Watch ALL the How To Bike episodes below! Ep 1: How To Actually Learn New Skills On Your Bike - ruclips.net/video/BGsNvd9EhvQ/видео.html Ep 2: Pro Mountain Bike Setup Guide - ruclips.net/video/PfUyN6znF3c/видео.html Ep 3: Decoding The Best Mountain Biking Body Position: ruclips.net/video/iVLJIuYwW_g/видео.html Ep 4: Absorbing Trail Features & Maintaining Speed: ruclips.net/video/Iu4plluUVtA/видео.html Ep 5: How To Use Your Brakes To Actually Ride Faster: ruclips.net/video/aFcj7078gtA/видео.html Ep 6: How To Get More Speed From Trails With Pumping: ruclips.net/video/04e_s9_LpVA/видео.html Ep 7: Line Choice Is Easier Than You Think With These Rules - ruclips.net/video/82T0m_uja4g/видео.html Ep 8: How To Corner Properly - ruclips.net/video/ZOqFywGllFw/видео.html Ep 9: Stop Crashing On Drops - ruclips.net/video/uJJAW0iNhUY/видео.html Ep 10: Make Jumping Easier - ruclips.net/video/IB5GmIL0slg/видео.html
Cathro doesn't take himself too seriously. He is damn good and he doesn't seem to let shit get to him. Can't beat that. 100% would buy him a beer if I saw him out.
@@th_js "Drive to survive" may be alot of semi fluff and editing generated conflict etc.. but still is doing incredible things for F1 racing fan #'s here in the USA... So like most things in life it all depends on yr perspective...
I have been mountain biking since 1991 and have watched many, many mountain bike videos on VHS, DVD and youtube. This was by far the most entertaining, informative and hilarious informative video I have ever watched. You did such an amazing job of taking on the folks who "take themselves way too seriously" and addressing the issues of wheel size, bar size, grip size, tire size and every other size in the mountain bike industry. It is truly exhausting to try to keep up with the "latest" trend and I am so grateful that you addressed these issues. Thank you for doing such a great job.
i know, his video on weight distribution is just even more increadible, he manges to teach the basics of standing on a bike so well and so easy to understand, i wish i had a vid like that when i started riding becouse it simply would have saved me a year of learing, it finaly took a pro mtb coach to show me how i should be ridng (an actualy pro mtb coach is the best investment you can ever have on a bike ever by the way, for real), he explained everything to my dad in 15 min what took me almost 3 days while riding. cant wait for the other vids to come
Finally, a video from someone who not only know what he is talking about, but can back it up with real riding experience, and proven track record. Secondly, one video for things bike setup. Great job Ben, really appreciate all your efforts in putting this together. I have saved this video to my playlist.
One of the best things about this video is the knocks at the keyboard experts. I loved the emphasis on doing what's right for you to be safe and have fun. Experiment and do what puts a smile on your face.
Got any bike setup questions 🤔 ? Reply to this comment and I’ll do my best to answer! 👨🏫 EDIT: A few commenters pointed out we should have talked about saddle height/droppers so I’m adding it here. • Raised Saddle Height: I find the heel rule to be pretty accurate. Some riders will absolutely require more precision but there are articles out there covering those more precise methods. Sit square on your saddle, spin one pedal as low as it will go, place heel on pedal and your leg should be almost straight. Once adjusted ride around normally and if you have any pelvis side to side tilt while pedalling lower it until this is no longer happening. • Lowered saddle height: If you have a dropper post the amount of drop it has will dictate this. For DH bikes or straight post riders that manually lower the post the height is personal preference. The only rule is that you don’t put it too low so that the tyre hits the saddle when the suspension moves. You can check this by removing your shock spring or letting the air out your shock and bottoming out the suspension. Always leave an extra 20mm or so as there’s a lot of flex in the system in a severe compression. Seat angle/position: This depends on the type of riding you do and your flexibility. For DH there is no rule. Some riders find they sometimes get stuck behind the saddle after shifting their weight back so will angle the seat up to reduce the chance of that happening. Also, if the saddle is buzzing the tyre sliding it forward on the rails can stop that. For trail bikes the default is to have the saddle level but everyone’s hips sit at a different angle when in their riding position. You want to feel like your pelvis is supported in its natural position and not straining back or being pushed uncomfortably forwards. Dropper length: This is dictated by rider leg length and frame compatibility. So first of all you need to find your preferred raised saddle height using the above rule then find out your preferred lowered saddle height through trial and error or the tyre buzz check. Figure out the difference with maths and have a look at posts with the same maximum drop. Before you buy you need to check the maximum insertion depth of your frame to make sure the post won’t be too tall at full extension. Hopefully that covers it! 🤟
I would have talked about tyre casings as well, I see a lot of DH bikes with trail casings because people get tricked by the thread pattern or the name (DHF with Exo casing, Magic Mary with super trail ecc. )
Ah man, it was so hard to decide what to include. I mentioned in the vid that the recommended use cases for each tyre are usually pretty good. Each of the casings you mentioned have a recommended use case for XC, Trail, Enduro, DH and so on. Would be redundant for me to say “You should use DH casings for DH etc.” But you have highlighted for those that may be unaware so cheers 👍
@Ben Cathro, as usual your content is SO great! I've been a fan of yours for years at this point. Love the close up of the "smaller hands". Question: How about cush core and other tire inserts? I recently had to resort to running cush core because my 200lb with gear frame was getting a lot of flats on my new found low, long, slack rig at the higher speeds I've been pushing (Or maybe it's the blown out trails...) I find that it actually changes the profile of the tire and also provides some dampening (and I've yet to flat with it).
