Bike Mount, My observations from a volunteers perspective...

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2010-07-19 9:05 AM

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Subject: Bike Mount, My observations from a volunteers perspective...

I was working as a volunteer at a local HIM this weekend.  My assignment as it turned out was to work as a course marshal at the bike mounting point.  Because this was a smaller event there was very little signage or markings.  So I was instructed to let the riders know at what point they could mount the bike.  This mount point was on a slight incline for about 40 feet then it went to a 2-3% grade requiring you to be clipped and settled quickly.  Here are a few of my observations from watching 300 riders try and get on their bikes. 

  1. Slow Down!  The number 1 thing that caused riders to tip, struggle or otherwise freak out was trying to go to fast. 
  2. Clipping shoes to the pedals and attempting to mount was unsuccessful for all but 1 rider.  The problems seemed to stem from the shoes hitting the ground just prior to the mount which would fling them all over or often the entire rear of the bike would fly in the air and/or bounce forcing the rider to spend alot of time settling the bike then re-orienting themselves before attempting to mount.
  3. The lone rider who had some limited success used the rubber band to the keep the shoes positioned correctly.  Although even with this method going quite smoothly it was still slower than the next method.  If you plan to attach your shoes you are going to absolutely need to attach them to the bike via rubber band.  Not only was this effective in keeping them in the correct position but also prevented them from contacting the ground which usually resulting in some chaotic behavior of the bike.  The downside was that now they also had to climb the hill with feet resting on top of their shoes then I would assume put them on once at the top. 
  4. The fastest and most successful mount that I witnessed and was used by many riders was clipping the left foot and giving a strong push with the right then swinging the leg over.  I did not see anyone struggle that did this type of mount and frankly it looked like the simplest of any of them.  These people were on the bike and clipped and ready for the climb in every case. 
  5. Did I already mention to slow down…

I am sure there are exceptions to the rule on any of these points but I know for me I am going to practice #4.

Hope everyone had a great weekend and lots of time for training.


ETA:  The most successfull method of dismount, since I also worked there, was removing your shoes and resting them on top until the dismount.  Several people tried to dismount to quickly in their cleats which caused them to slip or otherwise struggle to get their footing.  If they did successfully dismount they had to stop and remove them to prepare to run down the asphalt hill they had climbed on the way out as opposed to sliding down in their cleats.



Edited by Batlou 2010-07-19 9:12 AM

2010-07-19 9:18 AM
in reply to: #2989325

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Subject: RE: Bike Mount, My observations from a volunteers perspective...
I also volunteered at a race this weekend and was working on the dismount line, so I got to spend a lot of time watching people mount as well.

I noticed a few exact opposite things.

Batlou - 2010-07-19 10:05 AM
  1. Clipping shoes to the pedals and attempting to mount was unsuccessful for all but 1 rider.  The problems seemed to stem from the shoes hitting the ground just prior to the mount which would fling them all over or often the entire rear of the bike would fly in the air and/or bounce forcing the rider to spend alot of time settling the bike then re-orienting themselves before attempting to mount.
  2. The lone rider who had some limited success used the rubber band to the keep the shoes positioned correctly.  Although even with this method going quite smoothly it was still slower than the next method.  If you plan to attach your shoes you are going to absolutely need to attach them to the bike via rubber band.  Not only was this effective in keeping them in the correct position but also prevented them from contacting the ground which usually resulting in some chaotic behavior of the bike.  The downside was that now they also had to climb the hill with feet resting on top of their shoes then I would assume put them on once at the top. 


I was actually surprised by how many people were able to successful mount with their shoes already on their bike.  It was obvious that this was well practiced because of how smoothly it was done. 

I do agree somewhat about slowing down.  Some people can clearly handle the speed, some people can't.  Slowing down before dismounting was more important as that's where I saw the most falls.

The moral of the story: practice transitions!!
2010-07-19 9:29 AM
in reply to: #2989325

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Subject: RE: Bike Mount, My observations from a volunteers perspective...
I think what made this difficult for most was that the mount point was almost immediatly after you hit the pavement from the grass.  There was a slight hump there that was causing the bulk of distress from shoes hitting the hump.  The other issue was once a bike was sent out of control their distance to get on and clipped was further reduced which made mounting prior to the climb out even more challenging.  Finally the mounting point would become crowded at times leaving little margin for error.   Once a cyclist began to struggle it would force others to modify their path making it more difficult.

So if you plan to do the clipped in shoes dont practice on a flat smooth road.  Find a parking lot and go cyclocross style.  Hop a couple of parking barriers then dodge a baskcart and/or a car or two then mount.  Try and get mounted and clipped before you hit the parking barrier on the other side, about 60 feet.  If you can do that you should be able to handle about anything.
2010-07-19 9:35 AM
in reply to: #2989418

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Subject: RE: Bike Mount, My observations from a volunteers perspective...
I understand.  If you can get good at it, it is so worth being able to get your feet in the shoes while riding.  Those people were the fastest off the line at the race I volunteered at.

My biggest observation was the huge cluster of people who mount right at the line.  If they had gone a few feet past the line, there would have been a lot more room and fewer near collisions by the people weaving all over the place trying to get up to speed.
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