Micro-Sanjay makes an appearance.I think it's easier to scrub anything if you run clipless.
The point of scrubbing is to lose speed right on the jump (braking before the jump makes you go slower into the jump and thus have slower lap) and to keep closer to the ground so you hit it earlier and get back on the gas as soon as possible. It also makes for a smoother landning if you haven't been way up in the air.Assuming the point of "scrubbing" is keeping your tragetory as horizontal as possible and maintaining forward momentum, then you can accomplish the same thing by getting behind your saddle and absorbing the jump. On a moto your not getting behind the saddle.
But an old school BMX chin on saddle/ ass on tire doesn't look nearly as cool as dragging your bars/ pedals up the face of a jump.
Did you do any physics at all? Are you saying that gravity doesn't act if you're not touching the ground?The term scrub means exactly that. To scrub speed. By doing this you are "scrubbing" your speed without hitting your brakes. If done right it causes a much smoother deceleration than hitting your brakes, which in turn allows you to get back on the ground with spinning wheels and keep your speed.
Also keep in mind in a downhill race being on the ground is always faster as you are being pushed by gravity and momentum. Once you leave the ground you are only being pushed by your momentum which loses its strength very quick.
Wow, so many things in that comment defy the laws of physics and common sense.The term scrub means exactly that. To scrub speed. By doing this you are "scrubbing" your speed without hitting your brakes. If done right it causes a much smoother deceleration than hitting your brakes, which in turn allows you to get back on the ground with spinning wheels and keep your speed.
Also keep in mind in a downhill race being on the ground is always faster as you are being pushed by gravity and momentum. Once you leave the ground you are only being pushed by your momentum which loses its strength very quick.
Obviously if there are big obstacles like rock gardens, doubles, or anything of the sort being in the air will be quicker.
Why would you scrub to lose speed? That doesn't make any sense at all.....you have these things, they're called brakes....The point of scrubbing is to lose speed right on the jump (braking before the jump makes you go slower into the jump and thus have slower lap) and to keep closer to the ground so you hit it earlier and get back on the gas as soon as possible. It also makes for a smoother landning if you haven't been way up in the air.
Can you really scrub a significant amount of speed by scrubbing? I was always under the impression that scrubbing was a way of getting your wheels on the ground quicker by taking the kick out of the lip, just like sucking up a jump (but a lot cooler looking).The term scrub means exactly that. To scrub speed. By doing this you are "scrubbing" your speed without hitting your brakes. If done right it causes a much smoother deceleration than hitting your brakes, which in turn allows you to get back on the ground with spinning wheels and keep your speed.
Also keep in mind in a downhill race being on the ground is always faster as you are being pushed by gravity and momentum. Once you leave the ground you are only being pushed by your momentum which loses its strength very quick.
Obviously if there are big obstacles like rock gardens, doubles, or anything of the sort being in the air will be quicker.
what he saidWho cares? Someone post more pics and vids instead.
wow. thats wild. i'm speechless. Scrubbing=ride at same speed, stay lower, get back to the ground sooner...something like that. I dont know, Its been said already in better terms.Personally, I think the scrub is a lot more 'show' than 'go' on an MTB, but that's just my opinion. I just think there are other ways to absorb jumps that are just as effective, probably less risky and easier to execute, but not quite as cool-looking.
Thanks for the videos though, guys. Great stuff. BTW, Chris - I would call this the exact opposite of a scrub:
The immortal Doug Henry . . .
(Edit: can't get the damn YouTube to embed)
/discussion
you nailed it.As cool looking as these are, is there actually any reason to do one on a bike? I can understand in Moto, where you can get back on the trottle faster since your wheels will be back on the ground sooner. Assuming you're on a bike, you have no throttle, only pedals, so unless you land upright and can start cranking immediately, wouldn't spending more time in the air theoretically be faster? Especially if it's a rough or not particularly steep section?
I mean, it looks wildly cool, but I just wonder whether it's for anything more than show.
wow did somebody get beat up by moto-x dudes as a kid? let's face facts moto-whips and bubba-scrubs look cool, just adds a bit of style to the sport.. arguing whether or not there's an "advantage" of doing either on certain situations is better suited for the mythbusters than a bunch of know-it-alls on a internet forum. Be clear, I'm not saying there's a advantage or disadvantage, just stupid to argue about it..you nailed it.
if someone really wants to reduce air time and stay low & fast, then the goal is to never leave the ground, totally absorb the rise/jump/lip.
they look pretty slick but that's all they are. it's just another piece of the current top DH racers' obsession with moto. I think if people want to be moto they should go race moto. totally different dynamic and there are only a small number of things that are the same on a MTB as on a moto, the MTB has no throttle to use as speed, line control, braking, boosting.
it's like the current photog/vid obsession with "roost." nobody's "roosting," really, unless they are laying down pedal power at the same time they're tossing dirt off the rear wheel. and the big down-side is that now all the gomers and dweebs are out there ripping trails apart to try to duplicate the "badass roost" they saw in a Clay Porter movie.
the day someone's leg strength and quickness is enough to make the MTB behave identically to a moto, that's the day I'll understand the pretense at moto style on a MTB.
Utter rubbish. Gravity works just as well when you're not on the ground, moron What's important is the angle you hit the transition with. if you come thumping down from way up onto a flat transition you will lose a lot of the speed you gained in the air. If however your angle of approach matches the transition, then you're unquestionably faster in the air than being on the ground getting bumped around.Also keep in mind in a downhill race being on the ground is always faster as you are being pushed by gravity and momentum. Once you leave the ground you are only being pushed by your momentum which loses its strength very quick.
Wow... Ok you don't scrub speed while in the ar. Im no physics major. What I said is buy scrubbing you scrub speed without touching your brakes so you can stay low to get the wheels back on the ground. If you dont scrub the lip you go really high and lose time, over jump, and/or can't get on the ground quick enought to set up for next secton.Did you do any physics at all? Are you saying that gravity doesn't act if you're not touching the ground?
Can you explain how you 'scrub speed' while you're in the air?
Mkay, now how about scanning in the "Turndowns" part on page 118 that says, "To see an ultra-high-speed turn down in action, watch James "Bubba" Stewart on a motocross track".To add substance to what mark-DH said, i scanned 2 pages of Brian Lopes' book "Mastering Mountainbiking Skills".
Thats no scrub.What do you people think about scrubbing like this. This is the way i have been doing it for years. I just slam the bike down has hard as i can the second it starts to go up. It changes the "air curve" dramatically and i can stay super low. It also seems easier than the moto way.
http://www.pinkbike.com/video/85765/
You can see the bike start to pop off the lip, but i shove it down with my arms and then legs. TRUST ME its way easier (i still cant moto style it)
I wasnt saying bubba couldnt, because he can. I posted that up to give a visual representation as to why scrubbing is faster ie. you keep more of your forward momentum than if you dont scrub.Mkay, now how about scanning in the "Turndowns" part on page 118 that says, "To see an ultra-high-speed turn down in action, watch James "Bubba" Stewart on a motocross track".