So many times you have been told to make certain movements on the bike, but not the reasons why. Understanding why to perform certain actions helps to learn and perfect them faster. Why do we have to bend in a curve? Why do we risk tipping in a jump? Why is speed useful and dangerous at the same time? The goal of this book is to teach MTB driving techniques by explaining the physical principles that govern the dynamics of this sport. Everyone can understand the explanations, no scientific knowledge is required. This book is for both beginners and experts who want to improve their driving techniques, including instructors and MTB schools. It is divided into five chapters: - The first one explains the concept of weight distribution. It shows how the "attack position" is the ideal one to deal with the roughness of the ground. - The second is about curves and all their variables. - The third chapter discusses the concept of "active driving", fundamental to have fun and tackle obstacles safely. It refers to the most common skills (wheelie, manual, bunny hop, nose press, etc.). - The fourth shows the analogy between a rider and an astronaut when dealing with jumps and drops. - The fifth one analyzes how the geometries available on the market affect driving and its stability. Also, what all riders fear, i.e. falling. All the explanations make use of concepts such as force, moment, parabolic motion, principles of dynamics, free fall, cardinal equations of dynamics, energy, gyroscopic effect, etc

If you want to ride like a pro, you should learn from a pro! In Mastering Mountain Bike Skills, Third Edition, world-champion racer Brian Lopes and renowned riding coach Lee McCormack share their elite perspectives, real-life race stories, and their own successful techniques to help riders of all styles and levels build confidence and experience the full exhiliration of the sport. Mastering Mountain Bike Skills is the best-selling guide for all mountain biking disciplines, including enduro, pump track racing, dual slalom, downhill, cross-country, fatbiking, and 24-hour races. It absolutely captures the sport and offers everything you need to maximize performance and excitement on the trail. Learn how to select the proper bike and customize it for your unique riding style. Develop a solid skills base so you can execute techniques with more power and precision. Master the essential techniques to help you carve every corner, nail every jump, and conquer every obstacle in your path. Last, but not least, prepare yourself to handle every type of weather and trail condition that the mountain biking world throws at you. Whether you’re a recreational rider looking to rock the trails with friends, are a seasoned enthusiast, or are aspiring to be a top pro, Mastering Mountain Bike Skills will improve your ride and dust the competition. Don't just survive the trail—own the trail, and enjoy the thrill of doing it.

A new, updated edition of a popular book on the history, science, and engineering of bicycles. The bicycle is almost unique among human-powered machines in that it uses human muscles in a near-optimum way. This new edition of the bible of bicycle builders and bicyclists provides just about everything you could want to know about the history of bicycles, how human beings propel them, what makes them go faster, and what keeps them from going even faster. The scientific and engineering information is of interest not only to designers and builders of bicycles and other human-powered vehicles but also to competitive cyclists, bicycle commuters, and recreational cyclists. The third edition begins with a brief history of bicycles and bicycling that demolishes many widespread myths. This edition includes information on recent experiments and achievements in human-powered transportation, including the "ultimate human- powered vehicle," in which a supine rider in a streamlined enclosure steers by looking at a television screen connected to a small camera in the nose, reaching speeds of around 80 miles per hour. It contains completely new chapters on aerodynamics, unusual human-powered machines for use on land and in water and air, human physiology, and the future of bicycling. This edition also provides updated information on rolling drag, transmission of power from rider to wheels, braking, heat management, steering and stability, power and speed, and materials. It contains many new illustrations.

Bicycles have been a common device to enhance physical fitness level in gyms and training centers along with solid use in competitive sport. For that reason, biomechanics of cycling has grown as a research field with many publications addressing different perspective of the interaction between the cyclist and his bicycle. The most common end point of research on biomechanics of cycling is optimization of performance and reduction of injury risk. One goal of this book is to meet the growing need for a comprehensive presentation of contemporary knowledge on biomechanics of cycling which will positively influence the activity of cycling in a global fashion. In order to accomplish this purpose, ten chapters are presented with focus on varying methods for biomechanical analysis of cycling motion. The introduction section provides an overview of the main methods for assessment of cycling motion, including motion analysis, pedal force measurements, muscle activation, anthropometry and joint kinetics. These methods are discussed in depth in individual chapters followed by chapters on characteristics of bicycles and potential perspectives to improve their configuration in order to improve performance of cyclists and reduce their overuse injury risk. Moreover, a preliminary method to train technique in cyclists is shown. A final chapter provides authors perspective on the upcoming technology that should be effective in helping training of cyclists.

“Equal parts critical manifesto and tender mini-memoir about a boy and his bikes” from Eben Weiss, blogger and author of The Enlightened Cyclist (GQ). Cycling is exploding in a good way. Urbanites everywhere, from ironic hipsters to earth-conscious commuters, are taking to the bike like aquatic mammals to water. BikeSnobNYC—cycling’s most prolific, well-known, hilarious, and anonymous blogger—brings a fresh and humorous perspective to the most important vehicle to hit personal transportation since the horse. Bike Snob treats readers to a laugh-out-loud rant and rave about the world of bikes and their riders and offers a unique look at the ins and outs of cycling, from its history and hallmarks to its wide range of bizarre practitioners. Throughout, the author lampoons the missteps, pretensions, and absurdities of bike culture while maintaining a contagious enthusiasm for cycling itself. Bike Snob is an essential volume for anyone who knows, is, or wants to become a cyclist. “This is a social manual that should be bundled with every bike shipped in America.” —Christian Lander, author of Stuff White People Like “I like to think I know a thing or two (or three) about being ruthless and relentless—either trying to win the Tour or fighting cancer. The Snob knows it too. Keeping us dorks in line is tough work. I take pleasure in getting picked on by the Snob, slightly more pleasure in reading his writing, but take the most pleasure punishing his ass (my payback) on the bike either in Central Park or on 9W/River Road. Long live the Snob.” —Lance Armstrong

A unique exploration of the history of the bicycle in cinema, from Hollywood blockbusters and slapstick comedies to documentaries, realist dramas, and experimental films. Cycling and Cinema explores the history of the bicycle in cinema from the late nineteenth century through to the present day. In this new book from Goldsmiths Press, Bruce Bennett examines a wide variety of films from around the world, ranging from Hollywood blockbusters and slapstick comedies to documentaries, realist dramas, and experimental films, to consider the complex, shifting cultural significance of the bicycle. The bicycle is an everyday technology, but in examining the ways in which bicycles are used in films, Bennett reveals the rich social and cultural importance of this apparently unremarkable machine. The cinematic bicycles discussed in this book have various functions. They are the source of absurd comedy in silent films, and the vehicles that allow their owners to work in sports films and social realist cinema. They are a means of independence and escape for children in melodramas and kids' films, and the tools that offer political agency and freedom to women, as depicted in films from around the world. In recounting the cinematic history of the bicycle, Bennett reminds us that this machine is not just a practical means of transport or a child's toy, but the vehicle for a wide range of meanings concerning individual identity, social class, nationhood and belonging, family, gender, and sexuality and pleasure. As this book shows, two hundred years on from its invention, the bicycle is a revolutionary technology that retains the power to transform the world.