Doing Drop Offs

[manual63]

Now that there is a Drop Off in the new XX Loop at Lebanon, I figure I can give some advice here too.

When I first approached it, I didn't know it was there and I was going very slow. Drop Offs are very hard to do at slow speed. Since I do trials and drop ins on ramps, I knew what to do. At low speed, you need to have both pedals level to the ground as you approach the drop. When your front tire is about 2 feet from the edge, you need to quickly back pedal your cranks so your front foot and crank is about 45 degrees (1/8 th a rotation backwards) or so angled from the ground. This will give you extra power and pressure on the crank for the next step. Then you crank forward very hard as you pull up on the front end of your bike. You should be able to get one full crank cycle in so your correct front foot is forward for landing. By pulling the front wheel up and cranking hard (don't be in a very low gear), you should be able to ride off the edge on your rear wheel with your front wheel up in a wheelie position. Now you just ride off and fall to the ground on your rear wheel first. Allow your knees to bend and absorb the landing and allow your front wheel to come down after the rear wheel. You should lean back a little, but not too far. If you lean back too far when you drop, you could loop out and fall off the back of your bike. It is best to practice this off of a curb a bunch before you try it off of the Drop at Lebanon or on anything else, like a table, for that matter.

It is much easier to do a drop at a faster speed. Basically, it's the same as above, but you don't really need to back pedal to get the thrust. All you do is ride off the drop fast, make sure your pedals are level. As your front wheel is about to go off the drop, pull up hard on the bars and allow the bike of roll off in a wheelie position. Then land your rear wheel first. The faster your are going, the easier the landing is on you. It may seem weird, but the faster you go, the less of an angle of drop you make, which makes for an easier landing.

Words of warning to anyone. This is dangerous and the biggest mistake you can make is doing an endo (fliping over forward) off the drop. This happens when you do not have enough force to keep the front wheel up off of the drop. If you endo, plan to break a collar bone or something major. I don't recommend having clipless when learning to do this, as you can not bail as qucikly.

Another word of caution. Most cranks have the square fitting and can not handle much abuse like this type of drop. Keep in mind that you may do bike damage on mountain bikes that are not built for this type of riding. Also, handlebars and stems are not designed very well for this stuff on most bikes. I have broken and bent many bars and stems doing this stuff and the resulting crash hurts. Be careful dudes and dudettes.

[gopherhockey]

Nice, thanks for posting that.

I'd also suggest people practice on smaller drops. There is already one in the first section of Intermediate loop. People could practice landing correctly rather than just riding it and dropping the front wheel first (which is "ok" on that one because it is small)

There is another small drop on the xx loop near the exit of the trail. It is just a single rock drop, but you can practice the same thing here. Careful though, there is a rock garden just a few bike lengths after this one. It is also very well hidden - my guess is some people ride off it without even seeing it the first time.. hehe

Anyway, if you can apply this technique to the smaller ones, then try the larger one.

There is a ride-around on the right side of the double log drop for those that don't want to do the drop or just don't feel like doing it. I can ride it, but sometimes I just prefer not to stress my bike out and take the easy way out.

[Trevize1138]

Originally posted by gopherhockey

There is a ride-around on the right side of the double log drop for those that don't want to do the drop or just don't feel like doing it. I can ride it, but sometimes I just prefer not to stress my bike out and take the easy way out.

I think the structural integrity of my bike has been compromised just by my READING about this! :confused:

[martini]

that weak any longer. Really. They're made of some pretty sweet materials, and most of us have suspension forks and/or rears to help in this matter. I've been abusing my rigid bikes for years with out a hitch. I'd be more concerned about bodily harm that anything else!

just ride it!

[zerpy]

HEhehehehe....And I think it is cool that I rode down a flight of stairs without killing myself....:)

[ice ice baby]

Strap on your steel balls, lean back, and go for it.:banana:

[legoshoe]

A few years back, I sold a Schwinn Sidewinder (ahhh the glory days of Schwinn) to someone. Well anyways, it was a rigid bike and was in great shape when sold. About a week later the guy calls and went off on me because he snapped the steel frame. I asked what kind of riding he did and he was like 'well, I only take it off some small jumps.' It would take some pretty big drops to snap a frame in two, wouldn't it?:laugh:

[manual63]

Maybe not a Schwinn Sidewinder..........

