In an effort to improve my steeze rating, I decided to dedicate this evening to learning to manual. After about an hour and a half of practicing, I felt that I made a noticeable improvement, but I still came home feeling very much defeated (and with blisters on my hands). I’d say that I went from being able to keep the wheel up for about 2 secs to 3-4 secs tops. Thinking about it, that’s a 100% improvement! Self-congratulations aside, how long did it take you to go from no skill to MacAskill?

Can you wheelie perfectly and for as long as you like? That’s how I learned. Once you nail wheelies you get a feel for the balance point and I could just pull up and sit in it. Pretty hard to describe really.

This is the teenage me I’m talking about here. I’m useless at it now but then I don’t ride every single day anymore either.

38 years and counting

I managed to get the wheel up nicely coming down a fire road recently, nearly looped out and scared myself. Now I can barely get it off the ground again.

This ^^^^^^

So 48 years an counting

34 and cou…

I can only do either for a few seconds and by accident, so 40 years and counting

OP I learnt in a summer during uny around 15 years ago , so approx six weeks . That was probably half an hour a day, probably every day. I may have been stoned at the time too, which possibly helped or hindered my progress. I think like with many things you have to practice consistently . You’ll get it!

An entire summer when I was 15/16. I got good, I am now not so good.

I seem to remember two strained arms/shoulders and a very sore back being the result though.

I can’t do a Danny Mac down the road, but can reliably and accurately get front wheel up on the trail when needed, for enough time to land rear wheel first or pump obstacle.

Are you using your hips to lift the front wheel?

I am completely useless at manuals, last time I tried some dedicated practice in a carpark, I looped out the back but managed to land on my feet..the bike spin through and absolutely mullered my calf resulting in a lump the size of an orange, the calf turning yellow, I could hardly walk for 2 weeks.

43 years and counting

It would be a useful skill. On my way to work I have a set of 4 steps that I can just ride straight up at speed if I’m on a full sus.
On my fatty though you have to be going just the right speed . Too fast you get bounced into orbit ,too slow you won’t make it. Was thinking about buying suspension forks maybe I will try to learn some skills.

I switched from BMX to MTB last year, could manual the BMX like it was nothing for miles, cant manual or wheelie the MTB for love nor money!

I need to hang off the back more and use the brake instead of keep the front wheel low and pump with legs, but it just isnt clicking at the moment!

My kid’s learning to wheelie at the moment. Let a nipper mate of his ride his bike and he pops a big wheelie straight away. You’ve either got it or you haven’t! Or it takes some a lot more practice than others… I’ve never got it.
I think that slight fear of going over the back makes you stop doing the right thing before you ever get to the balance point, then the front wheel just plops itself back down again. That’s what it feels like to me anyway.
Knowing what to do isn’t enough! Your brain and body have to let you!

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l0Qy8iEc-dQ[/video]

You’ve either got it or you haven’t!

I’m not being hectic but that simply isn’t true. It’s practice.

It is not advice on the internet or youtube videos (although these can be quite useful I guess) or skills courses. It is an investment of time.

If you commit regular periods of time to learning it you will get it. If you don’t, you won’t.

I’ve recently learned to trackstand… Was rubbish, rubbish, rubbish then it suddenly clicked.
Hoping the wheelie will come that way too, as I’ve been stuck in the rubbish phase for years (do need to practice it more though!)

Thanks for all your responses.

I don’t have a problem getting the front wheel up – that bit I find easy.

It’s finding (and holding) the balance point that I find tricky.

What I found helped though, was getting my arse down low and well over the back wheel. Makes sense to keep you centre of gravity as low as possible.

Another thing I found helped, was getting the front wheel up smoothly, rather than doing a massive pump which gets you off to a shaky start.

Perhaps I should try practicing on flats – I think there’s probably a bit of mental block at the back of my mind, which keeps me on the low side of the balance point when I’m clipped in.

I think that slight fear of going over the back makes you stop doing the right thing before you ever get to the balance point

this, for me. I bought a BMX in part to help learn manuals. Getting the front end up a few inches is easy, but it doesn’t reach the balance point. Give it a big push with the legs/hips, it comes right up, have to bail off the back then get scared and go do something else lol. Will keep trying, but definitely something to learn when you’re a kid I reckon!

You’ve either got it or you haven’t!

