Steep Declines

Let's tackle this in the same manner as we did steep inclines with Approach, Peak, Decline, and Trough. The most important point is to KNOW IN ADVANCE what you getting yourself into.

Approach - mentioned mostly because you want to go into the peak transition with the best balance and control you can manage. Speed may or may not be an issue.

Peak - you have to get past the opening transition with your balance and control intact. If the transition is very sharp or is a lip, you may want to jump off the peak and down onto the decline, skipping the peak transition. The peak is very important because this is where you are going to choose your line for the first leg of the decline.

Decline - everything that goes for inclines is the same for declines as far as trail terrain is concerned. The difference here is gravity is providing the work while you have to maintain balance and control of the bike. You'll be leaning far back over the seat, and in extreme cases you'll need to put your body 'behind' the seat entirely and practically drag your bottom on the back tire. The idea is always to keep your body upright with respect to gravity.

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