Mountain Biking - Weight Distribution

Standing is useful when climbing rough terrain or when the terrain is too steep to keep weight centered while sitting on the bike. The trick is to keep your weight evenly distributed over the bike and centered between your tires. Don't stand straight up if traction is poor or the terrain is steep. Keep your upper body closer to parallel with the ground when traction is poor. On steep or loose terrain, think about trying to touch your shoulders or chest to your bar so you keep your upper body forward and your hips back on steep and / or loose climbs. When traction is good you don't have to be so bent over, so don't be static in your positioning, play with it and find out what works best for each type of steepness and terrain for both standing and sitting. You can also lever your rear tire into the ground by pulling up and slightly back with an arm curling motion every time you push down on a pedal while climbing This helps drive the rear wheel into the ground when you have to keep your weight forward to keep the front tire on the ground. To get the feel for the arm motion, stand beside your bike, grab the handle bar near the stem palm down, with your elbow pointing towards the ground and your forearm level with the ground, then lift the front of the bike off the ground by curling your arm. Watch Ned Overend's "Performance Mountain Biking" video. He descrbies this technique and you can see him using it on steep and/or loose climbs when he is either sitting or standing. If you want to progress as a mountain biker, master both seated and standing climbing.