@@BenCathro but running a higher bar is essentially the same as spacers and a low-rise bar with a longer stem. So frame stack does make a difference you can't compensate for. Unless you don't care about stem length. That was the only point in the video where I felt the itch to be pedantic, by the way. Very well written piece. I run rather high bars on my bikes anyway. Because I'm tall and it looks moto.
@@lowdesertpunk I think with small adjustments the spacers plus longer stem tactic can work but it gets a bit messy with bigger adjustments. For example, if you wanted to raise your bars 20mm you could go from a 20mm rise to a 40mm rise bar. If you were to do that with 20mm of spacers on a bike with a 64 degree head angle you would end up with 18mm increase to stack and 8.76mm reduction in reach. You could then run a 10mm longer stem which should get you to a similar bar position. If you already run a 50mm stem (like me) it’s a bit tricky to find decent 60mm options. Also, instead of being a cheap fix to lift the bars up with spacers you’re then looking at purchasing a new stem for slightly worse steering when a taller bar would get the job done. Once you go beyond 20mm of spacers things start getting really messy to maintain reach but it’s a good way to experiment and some people will prefer the shorter reach.
@@BenCathro did we just do the same thing (I don't want to call it calculations, at least not what I did)? I wanted to know how much of an effect this has and did some quick sketching. Turned out on a bike with a 65° head angle a 45 mm rise bar (mounted with no tilt) on a 35 mm stem with no spacers puts your hands pretty much in the same position as a flat bar on a 55 mm stem with 40 mm of spacers stacked under it. The sketch: www.allmartn.de/ablage/20210708_riser_vs_spacers.png Luckily I'm pretty happy with my bar height. It's nice to know about those kind of effects though. Maybe that's enough nerding out for today :D
Ben, you are an absolute natural in front of the camera and have a great way of describing complicated things in an uncomplicated way. Keep doing what you're doing mate, it's awesome!
Of course "I sat through the whole thing" .... very very good and obvious how much work went into structuring the explanation of each parameter. Pure Cathro bible again
Finally I can tune my bike and go ride... Decades needed for this type video appears. Step by step, filtered info, no "forprouseonly" bullSh... Thank Ben! Thanks pinkbike!
I've been watching Ben for years now since I started riding really and I've got to say most of what I've learned came from listening to him. I'm glad pinkbike has got Ben doing their videos now and I'm definitely tuned in, can't wait to see Ben start hitting the world cups. All the best to you dude.
I used to do cx racing when I was a teenager and I never really tought about changing anything on my bike at the time because money was not there for it. I spent 10 years without really biking because I was too busy with other things but I've started again but this time doing mostly enduro and downhill and I have a budget for upgrades. Without over thinking it I found a bike that suited my needs and my price range. After riding it basically every day for almost 2 months I've started noticing things that I like and don't like about my bike and I wanted to get info on what I could do to make it more to my taste. This video explained to me everything I need to know to understand why my bike feels the way it does and what are the changes or upgrade that I can do to make it more to my taste! Really appreciate your videos thanks for the good work! 🙏
I can’t believe i sat here at 2am and finished the video all the way to 2:30am without skipping anything. That should tell something about the video composition and the narrator. Well done.
Well Ben, I'd have to say that overall, you did a bang up job, didn't go getting on any high horses telling people "it has to be this way or that", just gave the info to help people figure stuff out. I do have one bone to pick though, and that where you said that 29ers don't offer more grip than smaller sizes, which in my experience is absolutely not the case. When I got my 1st 29er back in 2007, it came with WTB Nano 2.1" tyres and a 22/32/44 chainring combo, I was coming off a 26er running Kenda Nevegals StickE compound and on my first ride on the 29er I was clearing loose climbs I had trouble clearing on the 26er (might clean 1 in 3 tries), this with a much less knobby and sticky tyre and actually was able to climb in at least one gear harder, so much so that I ordered up a new set of rings 24/34/46.
I really enjoyed this, going to follow the entire series. I love the knowledge sharing form all the practical things you picked up during your journey. Im restarting my mountain bike experience after fixing up my knee from a really bad fall 4 years ago on concrete. Since I live in the netherlands and mountain biking here mainly exists on XC bikes with race bike gear on I really enjoy seeing the way MTB should be done. Decent helmets and clothing, specific bike tuned in for terrain and/or features. (Sometimes it looks like Racers just take the MTB excuse to make KM's in bad weather) Also this inspired to look for "real" mountain bike tracks and bike parks. Not the omg I MTB'ed 50 kms this weekend kind of asphalt warriors we have here. I've been thought the wrong way from the start this series really is opening my eyes. It gave me motivation to learn a new way of riding my Ghost XC bike with the right mindset. Thank you for this, I'm a long way of doing manuals, but it sure is fun trying downhill and more technical terrain with these tips. Even learning to bunnyhop, not that high yet, but it is getting there. Small roots and branches have nothing on me now! Have a good one M8 and thanks for all of these magnificent videos.
