"What I have found to be most effective in developing mountain bike skills is to begin with slow speed handling control, rear wheel slides, and other functional skills for safely negotiating technical single tracks. Once the fundamentals are developed, the real fun begins with learning how to best negotiate individual sections to ultimately put together faster single track runs with less effort and risk. The next step is to perfect the art of pacing and knowing exactly when to begin riding your own pace up the first, and often congested, single track. Nailing down this timing and applying better pacing strategies will definitely get you to the finish faster. Take a sneak peak at my short 2-minute stunt video."
-- David Brinton
REMARKABLE ACHIEVEMENTS
Christine Irelan (41), 3x National Champion and World Silver Medalist: Christine flew from Colorado Springs to Los Angeles to do the FAST-Start and several Technik Sessions. After starting with CoachBrinton, she entered her first road race and quickly became a threat in the mountains. From 2009-2012 she won 39 of 56 road and MTN bike races she entered. This includes the Cat 3 40-44 Mountain Bike National Championships after only 2 months on a mountain bike. In 2010 she won the Cat 2 MTB Nationals, in 2011 she was 2nd in the Cat 1 MTB Nationals, and in 2012 she won the Cat 1 MTB Nationals and also won a Silver medal at the Master World MTN Bike Championships in Brazil. Christine and I started working together prior to her first MTN bike race 4 years ago, she is now 3x National Champion and a World Silver Medalist.
Jon Tanklage (31), Cat 1 National Champion & NORBA Points Champion: Jon entered two “Clydesdale” races (200+ lbs.) just prior to us working together. During his first full year of racing, he won every race he entered, including the 2002 State XC Championships in the Cat 3, 30-34 category. His finish times were fast enough to win the Cat 2 title. In 2003, he bypassed Cat 2 and went straight to Cat 1. To everyone’s surprise, he won the Cat 1, 30-34 California State XC Championships. During his third year of racing, he won the Cat 1 National Championships and the NORBA National Point Series with more points than all riders in NORBA, including the Pros.
TESTIMONIALS
Mike Maniscalchi (51), Cat 3 MTB: "My first session was the Fast Start, which I highly recommend. In that one session, I learned so much and finally I'm on the right track. A friend referred me to David and I'm so glad he did. After many years of motocross, jet ski racing, and mountain biking I was tired of continuing to get dropped by my buddies on the trails and on the road. Within the next three months, I've improved radically and now dropping my buddies. His training philosophy works and his skill sessions speak for themselves. I'm now riding between 50-150 miles per week, and even with my busy work and family schedule and have never felt more confident, fit and overall just having a great time on the bike. If you're looking to improve your skills, be a safer rider, or want to train for racing, David Brinton is the cycling coach to hire."
Christine Irelan (42), Anesthesiologist, Master World Silver Medalist XC, 3x U.S. XC Champion, 4x State Champion, Cat 1 MTB: "At the age of 40, after a 20-year hiatus from competitive athletics, I decided that I wanted to become a bicycle racer. I called David with this goal in mind along with the caveats that I had never raced a bicycle, I had a very demanding and time consuming professional career, and I lived in a different state.... We talked for quite a while before I concluded that David appreciated my drive, sensed my potential, and had the background and personality to help me take advantage of both. Upon making my decision to work with David, I flew out to Los Angeles for two days to do his FastStart and work on technical pedaling, climbing and other techniques that I have used with great success. Thank you for a great four years of excellent coaching."
John Hoover (41), Dentist, Regional XC Champion, State XC Champion, Cat 1: "I did a detailed search to find a great coach. When I talked to Dave on the phone that confirmed it for me. I flew to LA from Tennessee and spent three solid days beginning with the FAST Start and then worked on many techniques. It was well worth it. His program had a huge impact on my riding in just three months. I won the first mountain bike race I entered after starting his program, I had been trying to do that in the expert class for four seasons. I am definitely training smarter and not wasting time on the wrong training programs. You set me up perfectly, and I won the 2010 Southeastern Regional Championship. This is in addition to winning the GA State Championship. This is now my fourth year working with you, and I am still getting faster."
Eric Barlevav (16), Junior MTN Bike, Pro MTN at 18: "In the one year that Eric has trained with Dave, he has improved tremendously in his technical and tactical ability of riding. He has utilized Dave's pedaling technique during races, which has significantly improved his speed and put him out in front of his competitors. Dave is committed and dedicated to helping Eric reach his full potential, which is evident by the remarkable progress Eric has made. Dave's expert training and guidance has been invaluable and Eric continues to benefit from his superb coaching and encouragement."
Jon Tanklage (31), U.S. National XC Champion/NORBA Overall Series Winner 30+ Cat 1: "I am basically a first year rider who had incredible success on Dave's program last winter. Not knowing how much I would improve, I set the goal to win the State Championship Mountain Bike Series as a Beginner. I have swept every race, most recently yesterday at Big Bear. During this time I have beat the times of the winning Sport riders at nearly every race. In my mind I can say that I have won the Sport championship this year and I will be satisfied in jumping straight to Expert next year. This will be tough and will require an awesome off-season." (I coached Jon thru his National Title and NORBA Point Series Win).
