actually riding? Join us over in the free Mental About MTB community, where we offer video analysis and feedback on members' riding technique every week. See you in there, or better yet, on the trails! - Jake