I've seen a lot of video explaining these terms on RUclips but this is by far the best one I've seen to date, I now understand the impact of these parameters. This was truly superb - bravo!
Quick info I wanted to add to brakes: Larger Piston area (accomplished by bigger pistons or more pistons as you mentioned) will produce higher braking friction but require a larger volume of brake fluid to be displaced in order to travel the distance to the rotor. This means that you need to pull the brake lever farther not harder to produce a braking force. And as far as my knowledge of muscle memory goes (please correct me if im wrong) it is easier for us to "remember" the amount of muscle tension used than it is to "remember" the distance a part of our body has moved in a movement. This would in turn mean, that a larger piston size makes it harder to modulate your brakes, because a small change in pulling force on the lever translates to a big change in braking force. With a smaller piston size you would reduce the possible maximum braking friction (limited by your finger strength and the amount of fingers you use to pull the lever), but the modulation of that braking pressure should be easier, since the difference in pulling force on the lever is bigger between just hearing your brake pads rubbing and "oh shit i'm flying head first over my handle bars" is greater. Therefore your body would be able to gauge the muscle tension needed. Hope that makes sense. Great job on the "How to bike" series. Been watching it a lot lately while saving up for an Orbea Laufey and practicing the skills you teach on my road bike (that poor old thing). If anyone wants to add something to this or wants to correct me here, feel free to do so. I would be happy to hear it.
Just recently discovered Ben's series. Silly, funny, clear and without a know it all attitude. Love how he explains the logic behind the concepts and refers to what others do as well, great videos!
Ben's MTB videos are by far the best I've come across! Explains everything so clearly whilst entertaining. A natural presenter and has helped loads with my development as a rider, cheers Ben & PB Team!
Best video on the WHOLE internet about bike setup!!! From an eminence in the subject! Hope Cathro shares more of his vast knowledge with us regular Joe's 😁👍🏼
Excellent, amusing and informing at the same time. I’m a UK resident 75yr old lifetime cyclist, with gravel, road, recumbent, & old school hard tail mnt bikes from Kona and Cannondale. In the process of buying my first ever full suss bike (from Starling Cycles) ….this video has explained in plain English ((Scottish!) addressing the various elements that will help in setting your bike to its optimum for your style of riding….bloody marvellous just what I needed, big thanks…😁🚵
thanks mr Ben Cathro, i am a midget and still ride 26” wheels, but i am trying to improve, and your wise advice had teach me more than asking other siders here, hoping to see you riding in Colombia soon, you know Loris and Superbruni are visiting our country in late march for the first race of the year? we have plenty of beautiful mountains awaiting for you, cheers , and thanks again.
Welp, there's that. Bravo for touching upon everything and cutting right through all the mythical / broscience type stuff. 10/10 Edit: Thanks again, honestly saved me weeks, if not months, worth of failed attempts explaining things to newer riders.
I've got a few people into mountain biking recently and I think as part of their 'training' I'll just force them to watch this as it'll be far more concise and entertaining than having me ramble on at them! Nice one Ben and co.
I've been watching MTB guides, tips, tutorials, classes, whatever, you name it! For many many years, but professor Cathro is by far the most outstanding and engaging teacher i've seen! I love this series!
love this series. This video gave a simple, but to the point explanation for most of the variables that a lot of riders either don't think about or don't know about. Well done Ben Cathro ad Pinkbike
Now that I’ve got my leg injured and cannot ride my bike for a few more weeks, guess it’s a perfect time to learn how to set it up. Now I have all the time in the world 😁😁thank you pinkbike and Ben, I’ll certainly come back to this info in a few days
There's a few scientific studies that have shown that longer cranks do give you a higher peak power output, but they pretty much show that it's like 1% higher. Look for Dylan Johnson's video on crank length. He cites a study that found that a 50 mm (!!!) drop in crank length resulted in a 1% drop in peak power output. So the difference between a 175 mm and a 165 mm crank is basically nothing. I'm slowly moving all my bikes to 165 mm cranks.
I learned a lot, so here is a tip in return from a motorcycling world ~ your levers should be parallel to your arms, meaning your arm should be straight with your hands in your most frequent position. This will protect you from various long term wrist damage and mainly carpal tunnel issue.
Awesome video, especially for a novice like me. The most basic yet critical info for a novice all in 1 video and explained so well with humor and class!
I am not a very experienced mountain biker. This coupled with the fact that my bike probably isn't set up for the type of riding I tend to do these days, which includes quite a bit of steep lose descents. I am 6'2 and ride an XL trail bike with a 780 bar width and 20mm rise and those trails feel quite scary at times. I have since ordered an 800mm bar with a 30mm rise and can't wait to see how much confidence, if any, I get from this planned setup.
All great points, but now all I want to do is go get a new bike. I have a "trail" bike from Specialized the SJ Comp Alloy and it's been a lot of fun riding it on local trails where I need to pedal up to go back down, but I took it to my local bike park and was hitting all the drops and jumps and feel like my 140mm of fork travel is not enough for how big I want to go on these features. I've now invested in volume reducers for both the forks and shock and will be making adjustment with these to help stop my bottoming out, but somehow I feel like this bike isn't the best bike for the job of bike park riding with lots of downhill and large jumps. Tell me I am crazy or point me in the direction to another bike that will fit the job. Great job on this series, lots of laughs and information. Thanks for all you do.