[Trevize1138]

I was thinking of taking my '82 Sidewinder 10 spd, 40 lb All-Terrain Bike to Lebannon just on a lark. :crazy:

Prolly shouldn't, though ... that bike's gonna be a classic someday! Unfortunately, it's not in as good shape as this beauty:

http://www.firstflightbikes.com/1982_Sidewinder.htm

http://www.firstflightbikes.com/Sidewinder.JPG

[SilverAthlon]

I disagree, i rode all last year on my 92 schwinn sidewinder, with less crashes than this year. i've even ridden more last year, and harder. I was in better shape, this year im still coming out of a skiing incident where i broke my pelvis at afton alps this past season.... I think that it is an excellent ride... the brakes need a little bit of help, but who cares. good times!!

[manual63]

I notice a lot of riders like to land both wheels at the same time on the drop off in the XX Loop at Leb. It's a lot easier on your bike, fork, and body if you learn to land rear wheel first. Just pull harder on the front and after your rear wheel leaves the log, push it down with your legs, by extanding them, before your front wheel hits. It will break the fall better and will be much smoother.

[Trevize1138]

Originally posted by SilverAthlon
I disagree, i rode all last year on my 92 schwinn sidewinder, with less crashes than this year. i've even ridden more last year, and harder. I was in better shape, this year im still coming out of a skiing incident where i broke my pelvis at afton alps this past season.... I think that it is an excellent ride... the brakes need a little bit of help, but who cares. good times!!

The difference between your '92 Sidewinder and my '82 Sidewinder is the difference between the Space Shuttle and the Wright Bros. plane. ;)

[pwpatton]

Shad, 1 comment, 1 questions:

I found that landing both wheels on this drop works very well. I guess I have not really tried comparing the 2 but I have landed on my rear wheel first. I recently switched to landing both wheels simoultaneously (sp) and like it. I'm going to leb today so I'm going to try both now.

I have fairly decent equipment and a splined BB. How good of equipment do you need? DH stuff or will decent to high end XC equipment do?

I'm running a Giant composites stem (came with my NRS) and easton EA70 riser bars. Is this equipment poor for doing drops?

The reason I ask is I'm thinking about doing some urban riding and looking for bigger drops. I get a high out it.

Phillip

[Kingbozo]

The way I have approached drops in the past is to essentially "bunny hop" off of them. I usually end up landing on both wheels. Obviously this would work best when you have some momentum going. At slower speeds I can see how the technique that Shad detailed below would be better.

[manual63]

I always land rear wheel first on flat landings. The only time I will land both wheels or even front wheel first is when the landing is sloped downwards. I call it downsiding like when I land on the downside of the table.

Speed is not the issue, it's human suspension. When landing rear wheel first, your legs are extended, I showed this last sunday when I was teaching the beginners. After my rear wheel leaves the drop, I push it down with my legs and keep the front end up by pulling up on the bars and holding them there. As the bike falls, I let the rear wheel land first and them allow my legs to take up the compression. I can do it so well, you don't even hear my chain slap sometimes.

Landing both wheels at the same time on a flat landing is always harsher than landing rear wheel first. Sure, you can let the fork take the abuse, but why? Also, landing both wheels at the same time can cause less control and instability while steering. The little drop in the XX-Loop isn't such a big deal, but if you are gonna go urban and go big, learn to land rear wheel first on flat landings.

If you go urban, drops are more fun if you find a downsided landing, such as a landing down a hill off something. It feels really cool and is smoother. I don't always see the point in doing big huge flat drops off loading docks. Theres not much skill and it's just harsh. Find good gaps with downsides, and it will be more challenging and fun.

If you guys ever want to get together and see some examples, let me know.

[manual63]

Originally posted by Kingbozo
The way I have approached drops in the past is to essentially "bunny hop" off of them. I usually end up landing on both wheels. Obviously this would work best when you have some momentum going. At slower speeds I can see how the technique that Shad detailed below would be better.

