# Finger pain (I think in tendons) while riding DH



## DownhillRipper15 (Jul 23, 2015)

Hey everyone, I am having a pretty serious problem in my opinion. And I need all the help I can get. So basically ever since I started riding dh at my local bike park, whenever I ride there is an unbearable internal pain which i believe is located in the tendons, in my fingers. When I say unbearable, I mean that the pain is so bad that during the run I need to pull over. Now I have done almost everything that I thought would help, switching to more cushiony grips, new gloves, hand strength excersises, even taking a week long break from riding. After the first run, my hands are screaming. Now I have realized that they don't hurt as much when going through rock gardens and going slow And my fork is really working. My bike is very stiff for my weight but has no compression adjustment so I have learned to live with the stiffness. Even someone who is almost 100lbs heavier than me thought my bike was stiff. Could the whole problem be fixed by a softer spring in my fork? This sport is my passion and I would really really appreciate any advice or tips on what to do, PLEASE HELP!! Thanks! 
Ben


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## Gemini2k05 (Apr 19, 2005)

Have you even measured your sag? We have absoutely zero points of reference for giving any advice. You've given no information about your bike, components, setup, body type, age, where you ride, fitness, etc.


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## DownhillRipper15 (Jul 23, 2015)

Gemini2k05 said:


> Have you even measured your sag? We have absoutely zero points of reference for giving any advice. You've given no information about your bike, components, setup, body type, age, where you ride, fitness, etc.


Well no I have not measured my sag, but i will tell you. I ride a 2015 Airborne Toxin Freeride bike with 180mm of suspension. The fork is a Rockshox Domain R 180mm, I am 5'11" and 150lbs and I am 15. I ride only at a bike park, and I am very fit. Tall and skinny but not too much muscle which I am not proud of but i am working on that. Anything else you need to know?


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## DownhillRipper15 (Jul 23, 2015)

Hi, another update, so I just found on my fork that there's a sticker that says it's a firm coil spring. When I went on rockshox website, I found a chart of all of their forks and their spring rates. Remind me of 150 pounds I should be running a Softspring in the domain. So I think I found the problem and the cause of my hand pain hahaha


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## socalrider77 (Sep 1, 2012)

I've had similar hand pain when riding downhill, not sure there's much you can do about it. Although I think the soft spring will help. Rode on a 27.5 glory with the domain 203mm and then ended up switching to a gambler with a boxxer. The domain was not very plush, at all. I would say fix that spring, but other than that I'm not sure how to fix it. If there is a way, I would like to know because I'd like to be able to ride without pain


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## Gemini2k05 (Apr 19, 2005)

DownhillRipper15 said:


> Well no I have not measured my sag, but i will tell you. Anything else you need to know?


Yes the sag, thats the most important part. We can't tell you if its too stiff if you don't tell us what the sag is.


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## DownhillRipper15 (Jul 23, 2015)

Gemini2k05 said:


> Yes the sag, thats the most important part. We can't tell you if its too stiff if you don't tell us what the sag is.


How should I measure it?


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## DownhillRipper15 (Jul 23, 2015)

Gemini2k05 said:


> Yes the sag, thats the most important part. We can't tell you if its too stiff if you don't tell us what the sag is.


Hi again, I searched how to do it, and out of a 180mm fork, the sag is about 18 or 19mm, I'm not sure what that means, but yeah. What do you say to that?


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## torsp (Oct 9, 2012)

I am pretty sure on that fork the only way to adjust sag is to swap out the spring. You want to be around 45-54mm(25-30%) of sag for park riding.


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## DownhillRipper15 (Jul 23, 2015)

torsp said:


> I am pretty sure on that fork the only way to adjust sag is to swap out the spring. You want to be around 45-54mm(25-30%) of sag for park riding.


Oh ok, so the fork is way too stiff for me than. I'm not sure which spring to buy and I can't actually find them anywhere so I'm just gonna take it to my LBS and they will help me out. Thanks so much for your help!


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## Gemini2k05 (Apr 19, 2005)

torsp said:


> I am pretty sure on that fork the only way to adjust sag is to swap out the spring. You want to be around 45-54mm(25-30%) of sag for park riding.


30% is on the high side, more like 20-25%.

You should also meausre your rear shock sag as well. Although that is probably not impacting your hand issues much even if it is a little too stiff.


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## DownhillRipper15 (Jul 23, 2015)

Gemini2k05 said:


> 30% is on the high side, more like 20-25%.
> 
> You should also meausre your rear shock sag as well. Although that is probably not impacting your hand issues much even if it is a little too stiff.


Yeah I will do that one too, it will be harder though because I don't have any O ring on it, but on the topic of the fork, how do I fix that, just with a softer spring? Because I'm guessing 19mm is wayyyyy too stiff


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## charging_rhinos (Jul 29, 2008)

Sounds like you're on the right track with suspension spring weights and sag. Suspension setup is extremely important, both for the front and rear. 

Another possible contributor to your pain could be that you're death gripping the bars a bit. That happened to me in Vancouver. I was a bit nervous (ok maybe a LOT nervous, that terrain is nuts!), so I was unconsciously gripping the bars really hard. Within half an hour, it was hard to open and close my hands. Once I got down to the easier stuff, I relaxed and stretched them out a bit, and things were a lot better.


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## SHIVER ME TIMBERS (Jan 12, 2004)

is it single finger or all fingers....is it certain fingers??

probably death grip and take your bike to a shop...they will measure your sag for you for free


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## twd953 (Aug 21, 2008)

Too stiff suspension + death grip is likely the cause....but you might be putting too much weight on your hands relative to your feet as well (which often contributes to death grip). You want to be heavier on the feet and lighter on the hands. 