That stop motion bit with the bars going up and down makes me think the next MTB must-have gadget is gonna be a push-button dropper stem. Slam it for the uphill grinds, pop it up for the descents.
Awesome video for a beginner like me. I split between road and MTB so just 1 MTB bike for me so gotta find the Goldilocks settings… so much more fun than road riding.
Have to say i was expecting another ol tired bike setup vid, only switched it on because i seen Ben was doing it, I have to say i couldn't have been more wrong. Really excellent vid that i actually learned a bit from and watched every min of. Fair Play PB and Ben & Crew
Massive thanks for making this series. As I’m quite new to the sport it is really helpful to have someone explane things simply. THANKS. And keep up the good work.
Watched the whole thing, and always love the way you explain but you completely bothched the tire pressure section!! Tire size, rim width, tube or tubeless make huge differences in tire pressure. I'm 210lbs and run a 27.5 2.8 rear tire on a 30 mm rear rim at 21.5lbs and when it was on a 35mm rim, I was at 17 to 18. Rocky Mountain has a tire chart that helps for wider tires on wider rims. 2.4 tire on 27.5mm inner width I run at 24.5lbs with cushcore. Was at 27 without cushcore. You could probably make a whole video on tire pressure for all riding styles and tunes vs tubeless. Would probably help a lot of people....I suck at riding by the way. Solid video and thanks for all the hard work!
I'm building a new bike, finally, and I have been really trying to get my head around reach and stack and what bars to run and this video just made a neat package out of all of it. I have a much better sense of what to look for and it makes me glad I'm stubborn bc I just don't need million mile wide bars, despite what I'm being told lol
This is so good; so straightforward, clearly explained and accurate af. This should be required reading for every entry or mid-level mountain biker. Great stuff!
Best video on RUclips about this and I've been watching alot trying to get back in the game! Just worried i spend loads on the wrong size and im effed up
Watch ALL the How To Bike episodes below!
Ep 1: How To Actually Learn New Skills On Your Bike - ruclips.net/video/BGsNvd9EhvQ/видео.html
Ep 2: Pro Mountain Bike Setup Guide - ruclips.net/video/PfUyN6znF3c/видео.html
Ep 3: Decoding The Best Mountain Biking Body Position: ruclips.net/video/iVLJIuYwW_g/видео.html
Ep 4: Absorbing Trail Features & Maintaining Speed: ruclips.net/video/Iu4plluUVtA/видео.html
Ep 5: How To Use Your Brakes To Actually Ride Faster: ruclips.net/video/aFcj7078gtA/видео.html
Ep 6: How To Get More Speed From Trails With Pumping: ruclips.net/video/04e_s9_LpVA/видео.html
Ep 7: Line Choice Is Easier Than You Think With These Rules - ruclips.net/video/82T0m_uja4g/видео.html
Ep 8: How To Corner Properly - ruclips.net/video/ZOqFywGllFw/видео.html
Ep 9: Stop Crashing On Drops - ruclips.net/video/uJJAW0iNhUY/видео.html
Ep 10: Make Jumping Easier - ruclips.net/video/IB5GmIL0slg/видео.html
Wer😢ww
If everyone explained everything as good as you with the same sense of humor the world would be a better place.
Ben is great , like his explanation
Problem is always the miserable ......
That would be death of GMBN
Totally agree, Ben's ability to explain clearly with humour is second to none.
I like Cathro. That's all.
Legend.
i didn’t at first, but he really grew on me
Ben is the shit
Rob Chambers
Cathro doesn't take himself too seriously. He is damn good and he doesn't seem to let shit get to him. Can't beat that. 100% would buy him a beer if I saw him out.
Ben is such a good presenter. I love his passion and sense of humor. Please keep him around PB!
and pay him lots of moneys
Damn this is the best series I’ve seen so far, even better than Netflix series!
Who said Netflix has good series?
@@th_js "Drive to survive" may be alot of semi fluff and editing generated conflict etc.. but still is doing incredible things for F1 racing fan #'s here in the USA...
So like most things in life it all depends on yr perspective...
I have been mountain biking since 1991 and have watched many, many mountain bike videos on VHS, DVD and youtube. This was by far the most entertaining, informative and hilarious informative video I have ever watched. You did such an amazing job of taking on the folks who "take themselves way too seriously" and addressing the issues of wheel size, bar size, grip size, tire size and every other size in the mountain bike industry. It is truly exhausting to try to keep up with the "latest" trend and I am so grateful that you addressed these issues.
Thank you for doing such a great job.
i know, his video on weight distribution is just even more increadible, he manges to teach the basics of standing on a bike so well and so easy to understand, i wish i had a vid like that when i started riding becouse it simply would have saved me a year of learing, it finaly took a pro mtb coach to show me how i should be ridng (an actualy pro mtb coach is the best investment you can ever have on a bike ever by the way, for real), he explained everything to my dad in 15 min what took me almost 3 days while riding. cant wait for the other vids to come
Finally, a video from someone who not only know what he is talking about, but can back it up with real riding experience, and proven track record. Secondly, one video for things bike setup.