I don't bunny hop off of drops unless there is something to gap or hop over, usually during urban riding. By bunnyhopping, you are adding more drop and causing a harder landing. If you can just ride off a drop, then that's the best way in my opinion.

[gopherhockey]

Interesting. I see sooo many people land front wheel first even over the smallest drop. (like the small one in the intermediate loop)

I have always tried to land on both just liking how it felt more than anything. I'll have to try landing rear first now and see what that gives me.

Would you give this same advice to FS and non FS bikes?

[manual63]

Yes, but on an FS bike it's hard to feel it because the suspension makes it harder for you to know when your rear wheel touches down. To practice, just ride off a curb using the same techniques I described. It's safer and you will learn quicker. Pull up front wheel before you go off the curb and hold it up to allow your legs to push down the rear wheel first once it leaves the curb. You will know when you have it right. Then take it to the XX baby!!!!

[Kingbozo]

Originally posted by manual63
I don't bunny hop off of drops unless there is something to gap or hop over, usually during urban riding. By bunnyhopping, you are adding more drop and causing a harder landing. If you can just ride off a drop, then that's the best way in my opinion.

Good point, but I'm not hopping like I am clearing a big log or anything-it is just how I have been keeping the bike from going nose down. Incidentely, my first drops were done in downtown mpls., not on a trail.

[Kingbozo]

Yes, but on an FS bike it's hard to feel it because the suspension makes it harder for you to know when your rear wheel touches down.

Isn't that the idea? ;)

[manual63]

Originally posted by Kingbozo
Isn't that the idea? ;)

Not for me, I like to feel the bike. It's weird, but after riding BMX all my life, I don't like to ride on clouds, it just don't seem to have the control and feel of a hard tail. I know I said this before, but it took me a ling time to get used to front suspension.

[KleinCrazy]

I'll drop in now,

I have Both a Full and a HT Single.

On my FS Adept I tend to do most drop offs to flats landing both wheels at once. For some reason it just feels more comfortable like that. The Suspension soaks up the compresion evenly. I have found that if not done just right, or if your shock is set up stiff with a quick rebound, like mine is, landing on the back tire first can almost turn into a catapult launch when the front wheel comes down and the rear shock unwieghts. If done correctly it isn't to bad and with proper body position it works ok but all that extra movment seems to rob alot of momentum.

On the HT Single I ALWAYS land rear wheel first, usually with the front at least 10 inches in the air in much the same body position that Shad promotes. With a big rear tire and lower air pressure and the claimed stiffest rear triangle in the bike industry, I need everything I can to make the landings soft. I have used this technicue almost without thought now. When approaching the drop as the front wheel is about to go over I stand up hard on the bike and lift slightly with arms. gives the bike a nice approaching 45 degree angle as it drops, when the rear hits I let my legs relax and drop my ass towards the rear of the seat, if it is a downhill landing or a very large drop 3+ feet I will be behind the seat. I have found that if you have the weight to far forward on landing when the front wheel comes down steering can get pretty squirly. If done right your front will almost not compress when it comes down. All you have to do is start to pedal and the torque on the rear will almost pull the front down ( as long as you don't really jam down on the pedals)

If anyone want a demo, I'll be riding the single at Leb tonight around 5:30. Maybe Shad can show and tell me if I am doing anything wrong.

[manual63]

Your description sounds really good and accurate. I will be there either Saturday or Sunday this weekend. I guess I will post here when I know when and will try to give good warning. If anyone wants to see or learn some stuff, I will be happy to show and tell. I like teaching. Last Sunday I would give pointers and see riders do better. I always get stoked when I can see riders progress, especially when my pointers work for them.

I throw the ego out the window and like to share, life tends to work better that way.......:).

Besides, when people improve, they gain more interest. When people gain more interest, the sport becomes more fun. When the sport is more fun, I have more fun..............you see.....I am selfish.......:).

[pwpatton]

Say it again Brother... Don't be ashamed of your selfeshness to help riders. That's what is great about helping other people, you get something out of it... The sorriest and most unhappy people out there are the ones who never did a damn thing for anyone.