Kathy Sessler (42), 4x World Mountain Bike Champion, Masters Dual Slalom: "I'd like to say what a great coach David Brinton is. He helped me immensely on the set of Pacific Blue where we both worked doing stunts on mountain bikes. He helped me learn to jump the mountain bike over cars and other obstacles and he is a fantastic teacher and coach…Thanks David!"
Chris Ziegler (41), Cat 1 MTB, Master Racer: "After racing MTN bikes for several years with disappointing results, I hired David. Our first technique session was at a race course that presented me my greatest struggles. Within a couple of hours of on the single-track, watching his technique and listening to his feedback, my technical skills, pedaling, and efficiency increased substantially. I won every race in the Sport category from that point on and then moved to Expert and finished consistently in the top five. David's knowledge of physiology, nutrition, sports medicine, and racing tactics really increased my enthusiasm and enjoyment for the sport. He took my fitness to the next level while minimizing negatives such as, crashing and stress injuries. Most importantly, David's demeanor makes me feel as though I have a good friend, in addition to having an impeccable coach."
Erik Flockoi (41), Master Racer/Cat 1 MTN Bike: "My newly learned standing (without it I've blown in the past) is giving me strength like I've never experienced. Your sprint techniques are giving me more power than I ever thought possible. Several people are commenting on how well I'm riding. My teammates are talking like I’m one of the guys they are working for all of a sudden. And I thought I was just good domestique material! Thank you once again! Having your coaching and Technik Clinics are the best thing I've ever done for my cycling!!!"
Gaurav Malhotra (36), Partner LHMP Accounting Firm, Cat 2 MTB Racer: “I have been working with David for about a year. I came to David at a point when I was riding with injuries and a lot of pain. I worked with David on my pedaling technique and bike fit, and over time my pain went away. Once pain free I decided to race. It was unbelievable how much the technical skills that David and I had worked on like pedaling, jumping, sliding, manuals and bunny hops improved my riding. I am looking forward to the winter program where we will continue to work on technical skills. What I appreciate most is that when I need answers or if I want to tweak my routine, he is never more than a phone call away and always accessible.”
Janice Bora (52), Music Teacher, Cat 1 Master's XC: "Before being coached by David, I rode four times a week as hard as I could. I was killing myself. Sure, I used a heart rate monitor, but only to let me know when I was going into the red zone. David taught me how to plan a training schedule and use time more efficiently. He suggested I buy a road bike to improve my mountain bike performance. I resisted and resisted. I finally bought one, joined a club, and absolutely love it. He has since helped me with planning training for extremely hilly centuries. I plan to have him help me with technical downhill mtn bike next season. David has endless knowledge about all aspects of riding, whether it be road or mountain bike. He planned my race-day warm up and my pre-race ride. He has helped me with pedal technique, foot float, sprints, cadence, weights, interval training, etc., etc. I could go on and on…"
Jason Bold (29), Cat 2 MTB: "When I hired David, I was strictly a recreational rider, but I wanted to work on my skills and increase confidence. When we first spoke on the phone, he asked me if I considered racing. After a slight hesitation, the enthusiasm of David's voice and the competitive nature inside me compelled me to say "yes". I hung up the phone wondering what I had gotten myself into. How was an out of shape, retired smoker and completely novice rider going to be competitive on a bike? Within months, I was learning advanced skills and getting top placings in the beginner category. At the end of my first season, I got 3rd place in the Finals at Snow Summit. The next season, just over a year after meeting David, I won 1st place at the NORBA Nationals in Big Bear. Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think I would achieve so much in so little time. With David's program, I was able to concentrate years of riding experience into a few short months. David was always encouraging, supportive, and engaging during our technique sessions. He motivated me to be someone far beyond anything I could ever have achieved on my own and for that, I am grateful. Thanks David.”
Mauro Paciocco (Argentina/USA), U23, Cat 1 MTB: "Your pedaling techniques have really helped me survive climbs and time trials. I always pedal like you say. In one year I went from not even being able to climb the Topanga Hills to flying up hills with Division II & III Pros. I found your PELT Method™ heart rate concept so important to understanding heart rate zones and to identify when I am about to overtrain. You taught me many things, but I believe your winter training philosophy had the biggest impact, teaching me about power and how to monitor overload. It gave me a really a big advantage over the competition to have so much power. You are not only a great coach, but you are a great person and friend. You were always there for me. Thanks Dave!!"
Mike Brooks (41), Recreational MTN Biker: “I worked with David for almost 2 years and he dramatically improved my riding. He built me up to where I was doing road rides in the canyons that would total 80 miles with 9000 feet of elevation gain. With his programs, I made huge strides in my endurance and my climbing ability. Although I did my mid week training on my road bike, I am really a mountain biker. I always had trouble keeping up with the people that I rode with on the climbs. With David's guidance, my climbing ability improved so much that I was easily able to keep up with my friends and sometimes even out climb them."