Your first time mountain biking is always memorable. The experience of riding over rocks, across streams and different types of terrain can be both fun and intimidating at the same time. If you are preparing for your first time biking or your first time didn’t go too well, the following tips should prove helpful brought to you by Bike and Spanner – a leading mountain bike shop Edinburgh

1. Keep Your Body Lose

Your bike is made for the different terrain, so allow it to do its job by keeping your body loose. This will allow the bike to move easily beneath you. Hover off the saddle when you hit obstacles like rocks or roots. The more obstacles on the terrain, the more room your bike needs to move. Flare out your elbow and knees to allow your body to flow when ripping down a descent.

2. Maintain Momentum

Holding your current speed or even speeding up when the terrain gets challenging may seem like a counterproductive thing to do. But speed makes these challenging sections of the trail seem easier because the bike already has the one thing it needs to keep moving forward- momentum.

3. Shift Your Weight

Shift you weight forward and remember to lean forward to keep your center of gravity when climbing a rough patch. When going down, shift your weight behind the saddle and over the rear wheel. This will prevent you from going over the bars.

4. Don’t Brake to Hard

Resist the urge to pull hard on both brakes even when you think you need to. Mountain bike brakes are powerful enough that sometimes you only need one finger to modulate your speed. A better way would be to adjust your speed before some of the rough terrain areas and then maintain it through them. If you are in a situation where you are turning too hot, don’t use the front (left) brake. Doing so could send your front tire into a slide, sending you over the bars and onto the ground. You may skid if you hit the rear brakes, but you’ll remain upright.

5. Use all Your Gears

Considering how unpredictable mountain bike terrain can be, the best thing you can do is anticipate these terrain changes and then shift before you need to. This will help you maintain your all-important momentum.

6. Set Your Suspension

Modern mountain bikes have a front suspension fork and a shock absorber in the rear which can make bumps unnoticeable when you go over them. They will only however work if you set them to their active positions. Take the time to learn how to set your sag to avoid accidentally rolling out on the obstacle ridden terrain with a fully rigid bike.

7. Look Where You Want to Go

Your bike will often go where your eyes are directing it. Therefore, the best way to avoid smacking into rocks is to look just past them. Keep your eyes forward and your chin level to the ground while directing your gaze as far down the trail as you can.

College is definitely a challenge. Many people fear that they will fail. That doesn’t have to be the case for you. You can make it to getting your degree by understanding some basic information. This article can help you.

Always maintain a healthy diet. Gaining the “freshman 15” isn’t a myth! Pay close attention to what you eat. Try and stay away from fast foods and junk foods. It may be convenient, but it will leave you feeling sluggish and unable to concentrate in your classes.

Saying no to things that make you uncomfortable is just as important in college as it was when you lived with your parents. Many students experiment with alcohol or sex during their college years, but if you don’t want to do these things, don’t let anyone pressure you into them. Your college experience should be about having fun, exploring who you are and preparing for your future via your classes–not about doing things you don’t truly want to do.

Get as involved as possible with the students on campus and with certain organizations in the school. This is very important as you do not want to be tagged as a social outcast with nothing to do during the day. This will help you to make friends and feel like a part of the university.

It is important to choose your classes wisely. Try to avoid taking a lot of classes that you are going to have to devote a lot of time and attention to all at once. Instead, alternate these harder courses with easier ones to make your semester and college experience a much easier one.

Choose a college that has an environment you’d enjoy exploring. In addition to a beautiful campus, your school should be in a city or town that you would enjoy exploring. You are going to be here for four years and might move into the surrounding community when you finish college, so make sure you enjoy where you will be living and studying.

When you go to college you often times will stay out late with friends to study or go to a party. Be safe, never walk home alone, carry your phone with you at all times, know where the safe zones are on campus, and consider carrying a small spray canister of pepper spray with you.

Do not crack under the stress of selecting or declaring a major right away. Some professors might try and draw you into their department early on, as the more students they have the more job security they have. Never rush major decisions, and do what is right for you, not anyone else.

Take extra writing utensils with you to your tests. There is always a strong possibility that your pencil could break or that your pen could run out of ink while you’re doing your test. Having a backup writing utensil can help you continue your test without being distracted by having to sharpen a pencil or refill a pen.

A good tip that will help you with your studying is to make use of flash cards. It may sound juvenile but flash cards really do make a big difference when you’re studying for a brutal test or exam. The more you have in your studying arsenal, the better you’ll do.

One last reading of your notes before bed can help you if you have a test first thing in the next morning. By doing this before sleep, it is said to actually assist by allowing the information to be processed during the night’s dreams. During sleep, the brain assists by building certain contextual links between the pieces of information, thus helping it make more sense the following morning.

Given your new knowledge, you ought to understand that you really can earn your college degree. Implement what you’ve just learned, and envision your graduation as it should be. Take the time to enjoy college, because it really is among the best times in your entire life.