Going fast on your mountain bike isn’t just about pedaling faster – it’s about being smooth! Using only what you have right now — your bike, your mind, and your body — you can unlock secret speed when you’re out riding with your friends, or even on a race course. That’s right, you don’t have to go bust your butt on intervals or hard workouts to go faster (although those would help, too). Get ready to smooth it out and speed it up!

Your Bike

A working bike is a must to staying smooth on the trail. Make sure you don’t get stalled shifting by keeping your drive train clean. Keep your bearings all running smooth and eliminate friction wherever you can. Double check you’re not wasting energy on suspension that hasn’t been set up for you! (Checkout our 4 Step Guide to Suspension Setup!) And for goodness sake, make sure you aren’t dragging a brake!

Your Mind

A dragging brake due to misalignment is one thing, but it’s another to drag it voluntarily using “confidence braking.” Your mental game is important when it comes to going fast on a bike. When we get nervous, our brains instinctively reach for the brake. But do you really need it? Try calling out “brake” every time you touch it to see just how often you’re pulling the lever. If you don’t need it, don’t touch it. Conversely, a focused mind that doesn’t get distracted is less likely to make mistakes, and better equipped to help you stay on the gas. Visualize what you need to do and then execute.

Positive self talk is also a key component to riding smother and faster. Self-limiting statements like “I can’t handle this!” or “This is impossible!” are particularly damaging because they increase your stress in a given situation and they stop you from searching for solutions. The next time you find yourself thinking something that limits the possibilities of a given situation, turn it into a question like “How can I handle this?” or “How is this possible?” Positivity goes a long way to opening up your riding to new possibilities.

Your Body

Braking slows you down of course, but it also wears you down. If you are over-braking, or braking unnecessarily, to get back up to speed you need to throw down some watts. Instead, go easy on your body by carrying speed whenever you can. If there’s an option to go around or over something, sometimes braking to steer is more costly to your energy than simply lifting your front wheel over it. In corners, proper bike-body separation can help you whip through a high speed corner without touching the brakes. And at the top of your body are your eyes—looking far down the trail with your head up will help you ride smoother, and faster.

To sum it up, keep reminding yourself “Smooth is Fast.” A smooth-running bike is a fast bike. A smooth flow through the trails—aided, of course, by your zen-like mental state—will take less time than both rushing and dawdling. And if you ride smoothly, your body will likely stay on top of the bike and out of the bushes.

Ready to stay off those brakes and conquer your mental limiters? We can help.