The standing base stance: pedals level, knees and elbows bent, hips centred over the bottom bracket, eyes far ahead. Arms and legs become your second suspension.
Going down, the hits come from below and the forces from the front — and forward is exactly where it goes wrong: in a video analysis of 534 mountain-bike crashes, 55% were riders going over the bars, rising to around 75% above 30 km/h. Stay seated and your arms and legs are rigid, so every impact pushes you further forward. The common faults: straight arms, weight too far forward, eyes on the front wheel, heels high. The fix: elbows out and clearly bent, hips back, chest lower, heels dropped, one index finger on each lever, the rest loose around the bar. What often goes unnoticed: this is a position you move into and out of, not a statue. Held tensely it drains you — grip strength drops measurably after a descent, heart rate sits near 80% of maximum while oxygen uptake stays around half. Descending is holding work, not leg endurance.