Sidehops

[Daveee]

Hello, you're all gonna probably think this is the stupidest topic and the most retarted one but i'm gonna post anyway because i want to learn.

I've seen alot of videos and the sidehops are impressive.. I would like to know does it just take strength to sidehop? I'm only 14 so i'm not that strong lol.. I can't sidehop that high.

Please post all you're tips & hints on sidehopping higher it's the only thing that annoys me, because i cant do them very good

Thanks alot lads

[Z o o !!]

Im not an expert at teaching or doing these, but i think its all in the preload, if you watch how benito ros sides he uses loads of preload and then just explodes with power up wards. il edit in a sec.

Preload

Midmove

tuck

Edited July 4, 2008 by Z o o !!

[lil Jsy Chris]

Yeah it hard to give advice but i would just say, preload as much as possible, pull up as hard as you can and just hope you land on top

[aener]

I'm sure you've had it before - but you sound fairly new to the sport, so I'll let you in on our little secret..:

www.trashzen.com

It's good for the basics.

[Sonny Clarke]

Fúck me Benito

Just practice on a tiny wall, focus on balancing on rear wheel, wait till you gain your balance (quite difficult), lower your deriar a tad, lift up making sure your feet don't move of the pedals otherwise shin dig. Then as Ben said, tuck which you won't need to if its a small wall, and yea just regain your balence afterwards.

Sidehops happen to be favourite move, still kinda suck at them though.

P.S try not to dent your chainstay in effort, go easy and put your foot down if you know your not going to make it.

[muddyfox]

You have to jump/spring up really hard.

[Endohopper]

At a recent competition , Rick Koekoek ( sick Dutch mod rider ) was practicing preloading . It was pretty weird and drew curious glances from all the other riders who were doing more conventional warmups . Whilst trackstanding , he repeatedly compressed himself fully downwards , even leaning the bike over slightly . We were expecting a monster bunnyhop / sidehop of which he's certainly capable , but he was content to practice thus for minutes on end . Looked weird , but clearly pays off . Oh , and I'm still unfashionably bad at 'em .

[Greetings]

...

Doesn't he actually own the unofficial sidehop world record? Sorry for the ot, just curious. Never heard of this guy before Trialtech started sponsoring him.

[Endohopper]

Doesn't he actually own the unofficial sidehop world record?

Possible , I saw him on a Dutch television show along the lines of " Wanna Bet ? " where he popped an inhuman hop over a bar . Afraid I don't recall exactly how high - informative post , huh ?

EDIT : In this poorly timed photo i took of him exiting a section :

...he sidehopped up those pallets effortlessly , with minimal setup .

[Daveee]

All great advice

But what do you mean by preload? I'm gonna watch a few more videos.

And.. do you kick to sidehop? As in you would when you fronthop/gap something or is it just one best of a bunny hop?

[Mackay]

All great advice

But what do you mean by preload? I'm gonna watch a few more videos.

And.. do you kick to sidehop? As in you would when you fronthop/gap something or is it just one best of a bunny hop?

preload is when you are just about to do it so you lean down towards the back wheel so you can spring up more, like in the first picture of benito

and yes you pedal when your doing it a little

[Dave Anscombe]

When your setting up on the back wheel....this is how i think of getting the right preload........sit down quick and pretend some ones put a pin on your bum ul soon jump straight back up (thats the perload)

Dave

practise is everything

[tmks88]

At a recent competition , Rick Koekoek ( sick Dutch mod rider ) was practicing preloading . It was pretty weird and drew curious glances from all the other riders who were doing more conventional warmups . Whilst trackstanding , he repeatedly compressed himself fully downwards , even leaning the bike over slightly . We were expecting a monster bunnyhop / sidehop of which he's certainly capable , but he was content to practice thus for minutes on end . Looked weird , but clearly pays off . Oh , and I'm still unfashionably bad at 'em .

dani comas was doing that thing in kortrjik, belgium comp vid. so i tried it too and it is easier to get that tucking movement with sidehops

[Daveee]

When your setting up on the back wheel....this is how i think of getting the right preload........sit down quick and pretend some ones put a pin on your bum ul soon jump straight back up (thats the perload)

Dave

practise is everything

Thanks alot

I know that thanks, and thank you for the website but it's pretty hard to understand you lot are helping me much more.

Cheers

[PaRtZ]

I love sidehops hehe It feels so good when you get a nice one and land it well balanced.

In all honesty theres not much help one can give on these. Every sidehop technique is different to each person based on the anthropometrics of every person and ofcourse the set up of the bike. The balance point and general rider style (as in prefferred "backhop" position) also dictate what they look like. So when you watch CLS, Benito, TRA etc, kicking out these MONSTER sidehops, you cant say that you need your body position like that, and then balance like that and lean like that etc etc.