BTW: speaking of drops, I tried both techniques: both wheels landing at the same time and then the rear wheel landing first. I suspected this might be a FS/HT thing. James seems to have verified that with his experience. What I found was landing a FS back tire first felt like a rock slaming into the ground. And I was the rock :shocked:. When I landed both tires simultaneously it felt great; smooth and easy :etard:. I'm building an HT right now so I'm interested in what that will feel like at leb.

Also, I'd like to hook up w/you on sunday if you go riding then. I'm doing my honeydo list on saturday ;). I'll check back on this thread to see when you might be going.

Phillip

[manual63]

Lets plan Sunday after the Game.....so that will be around 4:00 or 4:30. I don't want to be any later than that because it gets dark too quickly now. If the games a dud, or the Vikes play like usual, I will go out there earlier.

I am going to repost this in the group rides section too.

[pwpatton]

Cool, Game taken into account, now all I have to do is find a baby sitter :)

If the vikes stink it up I'll be there early too.

Phillip

[manual63]

Look for the green GTI with the anti-SUV stuff in the back window.....:)...that's me. Oh, and if you drive an SUV, don't worry, John used to and I still liked him........:laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

[Kingbozo]

I have a question-What is the best way to handle a drop that has an obsticle, like a log or a curb, right in front of it?

[pwpatton]

Can you use the obsticle as a jump? If it's smooth enough you could try that. If it's a curb (or curb like) and it cannot be used as a jump I would bunny hop the curb into the drop. I've bunny hopped the drop at lebanon before and it works as well as just pulling up on the bars.

If it's a really big obsticle and you can keep your control I wonder if you could treat the top of the obsticle as you would if it were not there: that is just pull up on the bars when you get to the top (the correct speed might be important).

Where is this obsticle? Sound like fun!!

[Kingbozo]

Where is this obsticle? Sound like fun!!

Just wondering in general. All over the place I notice little places that would make a fun drop, but a lot of them have something screwing up the approach. The worst is landscaping gravel :mad:

[manual63]

Originally posted by Kingbozo
I have a question-What is the best way to handle a drop that has an obsticle, like a log or a curb, right in front of it?

Well, you must bunny hop the obstacle first. The big word of caution here is that your rear wheel must clear the obstacle. If you hit the object with your rear wheel, your front wheel will come down rather quickly and it will be endo time!

There are two ways to bunny hop, discussed here elsewhere. One way is both wheels at the same time, but the better and correct way is front wheel first, then rear wheel. I explain this in the bunny hop tip. You see, if you learn to do the front wheel first, then the rear, you have less distance to clear and more control. This is something I show people and teach when I do classes. Of course, it is a more advanced technique.

When I ride street, as in hardcore BMX or freeride street, there are many gaps, drops, and bunnyhop to downsides or drops. Many of them have parking blocks or curbs in front of them, thus making me have to bunnyhop the object before doing the gap, drop, or downside. Downtown St. Paul has a large 3 step planter thing. It's about 5 ft high and I must clear about 20 ft with a drop. The tricky part is that the top step also has a planter with dirt and plants. Since I like nature, I must bunnyhop about 4 feet before the first step drops. This is the hardest gap + drop I have ever done, but it's a lot of fun. I will only do this one on my freestyle bike, because even a freeride bike is probably not capable of handling the harsh landing. So there is no suspension on the front or rear for me, that is why I talk about using your body as suspension a lot here. I'm not trying to brag, I'm just trying to give you an understanding of why I know how to do these types of things so well. Okay, so I am bragging a little.......:).

[pwpatton]

Bragger... :)

[manual63]

After our River ride today, I was showing Chris how to ride off the curbs in the parking lot. I was showing him how to lean way back and pull on the bars so his front wheel would stay up in the air long enough for his back wheel to land first off the curb. This is good practice and I bet Chris will not be afraid to do the drop in the XX Loop at Leb anymore.

The key is to get your @ss way behind the seat and low. crouch low and hang you butt just above the rear tire and pull up on the bars. Make sure you keep pulling as you ride off the curb and concentrate on keeping you elbows bent. With your weight this far back, you don't have to pull up super hard...that's the trick...and you can just manual off the curb. Go fast enough so that you don't have to keep the front end up forever. You can work on going slower later. Just one safety tip. With your weight so far back and low, you will be surprised how easy it is to get the front wheel up. Don't pull too hard or you will loop it. Also, have one finger on the rear brake lever just in case. If you start to loop out (fall back to far), grab the rear brake to bring the front wheel down in a hurry.