Working on technique is essentially free. Line choice is also really important. You can start on that right away before the suspension gets dialed. Just because the main line is full of holes and braking bumps, doesn’t mean that is the line you have to take or even that it is the best line. Also, consider where you brake on the trail. It is very hard to keep a loose grip when you’re clamping down on the brakes, and being on the brakes can stiffen your suspension as well. Look for smoother spots or lines to stay out of the braking bumps and scrub speed so that you can get off the brakes and let the bike roll on the nasty rough bits you can’t avoid, which will let you loosen your grip and lets the suspension do its thing.

And a few other setup items to consider is diameter of grips relative to hand size, bar width in relation to shoulder breadth and arm length, and brake lever positioning. 

Playing around with the angle of brake levers can be important. How far inboard of the grips and the downward angle of the levers can lead to some unnatural wrist angles that can cause issues. Lever position shouldn't require you to turn your wrists too far inward or outward, or require you to roll your wrist too far forward or back (think twisting a throttle). Also adjust the reach of the lever if your levers have an adjustment for that. Small hands and long reach can easily lead to tendon soreness in your braking fingers. 

Bars that are too wide for the rider can also lead to awkward wrist angles. Cutting them down is cheap/easy, but slide your grips and levers in to see if it makes a difference before you cut, since once you cut them, you can't make them wide again. Judging by your height, I doubt this is your issue, but height alone doesn’t always tell the whole story.

Changing grips is a relatively cheap option to try as well.

Do some experimenting, changing one thing at a time and keep working on loosening the grip and riding light on the hands/heavier on the feet.


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## zaner (Oct 15, 2012)

I am tall and skinny I get pain right in the muscles of the fingers, right in the muscle/tendons. I got a hand strengthener it has helped make my fingers stronger.
I tried carbon bars and all that stuff it doesn't matter.
Build your hand strength and wrists, by hanging slightly from a pull up bar and get a hand exercise thing.


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## DownhillRipper15 (Jul 23, 2015)

SHIVER ME TIMBERS said:


> is it single finger or all fingers....is it certain fingers??
> 
> probably death grip and take your bike to a shop...they will measure your sag for you for free


Hey! Yeah I did bring my bike to a shop and they called rockshox and we ordered a medium spring, and I am going to get esi foam grips that they strongly recommended, they knew right away that my suspension was waayyyyyyy to stiff for me and knew exactly how to fix it, thanks for your help and advice!


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## DownhillRipper15 (Jul 23, 2015)

twd953 said:


> Too stiff suspension + death grip is likely the cause....but you might be putting too much weight on your hands relative to your feet as well (which often contributes to death grip). You want to be heavier on the feet and lighter on the hands.
> 
> Working on technique is essentially free. Line choice is also really important. You can start on that right away before the suspension gets dialed. Just because the main line is full of holes and braking bumps, doesn't mean that is the line you have to take or even that it is the best line. Also, consider where you brake on the trail. It is very hard to keep a loose grip when you're clamping down on the brakes, and being on the brakes can stiffen your suspension as well. Look for smoother spots or lines to stay out of the braking bumps and scrub speed so that you can get off the brakes and let the bike roll on the nasty rough bits you can't avoid, which will let you loosen your grip and lets the suspension do its thing.
> 
> ...


Thanks so much for your help! I got a softer spring ordered for me and I am getting foam grips that were strongly recommended to me by my LBS


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## DownhillRipper15 (Jul 23, 2015)

zaner said:


> I am tall and skinny I get pain right in the muscles of the fingers, right in the muscle/tendons. I got a hand strengthener it has helped make my fingers stronger.
> I tried carbon bars and all that stuff it doesn't matter.
> Build your hand strength and wrists, by hanging slightly from a pull up bar and get a hand exercise thing.


I will definitely do that too! I have a hand strengthened that I use and it has helped, I will try that pull up bar excersise too! Thanks so much


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## GoingNowhere (Oct 15, 2014)

charging_rhinos said:


> Another possible contributor to your pain could be that you're death gripping the bars a bit.


I was going to suggest the death grip as well. One of the toughest things I try to teach new riders is not to death grip while rolling downhill. I'd also measure your grip width. For me, putting a slightly thinner grip on helped me not death grip my DH rig when I rode. When I say thinner I mean it was a matter of 2MM but it was a HUGE difference as far as how the grips felt in my hand. I also have small hands.


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## Gemini2k05 (Apr 19, 2005)

Good job on the softer spring. Foam grips might not be a cure all. The ideal grips depends largely on your hand shape and size (and gloves style, etc.). You might have to play around with a few different styles to see what works. Luckily grips aren't TOO expensive.


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## Deerhill (Dec 21, 2009)

You might want your fingers to wrap around the grip most if not all the way.. too thick will waste your strength in short time


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## TheRage43 (Jul 19, 2012)

Suspension as mentioned. Death Grip as mentioned (make a conscience effort to relax your hands, reset your grip, move your hands around). 

Lastly that has not been mentioned is brake lever and shifter positioning. While standing on your bike in your "attack position", re-position your levers and shifter(s) so that you do not have to turn your grip to reach them. Basically, you want them in a location that is the most comfortable to reach and use. If you have to reach too far, or if you have to rotate your grip one way or the other to use brakes or shift, you are causing undue stress to your limbs. Just like in a car, get into your riding position and have everything as comfortable as possible. Any sort of discomfort in your attack position will turn into excessive pain after hitting some bumps. 

If you can't figure this out on your own, take your bike into a shop or talk to some vets at your local park. There is a lot of science behind being comfortable on your bike and how it relates to wear and tear on your body.


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