- Most modern e-bikes come with a
dropper seatpost these days.
If you're new to mountain biking,
you might be wondering when,
how, and why you're going to use one of these
out in the trails.
Today's video, we're going to be showing you
how to get the most out of your dropper seatpost
on the trails.
(relaxed hip hop music)
(electronic pulsating)
So the dropper seatpost,
one of the greatest inventions for the bicycle
since the e-bike itself.
Once you've ridden with one,
you simply won't be able to ride a bike without one.
It just allows you to conquer technical terrain
with a push of a button.
Slam the seat, as soon as you get back
to the top of that climb, raise the saddle
back to an efficient riding position.
I love mine and really couldn't ride without one anymore.
(relaxed hip hop music)
Okay, so when it comes to climbing with a dropper seatpost,
there's two different options when it comes to e-bikes.
Traditionally, a lot of standard mountain bikers
will climb the hill with the saddle fully raised.
That way it gives you an efficient riding position
with maximum leg power.
But of course, on the e-bike you don't need
that maximum leg power because you've got
the motor delivering a bit more assistance,
so you can actually lower the saddle.
That way it means that your center of gravity's lower.
You've got more grip delivered to the back wheel.
You can actually adjust the grip
by moving forwards and backwards on the saddle.
So it's up to you, up or down,
to climb the hill with a dropper seat post on an e-bike.
(relaxed hip hop music)
When it comes to jumping your e-bike,
a slammed saddle is an absolute must,
so get that saddle slammed out the way
if you can see any jumps coming.
If you hit the trails or jump to the saddle up in the air,
it's going to peck you straight in the bum
as soon as the back wheel leaves.
It's going to tangle in your shorts,
result in a big crash.
(relaxed hip hop music)
Any technical feature out in the trail, like these rollers,
you need to get that saddle slammed out of the way.
If you try and manual through these
with that saddle up high,
constantly going to be pecking you in your back,
trying to pull your shorts down, and getting tangled up.
So anything technical, drop the seat, get it done.
(relaxed hip hop music)
So this is the chance to use your dropper post raised.
Any smooth stages like this, this is a nice fire road climb,
just means I'm in a nice, efficient riding position.
Anything serious off road,
I've got the saddle slammed out of the way.
If you can get used to riding with your dropper up and down,
it's gonna make you a hell of a lot faster
when you hit the trails.
So you might wondering when we actually raise that saddle up
out on the trail.
Some sections like this.
We've got a nice technical roller section behind me
where I've come through with my saddle slammed.
When I get to about where I am, I'm gonna raise the saddle.
I can see the trail ahead slightly uphill,
meaning that I'm gonna have to put a bit of extra effort in,
meaning that I'm gonna need that saddle up
into a nice, efficient riding position
to my power my way up through that trail
and get ready to drop it for the next technical feature.
The key to getting the most
out of your dropper post out on the trails
is to read the terrain ahead.
Keep your head up high, anticipate the terrain.
Much as you do changing gear and changing power modes,
get used to dropping that seatpost up and down
to maximize your flow out on the trails.
(relaxed hip hop music)
Loads of different options when it comes up
to getting your dropper seatpost.
First things first, what you need to consider is
how much drop you want on the seatpost.
This is how much the saddle's gonna go up and down.
This is the part we measure
to see how much travel you actually need.
This is a 175 mil post from Crank Brothers,
the Highline model.
There's loads of different options out there,
100 mil to 185 mil, so that's a massive seatpost.
When it sizing, just thinking about what seat tube size
you're running as well, lots of options out there.
But if it doesn't fit, you can lots of shims
to adapt the seat tube to accommodate
whichever size seatpost you're buying.
When it comes to cable routing, you've got stealth routing.
That means that the cable is going through the bike,
internally routed, or you have externally routed,
which means cable's gonna be outside the frame
and will connect to the side or back of the seatpost.
Just make sure whichever seatpost you're buying
is gonna be compatible with cable routing on your bike.