Once you can do it off of curbs, try a little higher, like the log drop at Leb. I see way too many riders nose dive off that drop. Lean back and pull up dudes!

[noise_is_life]

While it is best to have good technique on drops, it is also educational to do it wrong a few times. I have been doing more drops lately, there is a good one at St. Anthony that goes up to 3 feet. I don't always get it right and it is nice to know that if I do land front wheel first that I won't automatically endo. Of course my 5 inch fork is a big part of it.

It also makes me realize that the bigger the drop the more critical it is to get your front wheel up.

There's a 4 footer by my house that I'm trying to get the nerve to do. I'm more concerned about my bike holding up than anything. I guess I need to work on those soft landings.:)

[pwpatton]

One thing I've been practicing lately is doing slow drops of the curb using pedaling torque to keep the front wheel up (and hopefully land both tires at the same time). My cousin used to put his bike on a picnic table and do a drop off it at slow speed with this technique. I think I'll stick to the curbs for now.

On drops one thing that helps me is going fast over them. You only have to do a slight jerk on your handlebars because your momentum is going to help keep you from nose diving (unless your weight is too far forward, then you'll endo).

[manual63]

One thing I've been practicing lately is doing slow drops of the curb using pedaling torque to keep the front wheel up (and hopefully land both tires at the same time). My cousin used to put his bike on a picnic table and do a drop off it at slow speed with this technique. I think I'll stick to the curbs for now.

On drops one thing that helps me is going fast over them. You only have to do a slight jerk on your handlebars because your momentum is going to help keep you from nose diving (unless your weight is too far forward, then you'll endo).
The further you get you butt behind the seat and the lower you are, the easier it is to pull up the front wheel and hold it there.

The pedaling technique is more of a trials move and works in close quarters when you have little to no speed. The tricky part is to have the pedals fairly parallel when you go off the table or drop. You have to back pedal from a parallel position and then kind of stab the pedals forward to pop up the front wheel. Then you just kind of ride off pulling up with your arms like crazy. It's a very advanced move and I don't recommend it for most riders.

You do not need to pedal off of most drops if you have some speed, the lean way back and pull on the bars technique will do the trick just fine and make sure your cranks are parallel to the ground when you go off the drop.

[Trevize1138]

Shad gave me some more tips on this after riding the river trail last night. I practiced dropping off the curbs at the parking lot by the ferry bridge. The real key DOES seem to be in getting your weight back on the bike. That way, you don't even need to pedal as you go off the curb, and landing soft just sorta comes naturally.

You just get back far enough so the saddle is behind your knees and you've got all sorts of play in the front end. The front wheel comes up and just stays there with minimal effort, and then the back wheel just dropps off and lands easy!

Pretty cool stuff. Then Shad had to be a showoff by planting his front tire on the top of the parking curb/island thing, rotating 180 degrees and landing his rear tire on the street, rolling back then pedaling away ...

[manual63]

Pretty cool stuff. Then Shad had to be a showoff by planting his front tire on the top of the parking curb/island thing, rotating 180 degrees and landing his rear tire on the street, rolling back then pedaling away ...Yeah.....it's called a nose bonk 180 dohicky majiggy. And yeah, I heard some other riders saying something about us showing off.......ha ha.....they can't do it or they wouldn't make fun of me.......:D.

By the way, Chris is one of the fastest learners I know. I just show him something and he does it........wow.....that's pretty cool. You get rep points for that.

[fisherbikefreak]

I need some lessons. If I could manual off a drop I wouldn't be gimped up this week from two seperate crashes over the weekend. I can hardly bend my wrist and my thumb, well that's just an ugly shad of purple.

Injuries just go with the sport I guess. They also persuade me to think I don't know as much as I think I do about riding! Time for some outside coaching.

How about it? After I heal of course.

[manual63]

well that's just an ugly shad of purple.
:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: Really LMAO :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

Did you mean to say that?