Great job Ben, really appreciate all your efforts in putting this together.
I have saved this video to my playlist.
Just love Ben's talkin' things!
One of the best things about this video is the knocks at the keyboard experts. I loved the emphasis on doing what's right for you to be safe and have fun. Experiment and do what puts a smile on your face.
Got any bike setup questions 🤔 ? Reply to this comment and I’ll do my best to answer! 👨🏫
EDIT: A few commenters pointed out we should have talked about saddle height/droppers so I’m adding it here.
• Raised Saddle Height: I find the heel rule to be pretty accurate. Some riders will absolutely require more precision but there are articles out there covering those more precise methods. Sit square on your saddle, spin one pedal as low as it will go, place heel on pedal and your leg should be almost straight. Once adjusted ride around normally and if you have any pelvis side to side tilt while pedalling lower it until this is no longer happening.
• Lowered saddle height: If you have a dropper post the amount of drop it has will dictate this. For DH bikes or straight post riders that manually lower the post the height is personal preference. The only rule is that you don’t put it too low so that the tyre hits the saddle when the suspension moves. You can check this by removing your shock spring or letting the air out your shock and bottoming out the suspension. Always leave an extra 20mm or so as there’s a lot of flex in the system in a severe compression.
Seat angle/position: This depends on the type of riding you do and your flexibility. For DH there is no rule. Some riders find they sometimes get stuck behind the saddle after shifting their weight back so will angle the seat up to reduce the chance of that happening. Also, if the saddle is buzzing the tyre sliding it forward on the rails can stop that. For trail bikes the default is to have the saddle level but everyone’s hips sit at a different angle when in their riding position. You want to feel like your pelvis is supported in its natural position and not straining back or being pushed uncomfortably forwards.
Dropper length: This is dictated by rider leg length and frame compatibility. So first of all you need to find your preferred raised saddle height using the above rule then find out your preferred lowered saddle height through trial and error or the tyre buzz check. Figure out the difference with maths and have a look at posts with the same maximum drop. Before you buy you need to check the maximum insertion depth of your frame to make sure the post won’t be too tall at full extension.
Hopefully that covers it! 🤟
I would have talked about tyre casings as well, I see a lot of DH bikes with trail casings because people get tricked by the thread pattern or the name (DHF with Exo casing, Magic Mary with super trail ecc. )
Ah man, it was so hard to decide what to include. I mentioned in the vid that the recommended use cases for each tyre are usually pretty good. Each of the casings you mentioned have a recommended use case for XC, Trail, Enduro, DH and so on. Would be redundant for me to say “You should use DH casings for DH etc.” But you have highlighted for those that may be unaware so cheers 👍
Any tips about bar roll? How does it affect handing?
@Ben Cathro, as usual your content is SO great! I've been a fan of yours for years at this point. Love the close up of the "smaller hands".
Question: How about cush core and other tire inserts? I recently had to resort to running cush core because my 200lb with gear frame was getting a lot of flats on my new found low, long, slack rig at the higher speeds I've been pushing (Or maybe it's the blown out trails...) I find that it actually changes the profile of the tire and also provides some dampening (and I've yet to flat with it).
@@chrisperkins4279 Ben ‘Fidel’ Castro
Loving this series so far
Mate, awesome explanation and some proper funny moments, a lot of work went into this one.
Cheers dude. Needed some daftness to keep the editor sane!
What a dude , no one presents and explains this stuff like cathro. More from this guy !
Thanks for the clarity on impact of bar rise vs stem rise. Hadn't thought about the differences. Great series so far. Looking forward to the rest.
As a tall rider it’s cause me a lot of issues running too many stem spacers. Happy I can use my problems to las on knowledge.
@@BenCathro but running a higher bar is essentially the same as spacers and a low-rise bar with a longer stem. So frame stack does make a difference you can't compensate for. Unless you don't care about stem length. That was the only point in the video where I felt the itch to be pedantic, by the way. Very well written piece.
I run rather high bars on my bikes anyway. Because I'm tall and it looks moto.
@@lowdesertpunk I think with small adjustments the spacers plus longer stem tactic can work but it gets a bit messy with bigger adjustments. For example, if you wanted to raise your bars 20mm you could go from a 20mm rise to a 40mm rise bar.
If you were to do that with 20mm of spacers on a bike with a 64 degree head angle you would end up with 18mm increase to stack and 8.76mm reduction in reach. You could then run a 10mm longer stem which should get you to a similar bar position.
If you already run a 50mm stem (like me) it’s a bit tricky to find decent 60mm options. Also, instead of being a cheap fix to lift the bars up with spacers you’re then looking at purchasing a new stem for slightly worse steering when a taller bar would get the job done.
Once you go beyond 20mm of spacers things start getting really messy to maintain reach but it’s a good way to experiment and some people will prefer the shorter reach.
@@BenCathro did we just do the same thing (I don't want to call it calculations, at least not what I did)? I wanted to know how much of an effect this has and did some quick sketching. Turned out on a bike with a 65° head angle a 45 mm rise bar (mounted with no tilt) on a 35 mm stem with no spacers puts your hands pretty much in the same position as a flat bar on a 55 mm stem with 40 mm of spacers stacked under it. The sketch: www.allmartn.de/ablage/20210708_riser_vs_spacers.png
Luckily I'm pretty happy with my bar height. It's nice to know about those kind of effects though. Maybe that's enough nerding out for today :D
Love this series. It’s a refreshing twist on so much information.