Also when it comes to droppers,
the dropper-style lever's gonna vary, too.
Some of the oldest styles ones are gonna have a
under the saddle lever that you can actually
press with your finger.
It means removing a hand from the handlebar,
pulling the lever, putting your weight on the saddle,
and dropping the seatpost out of the way.
Also, obviously, you want to raise it,
you need to squeeze that lever, pull it up.
Most modern designs are just gonna be a thumb-mounted lever,
which is under the handlebars.
You just literally raise your thumb,
depress it, and the saddle's gonna drop out of the way.
But the way that this seatpost is gonna be activated,
it's also gonna vary.
A lot of the newer ones are gonna be either
fully hydraulic units, meaning you've got hydraulic hose
running through the frame to the base of the seatpost
and a hydraulic unit in there.
Some of them are gonna be cable-activated.
And if you're really flashy, you can get actually
Bluetooth or wireless versions.
I think Magura and SRAM, you just have to send the unit
on your handlebars and receiver
and it's just gonna go up and down with no wires
to mess around with between your bars and your saddle.
(relaxed hip hop music)
When it comes to choosing the right
dropper seatpost for you,
you need to take a look at your bike first.
If the seat tube's kinked or interrupted in any way,
it means that you're not actually
gonna be able to slide that seatpost
fully down and slam it inside the frame,
so just bear that in mind.
When it comes to the drop, you really need to think about
the size that you're choosing, too.
If you're a taller rider, you don't wanna choose
a dropper with too little drop on it.
Best if you're thinking about something like a 100 mil one,
it's probably gonna be too short,
meaning that you're gonna have to raise
the lower part of the seatpost
past the minimum insertion mark
to achieve that efficient riding position.
Vice versa, if you're a shorter rider,
don't go choosing a big dropper seatpost
thinking that you're gonna be able to
raise it to an efficient riding position
because it's probably gonna be too much,
meaning that you're not gonna be able to
slam it out of the way or if you do get it up,
you're not gonna be able to get it fully raised
to a fully efficient riding position either.
Basically, when it's fully raised,
you just need that seat to be in the right position.
You don't wanna be stretched out on your bike.
If it's a little bit too low, obviously you can raise it.
There's a few bits of adjustments you can do
on the lower part of the seatpost.
But yeah, it's really important not to choose
too little or too much.
(relaxed hip hop music)
So when it comes to mounting
the release lever for the seatpost,
it's really important to get that
in a really nice, efficient, comfortable position.
I tend to run one under my left hand grip,
underneath the back brake, just a thumb's easy reach.
Sometimes you might struggle if you're running
a front derailleur or one of the bigger power modules.
Changing modules, like the Shimano E8000 trigger shifter,
can mean that a dropper seatpost
is gonna be a bit out of reach sometimes.
But don't compromise any brakes or anythings like that.
You want it in a nice, comfortable position,
but not sacrificing any grip.
(relaxed hip hop music)
So to use a dropper seatpost is really simple.
This thumb-mounted lever, all you do is depress the lever
whilst combining your weight on the saddle to drop it.
And once that saddle's down and out of the way,
you literally let go of the lever
and the seat's gonna stay there,
nicely out of the way when you wanna ride technical terrain.
Once you come to somewhere you wanna put the seat up,
all you do is take your weight off of the saddle,
press the thumb lever on it again,
and that saddle's gonna raise
back to an efficient riding position.
Don't forget that it's infinitely adjustable
so if you want it halfway up, if you just press the lever
and release it, it's gonna stay halfway up.
You can just move it little, tiny increments
the whole way up to suit position that's suitable for you.
So there you go.
I really hope you've enjoyed today's video
on how to get the most out of your dropper post
out on the trails.
I can assure you, if you learn how to use this thing,
it's gonna reap massive benefits
for flow and keeping your speed out on the trails.
If you've enjoyed today's video,
be sure to check out Beginner Skills On An E-Bike.
That's a cool video we did recently.
Check that one out up here.
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