Sure, anytime you want lessons....I am game. I like teaching. You can either pay me or take me to the bar for a couple of beers afterwards.......J/K.

[fisherbikefreak]

Um, yeah I meant to say that! I got a chuckle out of it when I caught it also. Payment in beer is always my preference. I'll pm you when I have some free time.

Thanks man.;)

[BADEXPRESSO]

Everytime I "drop" errr. fall off the logs at Leb, I seem to ride my front wheel for 20-30 feet, then place my back wheel down to the ground, that way I am always concentrating on whats in front of me. This year I will have to try and actually do the drop the correct way and not the front wheelie way.

[manual63]

Everytime I "drop" errr. fall off the logs at Leb, I seem to ride my front wheel for 20-30 feet, then place my back wheel down to the ground, that way I am always concentrating on whats in front of me. This year I will have to try and actually do the drop the correct way and not the front wheelie way.
I see a lot of riders do this. It's almost as scary to watch as it is to do.....:shocked:.

[BADEXPRESSO]

all of my riding buddies seem to get a kick out of it everytime It happens. I suppose it won't be so funny when I do actually fall off the bike.

[Kingbozo]

all of my riding buddies seem to get a kick out of it everytime It happens. I suppose it won't be so funny when I do actually fall off the bike.
That is when it gets really funny.

[geeze]

BADEXPRESSO,We were laughing with you, really! Although admittedly, I have never seen anyone ride a endo/nosewheelie such a distance right after dropping off 3 feet.
Man I thought you were gonna plant so hard your head was gonna sprout roots.
Yea, umm, we are ridden leb tomorrow, right?
See you there.

[homebrewbiker]

One thing I've been practicing lately is doing slow drops of the curb using pedaling torque to keep the front wheel up (and hopefully land both tires at the same time). My cousin used to put his bike on a picnic table and do a drop off it at slow speed with this technique. I think I'll stick to the curbs for now.

On drops one thing that helps me is going fast over them. You only have to do a slight jerk on your handlebars because your momentum is going to help keep you from nose diving (unless your weight is too far forward, then you'll endo).
I admit I have never tried this on big dropoffs. But going off of curbs I usually crank down on the suspension (i have a full suspension bike) and kind of jump off of them. At the same time I am pulling up on the front so as to either land with both wheels or with the back wheel first. It works well on 1, maybe 2 foot curbs though. Also depends on having a pretty good landing pad in front of you. Also pedals need to be parallel.

[manual63]

I admit I have never tried this on big dropoffs. But going off of curbs I usually crank down on the suspension (i have a full suspension bike) and kind of jump off of them. At the same time I am pulling up on the front so as to either land with both wheels or with the back wheel first. It works well on 1, maybe 2 foot curbs though. Also depends on having a pretty good landing pad in front of you. Also pedals need to be parallel.
I have seen full suspension riders use the suspension to so call preload a bunnyhop or whatever. Two issues with this. One, it's nearly impossible to be consistant because you never know how the suspension is going to react. If the terrain has already partially compressed it...the results will be different. Two, hopping both wheels at the same time makes the distance you have to clear longer than it should be because you have to travel the whole wheel base of the bike plus the needed clearing distance.

It may be a little harder to learn, but removing the clipless pedals and learning to pull the front wheel, then the rear in a proper bunnyhop.....will make your hopping life much more controlled and better.

In your case, you don't need to hop to go off a drop, all you have to do is lean back and pull up on the bars wheelie style.

[pwpatton]

I still say the torque drop (that's what I call it anyway) is the way to go (for low speed drops anyway). It's really easy once you get the hang of it but it does take some practice. What I do is make sure I'm in a gear that will produce enough torque to pull the wheel up when pedaling firmly on the crank. And just before the drop I put my right crank arm at the top of the stroke. Just when my front wheel gets to the drop I torque on the crank with my right leg enough to lift the front wheel up all the way through the drop until my rear wheel falls off the drop. It's great fun.

If I'm going fast however I just pull up on the front wheel a tad. Very easy but not as much fun as a torque drop.

[berrywise]

Fore a demonstration of this download my latest video of the teeter totter at Leb. I do a slow speed "wheelie drop" off the end of the teeter for its and giggles.