Thanx for doing this!
Best bit about this is the comedic delivery of useful information. :)
Ben, you are an absolute natural in front of the camera and have a great way of describing complicated things in an uncomplicated way. Keep doing what you're doing mate, it's awesome!
I love Ben. He's the perfect blend of thorough, dumbed down explanations and humour. More Ben please.
Of course "I sat through the whole thing" .... very very good and obvious how much work went into structuring the explanation of each parameter. Pure Cathro bible again
Finally I can tune my bike and go ride... Decades needed for this type video appears. Step by step, filtered info, no "forprouseonly" bullSh...
Thank Ben! Thanks pinkbike!
Your videos are second to none, wonderful personality, rather spend my time watching your vids than main stream block buster movies , pure brilliant ❤
I genuinely felt proud to watch the whole video. "pat on the back". quality series.
As a rider who's 6'8" this video is useful on a whole new level!
same
Big boys check-in!
As a rider who is 6’9”, I would have to agree
Same
At 6' 2" I'm 205lbs I wonder what Ben is. This could answer some questions for me
Ben I love how you make it all fun and interesting. Keep up the the good work!
We’re trying! 👊
I've been watching Ben for years now since I started riding really and I've got to say most of what I've learned came from listening to him. I'm glad pinkbike has got Ben doing their videos now and I'm definitely tuned in, can't wait to see Ben start hitting the world cups. All the best to you dude.
I used to do cx racing when I was a teenager and I never really tought about changing anything on my bike at the time because money was not there for it. I spent 10 years without really biking because I was too busy with other things but I've started again but this time doing mostly enduro and downhill and I have a budget for upgrades. Without over thinking it I found a bike that suited my needs and my price range. After riding it basically every day for almost 2 months I've started noticing things that I like and don't like about my bike and I wanted to get info on what I could do to make it more to my taste. This video explained to me everything I need to know to understand why my bike feels the way it does and what are the changes or upgrade that I can do to make it more to my taste! Really appreciate your videos thanks for the good work! 🙏
Series is simply amazing. Ben is getting better with every format he is trying out
I can’t believe i sat here at 2am and finished the video all the way to 2:30am without skipping anything. That should tell something about the video composition and the narrator. Well done.
Well Ben, I'd have to say that overall, you did a bang up job, didn't go getting on any high horses telling people "it has to be this way or that", just gave the info to help people figure stuff out.
I do have one bone to pick though, and that where you said that 29ers don't offer more grip than smaller sizes, which in my experience is absolutely not the case. When I got my 1st 29er back in 2007, it came with WTB Nano 2.1" tyres and a 22/32/44 chainring combo, I was coming off a 26er running Kenda Nevegals StickE compound and on my first ride on the 29er I was clearing loose climbs I had trouble clearing on the 26er (might clean 1 in 3 tries), this with a much less knobby and sticky tyre and actually was able to climb in at least one gear harder, so much so that I ordered up a new set of rings 24/34/46.
This is the most I’ve learned in a video in a long time. Might even buy a reach adjust headset cups now. With a higher rise bar?
Experimenting is the best way to learn. Reading, listening or watching can only tell you so much.
Ben is brilliant. Proof? Changing bar width depending on use/purpose of a particular bike. Simple and it makes so much sense.
I really enjoyed this, going to follow the entire series. I love the knowledge sharing form all the practical things you picked up during your journey. Im restarting my mountain bike experience after fixing up my knee from a really bad fall 4 years ago on concrete. Since I live in the netherlands and mountain biking here mainly exists on XC bikes with race bike gear on I really enjoy seeing the way MTB should be done. Decent helmets and clothing, specific bike tuned in for terrain and/or features. (Sometimes it looks like Racers just take the MTB excuse to make KM's in bad weather) Also this inspired to look for "real" mountain bike tracks and bike parks. Not the omg I MTB'ed 50 kms this weekend kind of asphalt warriors we have here. I've been thought the wrong way from the start this series really is opening my eyes. It gave me motivation to learn a new way of riding my Ghost XC bike with the right mindset. Thank you for this, I'm a long way of doing manuals, but it sure is fun trying downhill and more technical terrain with these tips. Even learning to bunnyhop, not that high yet, but it is getting there. Small roots and branches have nothing on me now! Have a good one M8 and thanks for all of these magnificent videos.
I've seen a lot of video explaining these terms on RUclips but this is by far the best one I've seen to date, I now understand the impact of these parameters. This was truly superb - bravo!
Well, well, well Ben does it again! Talk about a loaded, concise video. Great work Ben! FULL POINTS!!!!
I sat through the whole thing, had the captions on, and re-winded some sections just to take note. THIS IS AWESOME! Thank you!