I’m not being hectic but that simply isn’t true. It’s practice

Full quote:

You’ve either got it or you haven’t! Or it takes some a lot more practice than others..
But thanks for repeating it.

Thats the trouble as you get older, what time you do have for the bike is often limited, so I suppose the question is, do I want to go for a decent ride or do I want to practice manuals?
Sadly for my skills its the former.

this is pretty good

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3RGHQMCWCsc[/video]

I managed to do my first proper manual on the way home from Robbos in Morzine last week.

The key I discovered is to be absolutely smashed on Mutzig so you have no fear.

I haven’t been able to repeat it since 🙁

Sorry , I said I wasn’t trying to be hectic DezB!

Coolbeanz yes definitely learn with flats. As said an hour and a half isn’t it enough time, I’d be utterly amazed if someone got it that quick. good riders are good for a reason! Keep up the good work!

The key I discovered is to be absolutely smashed on Mutzig so you have no fear.

Will pass the tip on to the 14 year old! 😆

I said I wasn’t trying to be hectic
Dunno wot dat meenz! 😉

this is pretty good

Except it makes me want a wee!

Get some flats and learn to push through with your hips rather than trying to do it using arms. Keep your arms straight and think about where your bum is to get an idea of the movements needed.

I can’t even wheelie any more, in fact I can barely bunny hop.

Back in the day when I first started biking, bikes seemed to be much easier to get the front wheel off the ground. I remember we use to set up ‘high jumps’ to bubby hop over, i could clear about a foot on my old rigid MTB.

Nowadays I doubt I could clear a curb.

Knowing what to do isn’t enough! Your brain and body have to let you!

This is pretty much it for me. Well that and being older 🙂

I know what to do in theory. I also know that I can lift the wheel as high as I need to in practice because I’ve gone far enough to loop out and land on my arse three times. But the last time hurt and now there is that little switch in the back of my mind that seems to prevent me from committing. When I was younger I could just turn that switch off, but now it would take drugs 🙂

It is something that I’ve been working on a bit recently but funnily enough I find it almost impossible if I go out to practice it i.e. find a nice flat bit of ground etc. It’s much more likely to happen if I’m just flowing down a bit of trail without a care in the world and just decide to pop over something for a laugh.

It’s encouraging to hear that so many people struggle with it though. I used to think that it was a skill I’d have to get before being able to ride anything beyond a red route. But I see so many people who can ride stuff way above my level but still can’t hold a manual.

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ls3ZdC2jN40[/video]

I too struggle with the commitment side of getting your weight far enough back.. the above looks like a good way to get over that!

Proper “manualling” is like the fabled keepy uppy we did as kids. Getting the front wheel off the ground for 2 seconds is like doing 10 keepy ups. That was my limit then, as is probably my limit now. Still, I was good at “proper” football, not the showmanship shit. And I enjoy “just” riding my bike(s).

I look at videos of riders doing all this stuff and really can’t figure out how they make it look easy. Sure, they put the practice in. I don’t. I also know that doing a 3 second manual on flat counts for nothing when trying the same on a 1ft drop.

I’ll keep trying and maybe one day I’ll get there.

Started trying 2 years ago, but I get bored too easily.
After 5 mins I just think F* it and go back to pedalling since i find that much more fun that screwing around.

Since its all about weight transfer, weighing next to nothing certainly doesn’t help, especially on bikes with heavier front ends.

oh wow frogstomp that video is awful! comedy gold!

I learnt to Wheelie at around 13-14 and can still wheelie for miles to this day (almost 30 years later)
Manuals tho… not a chance, i try every single damned ride and still can’t do it for more than 3-4 seconds. even that is once in a blue moon.

I too struggle with the commitment side of getting your weight far enough back.. the above looks like a good way to get over that!

Funnily enough I have tried sticking my bike in the turbo (back when I had a bike with QR) and I ended up doing exactly the same as the guy in the video. I could lift the bike up as high as I wanted by pointing my toes, standing tall and never shifting my weight back too far i.e. the opposite of what you need to do when you are actually riding the bike 🙂 It must be something to do with the rear wheel being fixed that just seems to require a totally different technique to the one you actually want to perfect.

^^^ he’s just yanking up on the bars without really moving his bodyweight back. Actually looks more similar to the technique when you see someone do a massive bunnyhop!

Whilst that video is pretty dire, it could be a useful starting point in actually finding your balance point without looping off the back….

This thread inspired me on my commute home today. The results didn’t.