-scott


I still say the torque drop (that's what I call it anyway) is the way to go (for low speed drops anyway). It's really easy once you get the hang of it but it does take some practice. What I do is make sure I'm in a gear that will produce enough torque to pull the wheel up when pedaling firmly on the crank. And just before the drop I put my right crank arm at the top of the stroke. Just when my front wheel gets to the drop I torque on the crank with my right leg enough to lift the front wheel up all the way through the drop until my rear wheel falls off the drop. It's great fun.

If I'm going fast however I just pull up on the front wheel a tad. Very easy but not as much fun as a torque drop.

[homebrewbiker]

I have seen full suspension riders use the suspension to so call preload a bunnyhop or whatever. Two issues with this. One, it's nearly impossible to be consistant because you never know how the suspension is going to react. If the terrain has already partially compressed it...the results will be different. Two, hopping both wheels at the same time makes the distance you have to clear longer than it should be because you have to travel the whole wheel base of the bike plus the needed clearing distance.

It may be a little harder to learn, but removing the clipless pedals and learning to pull the front wheel, then the rear in a proper bunnyhop.....will make your hopping life much more controlled and better.

In your case, you don't need to hop to go off a drop, all you have to do is lean back and pull up on the bars wheelie style.
I don't so much do bunny hops cause I kind of suck at them. I usually don't get my rear wheel up high enough even trying to get over curbs. Maybe part of the issue is that the suspension makes the bike weigh more than a hard tail. I did try the wheelie drop off technique and I have to admit it is pretty slick. I haven't done the XX at Lebanon but maybe I'll give it a shot one of these days.

[pwpatton]

Where do I download it?

Fore a demonstration of this download my latest video of the teeter totter at Leb. I do a slow speed "wheelie drop" off the end of the teeter for its and giggles.

-scott

[berrywise]

download vid here

http://www.morcmtb.org/forums/showthread.php?t=10932

[manual63]

I still say the torque drop (that's what I call it anyway) is the way to go (for low speed drops anyway). It's really easy once you get the hang of it but it does take some practice. What I do is make sure I'm in a gear that will produce enough torque to pull the wheel up when pedaling firmly on the crank. And just before the drop I put my right crank arm at the top of the stroke. Just when my front wheel gets to the drop I torque on the crank with my right leg enough to lift the front wheel up all the way through the drop until my rear wheel falls off the drop. It's great fun.

If I'm going fast however I just pull up on the front wheel a tad. Very easy but not as much fun as a torque drop.
These work great when doing trials moves. I like them and they look impressive when you can just torque off of something and land rear wheel first from a stand still.

[manual63]

download vid here

http://www.morcmtb.org/forums/showthread.php?t=10932
Nice dude!!!

That was at fairly slow speed too.......impressive!

[berrywise]

I think the front wheel could have been up in the air a little higher since getting that rear wheel to come down first makes it so much easier on the wrists. I hadn't done one in quite awhile though so I was just hoping that my chain wouldn't skip or something stupid and put me on my face :D



Nice dude!!!

That was at fairly slow speed too.......impressive!

[Kosk]

Yeah, wheelie drops rule, especially off the teeter, once you do it, it's the only way to ride it. Speaking of crashing I did once, it was pretty rad. Got a little too excited and pulled a little harder than normal. The teeter started tipping and I was already too far back, so it just all went to hell on me, braking didn't even help. Landed with the my back half on/half off the end of the teeter with the bike on top of me. Not much damage except the pride. Got right back on the horse and did it up right.

Lesson: Better to under pull than over pull (atleast on the teeter, under pulling off a high ledge and going down front wheel first is not advisable:crazy2: )!!

[manual63]

Sunday I hopped onto the little grind box at the skatepark on my 40 pound freestyle bike (currently working on making it lighter). I came to a stop on the box, then had to pedal off of it wheelie style with a 44-16 gearing.......That was some serious effort, but I pulled it and landed nicely on my rear wheel. Then later I trashed my rear wheel trying to hop into a manual on it.........:cryin:.

[Trevize1138]

Just a quick note about my own personal experience with finally conquering the XX loop dropoff (I know, I'm a wuss and a large part of it was mental.)