Quick info I wanted to add to brakes:
Larger Piston area (accomplished by bigger pistons or more pistons as you mentioned) will produce higher braking friction but require a larger volume of brake fluid to be displaced in order to travel the distance to the rotor. This means that you need to pull the brake lever farther not harder to produce a braking force. And as far as my knowledge of muscle memory goes (please correct me if im wrong) it is easier for us to "remember" the amount of muscle tension used than it is to "remember" the distance a part of our body has moved in a movement. This would in turn mean, that a larger piston size makes it harder to modulate your brakes, because a small change in pulling force on the lever translates to a big change in braking force. With a smaller piston size you would reduce the possible maximum braking friction (limited by your finger strength and the amount of fingers you use to pull the lever), but the modulation of that braking pressure should be easier, since the difference in pulling force on the lever is bigger between just hearing your brake pads rubbing and "oh shit i'm flying head first over my handle bars" is greater. Therefore your body would be able to gauge the muscle tension needed.
Hope that makes sense. Great job on the "How to bike" series. Been watching it a lot lately while saving up for an Orbea Laufey and practicing the skills you teach on my road bike (that poor old thing).
If anyone wants to add something to this or wants to correct me here, feel free to do so. I would be happy to hear it.
Just recently discovered Ben's series. Silly, funny, clear and without a know it all attitude. Love how he explains the logic behind the concepts and refers to what others do as well, great videos!
I love this guy, he's so lovable and funny please give us more of him
Long time bike lover and mountain biker [51YO]. This video explained a lot to me that I just didn't know. Great job Ben!!
Av got it, cheers Cathro. 26 in the rear, 29 on the front, 175 cranks, 820mm bars, soft rear and fast front sus. Let's do this 🤘
Ben's MTB videos are by far the best I've come across! Explains everything so clearly whilst entertaining. A natural presenter and has helped loads with my development as a rider, cheers Ben & PB Team!
I'm at minute 5:29 and you're already blowing my mind. I'm glued to the screen.
Best video on the WHOLE internet about bike setup!!! From an eminence in the subject!
Hope Cathro shares more of his vast knowledge with us regular Joe's 😁👍🏼
Excellent, amusing and informing at the same time. I’m a UK resident 75yr old lifetime cyclist, with gravel, road, recumbent, & old school hard tail mnt bikes from Kona and Cannondale. In the process of buying my first ever full suss bike (from Starling Cycles) ….this video has explained in plain English ((Scottish!) addressing the various elements that will help in setting your bike to its optimum for your style of riding….bloody marvellous just what I needed, big thanks…😁🚵
thanks mr Ben Cathro, i am a midget and still ride 26” wheels, but i am trying to improve, and your wise advice had teach me more than asking other siders here, hoping to see you riding in Colombia soon, you know Loris and Superbruni are visiting our country in late march for the first race of the year? we have plenty of beautiful mountains awaiting for you, cheers , and thanks again.
Welp, there's that. Bravo for touching upon everything and cutting right through all the mythical / broscience type stuff. 10/10
Edit: Thanks again, honestly saved me weeks, if not months, worth of failed attempts explaining things to newer riders.
Pinkbike: need more Cathro.
Ben, I’ve watched this a couple of times. Good stuff!
Just got my first full suspension bike and this video is great.Keep up the good work.
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
This is singularly the best video on the Internet on this subject!
To the point, accurate, and authoritative!
I've got a few people into mountain biking recently and I think as part of their 'training' I'll just force them to watch this as it'll be far more concise and entertaining than having me ramble on at them! Nice one Ben and co.
From all Pinkbike's presenters you are the coolest, dunno how to put it into words. I really like your vibe, hope to see more clips of you, cheers
I've been watching MTB guides, tips, tutorials, classes, whatever, you name it! For many many years, but professor Cathro is by far the most outstanding and engaging teacher i've seen! I love this series!
love this series. This video gave a simple, but to the point explanation for most of the variables that a lot of riders either don't think about or don't know about. Well done Ben Cathro ad Pinkbike
You just snapped me out of my 90s mountain biking knowledge. In one video. Awesome. Cheers!
Cathro is the best thing to happen to pinkbike.
Now that I’ve got my leg injured and cannot ride my bike for a few more weeks, guess it’s a perfect time to learn how to set it up. Now I have all the time in the world 😁😁thank you pinkbike and Ben, I’ll certainly come back to this info in a few days
Ben has a personality and antics that make the lessons and info stick! Thanks Pink Bike for keeping him around ;)
super glad we have ben doing this series. Not only does he know his sh*t, he's a similarly super tall guy so I can crib some of his setup notes
There's a few scientific studies that have shown that longer cranks do give you a higher peak power output, but they pretty much show that it's like 1% higher. Look for Dylan Johnson's video on crank length. He cites a study that found that a 50 mm (!!!) drop in crank length resulted in a 1% drop in peak power output. So the difference between a 175 mm and a 165 mm crank is basically nothing. I'm slowly moving all my bikes to 165 mm cranks.
Good info! Must have missed that one when researching. I’m on the hunt for some 160mm’s to try 👀
I keep looking for more 165mm cranks but don’t see any (not the best time to look for bike parts I know). Still using some old XT 165mm ones.
I sat through the whole thing and I'd do it again. 😉
Same.
I learned a lot, so here is a tip in return from a motorcycling world ~ your levers should be parallel to your arms, meaning your arm should be straight with your hands in your most frequent position. This will protect you from various long term wrist damage and mainly carpal tunnel issue.
Love the vid! A trick i found for how wide i like my bars : comfortable pushup position wen at the top. This really helped me figured it out.
