TJ said:I see some posts that say " Dude, I can do 3 - 6 ft drops no problem" Then I see the drops that
they are talking about and fall out of my spandex lmmfao. 3'-6' drops. Yeah, right! a foot and a
half at the most. Hmmm, Lets see. I have a friend that rides who happens to be about 6'7" Some of
these dewbies are claiming that they are capable of doing a drop that is taller than my riding
bud. I have seen a rare few do such drops. Usually they are skilled, and core. Not the curb
jumping mesa state college students. I love it when people overstate their riding abilities. The
drop in to Horsethief is a prime example. Many claim to. Only a few have.
TJ can't wait until I get that 100 inches of rear travel.
Personally, 2-2.5 feet is about my limit so far, judged by wheel diameter. Interestingly enough,
I've actually managed to clear a log (on the flats) that was just about the same size as my wheel...
I was sure I was going to endo, but had just enough momentum to get down off the sucker. It was much
easier the next few times, but drops still elude me. Something about me being afraid for my
straight-gauge aluminum hardtail 😉
I've got a friend here who's a pretty good DH/Freerider. He races for Tufts University Cycling with
me, but I do the XC stuff and he does the "gravity" classes. He only raced once last season, but
placed 2nd in class B DH and 3rd in class b dual cross (his first dual race, too). I also have video
of him doing drops ranging up to 20 feet (I freeze-framed it with him standing on top of the drop,
and measured with a ruler, its honest-to-goodness 20 feet). He bent his bars on the landing, but
stayed on and rode it out like a champ.
He also has some great riding skills. He actually went on a relaxed XC ride with us on his Cliffcat
Tankass (tiny hardtail frame, 24" wheels, 3" tires, 5" travel in front), and while he was suffering
on the climbs, he wasn't doing too badly keeping up with us. He also rode some stuff none of us
would touch. Nothing huge, but just like a 2-3 foot drop with a landing between two slabs of rock,
and then a tight turn (still in the crack between the rocks) within 5 feet. We all just watched with
our jaws by our knees 😉
Personally, tho, I'm fine not doing bigger drops. I'd rather have a twisty ribbon of singletrack,
maybe a technical climbing section, or just some fun rock crawling. I do have my eye on one sweet 3
foot drop at home, maybe I'll do it with my doublesquish once I get it 😉
Jon Bond
