Bicycling.comWith Six Gap and Road Titans 300 on the horizon, I thought this article will be a good one for those attending one - or both - events. A nice refresher!

Certainly there is an art to coming off a mountain on two wheels while keeping them both on the ground.  Our recent escapade in the north Georgia mountains were quite educational.  Most hills here in central Florida are fairly straight so there is little art to it: just roll down, feather your brakes, make sure no one is around you and enjoy the short-lived thrill ride. Not so in the mountains. Nuh-uh.  It can be a deadly descent for many reasons. Mountain roads deserve utmost respect. We were told that Brasstown Bald was too steep to descend and that our group would be shuttled down. However, one of my friends was going to ride down so I asked if I could join in. His advice was this:1)  Alternate my brakes to avoid overheating the rim and causing a blow out. 2)  Keep my speed down because it's easy to let the bike get away and lose control.3)  Stay on my side of the road, especially in turns. Crossing the yellow line could mean death if I met a car.After a hard swallow to force the lump in my throat away, I decided that I could do this. Once we made it safely to the bottom without incident we were told that a woman had died just the week prior because her front rim got too hot and exploded her tire. What a tragic story to hear. Here are a few more tips about descending that were taught that weekend:Keep a good amount of distance between you and other riders (~150 yards.)Stay off of the paint if the surface is damp.This is no time to race: enjoy the mountains and respect the terrain.In big rides (like 6 Gap, for example) take extra precautions. Be ultra conservative.Call out as you start to overtake a rider.Focus on the road ahead and debris, cracks, rocks, etc.Know the road. If it is your first time on it, be extra careful and don't let the thrill overtake common sense.Break before the curve, pedal through it.Note the speed limit signs into curves; gauge your speed accordingly.For a really good, short video on descending, click here.  To quote our mountain guide last weekend, Chris said, " Just because a person is a strong rider doesn't mean that he has great descending skills.  And last but not least never ever race a fat boy down hill."  He's right on both accounts!* * * * *Just for Fun! The video shown here is from YouTube and is a racing team going down Brasstown Bald. Note how cautious even they are.