Could do with a few pointers on how to jump my bike on the trails. What position should I be in? Should I pull up on the bars, weight back?
At the moment it seems a little random, sometimes I land nicely, sometimes I land on the front wheel.
Study vids of the pros to give you pointers. Start small, build jumps that you are confident to hit and build them up a little bigger as you go along. It'll help a lot if your bikes geo is good for jumping.
Lie the bike on the ground. Take 20 steps back, run like hell then at the last minute jump it.... easy... 🙂
I always nose bonk. Not being able to handle kickers is holding me back now.
learn from your mistakes
[url= http://en.sevenload.com/videos/toOEEUK-Trixionary-with-Jay-Hoots ]this never helped me at all[/url]
pump the lip
learn to pump first, much more valuable skill, and its quicker than jumping (sometimes). The folowing aplies to a BMX type jump/track where the inbetween bit is easily rollable and the whole lot looks like cammel humps rather than two big triangle of dirt. Learning it this way is like walking before you can run. You get the basics right then the jumping bit comes easier and a whole lot less scary.
Go at a slow jogging pace, as you aproach the transition, get you bodweight netral ovet the bike, then as the frot wheel starts to rise push the bike forewards up the slope, then as the back wheel begins to rise suck it up and push the front wheel over the top of the obstacle and down the other side. Keep sucking the back wheel up untill it reaches the peak then realy heave it down the slope.
Then repeet for the landing bit.
The timing should be right for you to be doing it all in one fluid movement. Obviously if its a tabletop then the middle bit is a pause between bushing the front wheel forewards over the top and sucking the back up, then pushing the front over the other side before following through with the rear wheel.
You'll know when youve got it because you' suddenly be going faster than those anoyingly tallented 8 year olds at the bmx track!!!
Next step is manualying the doubles. Go faster, a brisk jog, but instead of pushing the front down the other side and sicking up, only suck up enough to keep the front end high, then as your back wheel crsts the rise, push down hard to pump it with just the back wheel. CAREFULL NOT TO LOOP OUT! Then let the back wheel come up to you over the landing and put the front wheel down the other side. before pumping the downslope a before.
Now for jumping (this is where i struggle) go faster and faster untill you feel the back wheel eaving the ground, then its ust a case of learning how fast it needs to be for the back wheel to be clearing the top of the landing, aim to be bringking the front down at the same time initialy, then as you get better nose first.
on second thoughts, just watch that jay hoots vid, its pretty much what i said.
My way may be better if you realy hav eno ides how to push/pump the bike though a set of jumps first.
If you can bunnyhop properly and are half decent on a bike then you should be ok jumping regular jumps/mounds you find on your xc trails. Just stay relaxed and you'll be fine.
If you want to learn how to jump proper jumps then you'll need to get a suitable bike and practice alot.
you cant learn to jump from reading.
find some easy tables, and hit them again and again and again until its smooth.
then find some bigger ones.
Thanks guys, useful stuff. Not interested in hitting the dirt jumps, just jumping better on the trail, and landing properly.
Take it by surprise 😉
Just be aware, confident with jumps myself, theres always one barsteward that will hurt you...