Obviously start off small, and practice getting used to the feeling of leaning over like you're going to fall off, and then jumping the bike at the same time. Its VERY weird to begin with and temptation to sidehop the wrong way (towards you favourite foot side) will distract you, but fear not, as sidehopping the "correct" way is equally as weird, so you don't succeed either way Once you're used to what it feels like, then, at the same height wall start trying to land it easily and become more and confident, enough to say "I can do that height every time"

Then progress, maybe then next step you do you'll clear easily too....thus progress.

If you find yourself at a height you cant do, one thing I've always found helps is to go back to a much lower wall, and clean that one, then progress back to the same level. Sometimes you find you just lose the feeling of sidehopping and you need a good solid one to get back into again. As for technique, again it varies person to person, some people cant sidehop clean to two wheels, some people cant sidehop to front and then hook up, all depends on how you ride

There, thats my essay, marks out of 10?

[Bionic Balls]

8....illustrations please

[PaRtZ]

8....illustrations please

Bah ruin my video adam!

Normal position

Compression + preload

Release of spring, notice my body weight is slightly focused over the front

Land and TUCK!! The most important part!! Usually the difference between making a sidehop and not

Thats my sidehop, going to front wheel and then pivoting the back up

[Danny Kearns]

I made a wiki not long ago, Enjoy

Right I'll do my best here and i'll use Gaz Meredith for images because i think he's a sidehop animal:

Get yourself on backwheel. With your leading foot away from the wall. (Basically have your none leading foot closest to the wall.).

Then once your comfortable with your position. I find stalling helps before your pre-load and hop:

Now. Once you have stalled and are ready to go for it. Swing your arse towards your back tyre and pre-load into it:

When in that position keep your eye on top of the wall at all times. This will help alot. Now. Once pre-loaded throw the bike up-wards and bring the bike up to the side of you, this is your mid air tuck and part of leveling the bike out in air so you land to 2 wheels:

When at this point. Make sure the bike is level so both wheels land on the wall at the same time and tuck that little bit more and you should get a result of something like this:

Then congratulations. Your done. You've made it up the wall.

It will take alot of time, effort and practice to master it. It's hard but you will get there in the end.

Good luck.

Danny.

[Bionic Balls]

much better

[Captain Scarlet]

I always found it troublesome learning to sidehop after watching people with expert techniques like shown above.

I also found it easier to sidehop in the direction of my forward foot (which most people say is wrong).

But just think of it this way; a sidehop is what it is called, it is a way of hopping up or over something whilst being side on.

Don't worry too much about tuck or preload yet, just get side on with a small wall and hop onto it, you've done it, its a sidehop.

It may not look clean you might lose your balance instantly but its a sidehop.

Once you've done it a few times you can alter your technique, I do what Danny mentioned and that is to pause whilst on the backwheel once you've found a good point of balance.

Watch a video of Damon Watson doing a sidehop, he hops then holds still on the back wheel, then sidehops upwards, I find this is good as it makes you focus and control the prehop more.

0:35 in this;

Another way to think of a sidehop, is that you are just gapping upwards, and I find that my gapping technique (my pause, my prehop, my extend and then tuck) is very similar to that of a sidehop, but obviously straight on level, rather than straight up and side on.

[Daveee]

Ok you've all been alot of help, i'm very happy i made a forum account now. Seen as my pot comes off i'm trying it out.

So this is it in a nutshell..

On Back wheel (Normal Position)

Whiles on backwheel preload

And then kick or just hop? and spring upwards

Tuck and make sure you have a perfect balance and then you're done

Am i close :\

[Captain Scarlet]

Well I'm assuming your all gravy on pedal hops and gaps.

You apply a bit of power to your pedals as you sidehop, so you release your brake and the very end of the prehop motion and engage it again once your rear wheel is from the floor.

Although some people don't need to use the brakes at all once they've hopped upwards, and if you can land a sidehop without having to use any brakes thats a sign of a good sidehop.

But you'll come to that in the future, for now just start on a nice comfortable sized wall (around 20inch is good, not too small not too big), just sidehop as though you hadn't had all of these points explained and then practice it, each time adding a new step to the sidehop.

So once your comfortable with getting onto the wall, make your prehop a bit bigger/longer and see if that makes you go any higher, and repeat for the other steps.

[16 years later]

May help a bit

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKsi5isykV8

Bruce

[PaRtZ]

Ok you've all been alot of help, i'm very happy i made a forum account now. Seen as my pot comes off i'm trying it out.

So this is it in a nutshell..

On Back wheel (Normal Position)

Whiles on backwheel preload

And then kick or just hop? and spring upwards

Tuck and make sure you have a perfect balance and then you're done

Am i close :\

Definitly need to kick. As you kick, you make the bike wheelie which in effect pushes the front wheel towards vertical and as you're already jumping, it sort of stops pivoting towards the vertical and starts travelling upwards with you