Totally agree! Switched to 165mm cranks years ago. No looking back!
This is way more comprehensive than I expected (and entertaining). Bookmark material for sure.
My god, how have I had a bike this long and not known anything about it? Thank you Ben! Truly insightful
A++ guys, was a long vid but went by fast. We need more of Ben!
Hands dow Ben is the best at explaining and it comes with a laugh or two included, sign me up!!stoked to see what’s next!
Came for the stack and bar heights, watched the whole thing. Well explained in real world talk, not marketing talk 👌👌
Well explained and articulated, the best mountain bike setup video I’ve seen 👌🏻👍🏻🤘🏻🚀
Thank you Ben! You make the whole world of riding trails sound a lot less intimidating for a beginner like me :)
Finally someone explains geometry in a way that I can understand. Thank you✊🏼
10/10 both in terms of content and sense of humour
I've watched this video right through twice now but I can only give it one thumbs up!
Awesome video, especially for a novice like me. The most basic yet critical info for a novice all in 1 video and explained so well with humor and class!
I am not a very experienced mountain biker. This coupled with the fact that my bike probably isn't set up for the type of riding I tend to do these days, which includes quite a bit of steep lose descents. I am 6'2 and ride an XL trail bike with a 780 bar width and 20mm rise and those trails feel quite scary at times. I have since ordered an 800mm bar with a 30mm rise and can't wait to see how much confidence, if any, I get from this planned setup.
All great points, but now all I want to do is go get a new bike. I have a "trail" bike from Specialized the SJ Comp Alloy and it's been a lot of fun riding it on local trails where I need to pedal up to go back down, but I took it to my local bike park and was hitting all the drops and jumps and feel like my 140mm of fork travel is not enough for how big I want to go on these features. I've now invested in volume reducers for both the forks and shock and will be making adjustment with these to help stop my bottoming out, but somehow I feel like this bike isn't the best bike for the job of bike park riding with lots of downhill and large jumps. Tell me I am crazy or point me in the direction to another bike that will fit the job. Great job on this series, lots of laughs and information. Thanks for all you do.
Ben does such an awesome job! He’s by far the best Pinkbike presenter.
That stop motion bit with the bars going up and down makes me think the next MTB must-have gadget is gonna be a push-button dropper stem. Slam it for the uphill grinds, pop it up for the descents.
Awesome video for a beginner like me. I split between road and MTB so just 1 MTB bike for me so gotta find the Goldilocks settings… so much more fun than road riding.
Refreshing! It's like I just opened a treasure chest. Good job Ben and PB! 🎉
Have to say i was expecting another ol tired bike setup vid, only switched it on because i seen Ben was doing it,
I have to say i couldn't have been more wrong.
Really excellent vid that i actually learned a bit from and watched every min of.
Fair Play PB and Ben & Crew
Cathro is legit my favourite person on RUclips right now
Excellent video. Covered everything I wanted to know about bike set up. Besides the video being informative, the humor made the 26 min fly by.
Superb information... I knew riser bars would be the answer as soon as Ben mentioned it. Riser bars bought... Problem solved. Thanks Ben.
Massive thanks for making this series. As I’m quite new to the sport it is really helpful to have someone explane things simply. THANKS. And keep up the good work.
Every new mountain biker should watch this, amazing job.
Ben for president! Awesome content, deffinetly raising the bar for the MTB vids...
Good on you Ben! Great content!! Glad you get a forum to share your passion and perspective. Looking forward to coming episodes.
One of the best videos about mountain biking.
You are a awesome teacher bro. You know your stuff .
Watched the whole thing, and always love the way you explain but you completely bothched the tire pressure section!! Tire size, rim width, tube or tubeless make huge differences in tire pressure. I'm 210lbs and run a 27.5 2.8 rear tire on a 30 mm rear rim at 21.5lbs and when it was on a 35mm rim, I was at 17 to 18. Rocky Mountain has a tire chart that helps for wider tires on wider rims. 2.4 tire on 27.5mm inner width I run at 24.5lbs with cushcore. Was at 27 without cushcore. You could probably make a whole video on tire pressure for all riding styles and tunes vs tubeless. Would probably help a lot of people....I suck at riding by the way. Solid video and thanks for all the hard work!
This is some of the best bike setup advice I have ever come across. Great job Ben!
I'm building a new bike, finally, and I have been really trying to get my head around reach and stack and what bars to run and this video just made a neat package out of all of it. I have a much better sense of what to look for and it makes me glad I'm stubborn bc I just don't need million mile wide bars, despite what I'm being told lol
2001 BigHit expert was a great all rounder bike, could be setup to XC, freeride or DH just had to have the fitness to pedal the 40 tooth ring
This is so good; so straightforward, clearly explained and accurate af. This should be required reading for every entry or mid-level mountain biker. Great stuff!
Best video on RUclips about this and I've been watching alot trying to get back in the game! Just worried i spend loads on the wrong size and im effed up
Ben you completely nailed this overview. Nice job!
Great video Ben, lots of useful information without boring us or plugging us with a certain brand or style.
This is the best explanation of this topic that I’ve seen yet. Thanks so much! 👍🏻
Thanks for the 👏👏👏 your humor makes it easy to watch. Love it.
Ben rocks as a presenter... enjoying this serires. Its good even out of order.