Shad always recommended practicing off curbs. Well, I did that a little bit at first and didn't seem to think it helped. Turned out I needed to practice going off curbs a lot! I've been biking from my house in S. Minneapolis to Brownie and Theo a lot this year and on the way are several curbs to drop off of. After a month of that I realized I was getting really good at hanging that front tire in the air and letting both tires drop at the same time and at any speed (fast and really, really slow).

Next thing I knew I was dropping off that double log drop in the XX loop like it was nothing. My landings leave something to be desired (a little rough right now) but that just means more curb practice (gotta get the whole rear wheel landing first thing workin' for me).

So, go drop off a curb, will ya? :)

[noise_is_life]

So, go drop off a curb, will ya? :)
Yeah, just make sure the brakes are setup the way you expect them to be. :crazy:

[Trevize1138]

Friends don't let friends ride Aussie bikes ...

Yeah, just make sure the brakes are setup the way you expect them to be. :crazy:

[pwpatton]

I did the exact same thing trying my first wheelie off the end of the teeter as it was dropping. I didn't judge that right at all. Just got a scrape on the arm and a bruise on the pride. :cool:

I did a better job on the down ramp at memorial -> http://www.morcmtb.org/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=653&password=&sort=1&cat=500
Ofcourse, it isn't moving at the same time :)



Yeah, wheelie drops rule, especially off the teeter, once you do it, it's the only way to ride it. Speaking of crashing I did once, it was pretty rad. Got a little too excited and pulled a little harder than normal. The teeter started tipping and I was already too far back, so it just all went to hell on me, braking didn't even help. Landed with the my back half on/half off the end of the teeter with the bike on top of me. Not much damage except the pride. Got right back on the horse and did it up right.

Lesson: Better to under pull than over pull (atleast on the teeter, under pulling off a high ledge and going down front wheel first is not advisable:crazy2: )!!

[f16xelecx]

I don't so much do bunny hops cause I kind of suck at them. I usually don't get my rear wheel up high enough even trying to get over curbs. Maybe part of the issue is that the suspension makes the bike weigh more than a hard tail..
I just rode a hardtail tonight that was way lighter than my f.s. and I could bunny hop as high in that with platform pedals as I could with toe cages on my bike, I can't get any decent hop on my bike with straight platforms. The weight of the bike makes a big difference.

[manual63]

I just rode a hardtail tonight that was way lighter than my f.s. and I could bunny hop as high in that with platform pedals as I could with toe cages on my bike, I can't get any decent hop on my bike with straight platforms. The weight of the bike makes a big difference.
A heavier bike does require quite a bit more effort to bunnyhop than a lighter bike. I know that if you really want to go high, you have to hop with a serious amout of agression. I almost feel angry when I hop high, that's how much you have to put into it sometimes.....:).

[NiXXeD]

I've always found that there are certain purposes for different types of leading/landing...

If you've got no speed coming to the drop but you have some room to get rolling a little at least, pedaling to basically wheelie off the drop is almost necessary, unless you can get behind your seat and really pull back hard...

Another option for leading it, is if the drop is just flat on the top, and maybe angled a bit after it, and you can manage to get a lot of speed before it, you can ride fast off of it and just go for a flat landing... (if you don't prepare and balance, your front wheel will drop quite fast though) It's tough to find these kind of drops though and you have to be balanced and ready for it...

If you have full speed and are completely ready for the drop, you can bunny hop (my preference, I'd much rather hop myself than have the drop kick my back wheel up) or you can just pull up the front...

Then on the landing side, with any of the leading methods you can land both or back first... IMHO, landing with both wheels flat and making it look smooth is harder and looks a bit better (unless you land w/ back and manual out of it or something - but that's a different story)... everyone has their own opinion on what feels better... I tend to land w/ both wheels but with my weight near the back of the bike, preparing for the drop, so that I don't take the damage from the drop, and I don't have to deal with stability issues from landing on one wheel more than the other... but then again, when I'm teaching people to do drops, I tend to teach them to land with their back tire first too, because if they get too confident, they will end up hitting front first, and that usually doesn't end up very well...