psiron Posted December 13, 2013 Report Share Posted December 13, 2013 I've been trying to do manuals for the last 8 months and if i'm honest i'm completely hopeless. I've managed to dial-in stand up wheelies on my fourplay, when i stop peddling it all goes wrong and usually the front wheel hits the deck or i land on my arse. I try and ride every day and i practice manuals as much as possible, i can do bunny-hops and i can get up on to things via a short 2-3 meter manual so i think the technique is there but if i try and cover some distance etc. Any tips would be well appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
isitafox Posted December 13, 2013 Report Share Posted December 13, 2013 Go faster, lean back more. Seriously though a vid of your current technique/attempts would help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dk2 Posted December 13, 2013 Report Share Posted December 13, 2013 Here's a fast tip.... Lock rear break(don't let go)...place your self alongside a wall, a short distance from it (10-20cm) be ready to lean sideway up agains the wall(let shoulder/handelbar lean against it...). Find your balance without touching the wall, and start leaning back til your front wheel leaves the ground...to find the actual balance point lean against the wall... Spend 5-10 min to find it, and the try it rolling...good luck, and hope I made sense.. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willeyeam Posted December 13, 2013 Report Share Posted December 13, 2013 Lean back more and feather the brake to stop you going off the back. Getting comfortable with falling off the back should help you lean back more. Although saying that my problem is being over reliant on feathering the brake, i can manual fine down a big hill but on a straight i'll come to a stop from using the brake. Anyway i wouldn't worry about that yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psiron Posted December 13, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 13, 2013 Thanks for the tips i'm gonna try some of them now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CalopS Posted December 13, 2013 Report Share Posted December 13, 2013 Looking where your going rather than down at the floor is the main thing that helps me. I'm still battling to master them. It's just about practicing them a lot I think. Between spots e.t.c. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JD™ Posted December 13, 2013 Report Share Posted December 13, 2013 I'm rubbish at consistent manuals, but the ones that work always come from remembering to get lower and further back. Like arse practically on the rear wheel. That let's you manual with the front wheel quite low, which means you don't have to use the brake so much to keep it controlled. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psiron Posted December 13, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 13, 2013 Here's a fast tip.... Lock rear break(don't let go)...place your self alongside a wall, a short distance from it (10-20cm) be ready to lean sideway up agains the wall(let shoulder/handelbar lean against it...). Find your balance without touching the wall, and start leaning back til your front wheel leaves the ground...to find the actual balance point lean against the wall... Spend 5-10 min to find it, and the try it rolling...good luck, and hope I made sense.. Great tip. i found my balance point very quickly and its excellent for focusing on position of the bike and rider, i'm gonna try and roll it along the wall and see what happens. Go faster, lean back more. Seriously though a vid of your current technique/attempts would help. Tried faster but out side its steep slope or flat slope and I've got a problem when the bike starts gaining speed, I panic and hit the brake, front wheel back on the deck. Feathering the brake just brings it all to a stop.I'm sorry I can't do vids at the mo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikee Posted December 14, 2013 Report Share Posted December 14, 2013 What really helped me get my manuals better was doing them at a slow jogging pace and brakeless. It forces you to adjust your body position more, rather then relying on your back brake if you are going to much over the back. You will be jumping off the back of your bike lots to start with but I would say over all you will improve faster doing it this way in my experience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark W Posted December 14, 2013 Report Share Posted December 14, 2013 Going slower will make you learn to balance better to get distance, and probably give you a bit more confidence too. I find thinking about sitting backwards/down into manuals helps me get my body in the right place. You just have to remember your body's acting as a counter-balance to the front end of your bike, so if you're going front high, you'll have your wait higher up/nearer the centre of the bike. If you've got your front end lower, you'll have to have your bodyweight lower/further back. That's the 'safe' way to learn them too as you're unlikely to loop, so you can just get the feel for it that way. It's all about moving your bodyweight back correctly at first though, as the initial setup is what decides whether it's going to live or die. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nicolasp1405 Posted December 16, 2013 Report Share Posted December 16, 2013 So I guess thats the advantage of putting the bars more backward so your further back when extending... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blake Posted December 16, 2013 Report Share Posted December 16, 2013 One day it just clicked for me, about 2 years of trying them on rides and I could just suddenly do them. I can't do them outrageously far, about 50 meters or so I guess consistently. I found them easier to get on a very slight downhill, but it gets scarier as you go faster. Like the others said, low low low low. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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