Beginner techniques

[basstrials]

Hi there,i hope so, all of you doing well.It is a great forum with lot's of information,but i still have a few questions about to developing new skills.

I am a 45 years old and i started practicing basic trial stuffs like trackstand,basic rear and front lift,as well as wheelie and manual,in order to improve my mtb skills.I am doing it on my hardtail,i know that is far away from real trials bike,but i think it is good for beginning.

Sorry for my English.i am a self taught,so at least i would make your day more funny with.

Here are my questions,i hope so not boring you too much with.

1.Trackstand - i have applied both brakes on and off constantly,but i feel safer with both of them on - is that wrong of i should get them off all of the time?

I read that Chis Akrigg  using front brake on vs his leading foot pressure - is that useful training of ?

What about rear on ?How to use this technique when lines get narrower and higher on?

2.Rocking - should i try to learn this one in order to do correction hops (Ryan Leech) of just plain basic rear and front wheels lift?I know that suspension do it worst,but i have done it compressed as hard as possible for this purpose.

3.Correction front and rear small hops (Martyn Ashton)- they are my main pain.LOL.I some how managed to do is with both wheels to the right and to the left,but when i try to them one wheel at time,i loose balance(not every time,but most of).My leading foot is right one,so doing it with front wheel to the left is easier than to the right.Where the power of this movement comes from?How to counter-acting when my front wheel  touches ground after a hop?

4.Back wheel hop - I can do basic front wheel lift trough my lead foot,but even founding my balance point,i still cannot understand how to hops?My feet are like glued on the pedals and either or i bail off backwards or bike fall forwards to.Any tips?

5.Bunny-up ,well i can do american bunny hop 25 to 30 cm in height( i know it is not much,but just learned to do it recently) and would like to understand how  to do bunny-up to some curb for example,something small?Watching at clips it is seems that there is some bar lifting after bar reaches one abdomen or not?

6.Gap jumps - can be practiced on flat in order for safety?I can do stand tall wheelie,so i thought is possible to make jump in the end of this movement on road ,but there is no gap obviously....so it is possible?

Your answers will help me to delve into to what i try to do,so any help we be appreciated.

..and i know what you would say:Practice,Practice,Practice.......

Stay healthy.

Edited June 26, 2020 by basstrials

[DeersSlayer]

Have a look at this site: https://www.trashzen.com/

[basstrials]

Thank you,i have ordered his book already.Have a nice day.

[CC12345678910]

On 6/26/2020 at 8:37 AM, basstrials said:

Here are my questions,i hope so not boring you too much with.

1.Trackstand - i have applied both brakes on and off constantly,but i feel safer with both of them on - is that wrong? Yes. 

should get them off all of the time? No, but on a bike with 2 brakes I have never used the rear brake - feels unnatural. 

I read that Chis Akrigg  using front brake on vs his leading foot pressure - is that useful training of ? Yes, do this.

Round 1. Place the bike on a long, shallow slope with the bike facing uphill and trackstand. Handlebars turned away from your good foot (right foot = turn left. Left foot = turn right).

Round 2. Try 1st with brake on.

Round 3. Then brakeless just using pedal pressure.

Round 4. Repeat on flat ground.

Bonus Rnd. Repeat with bike facing downhill on the slope you used in Rnd 1.

How to use this technique when lines get narrower and higher on? Contextual, but nothing much changes in the technique.

2.Rocking - should i try to learn this one YES. Learn all the things. 

3.Correction front and rear small hops (Martyn Ashton)- they are my main pain.LOL.I some how managed to do is with both wheels to the right and to the left,but when i try to them one wheel at time,i loose balance(not every time,but most of). My leading foot is right one,so doing it with front wheel to the left is easier than to the right.Where the power of this movement comes from?How to counter-acting when my front wheel  touches ground after a hop? Post a video. 

4.Back wheel hop - I can do basic front wheel lift trough my lead foot,but even founding my balance point,i still cannot understand how to hops?My feet are like glued on the pedals and either or i bail off backwards or bike fall forwards to.Any tips? Learn to gap and these will work themselves out. Once you learn to gap these become largely redundant.  

5.Bunny-up ,well i can do american bunny hop 25 to 30 cm in height( i know it is not much,but just learned to do it recently) and would like to understand how  to do bunny-up to some curb for example,something small?Watching at clips it is seems that there is some bar lifting after bar reaches one abdomen or not? This and the scooping whilst tucking the rear wheel upwards towards your arse are one and same at that height. Take a couple of guinea pig runs at a bus curb or similar and you'll work it out in your own time. Try bunnyhopping over a thin grind rail in a skatepark to get you started.

6.Gap jumps - can be practiced on flat in order for safety?I can do stand tall wheelie,so i thought is possible to make jump in the end of this movement on road ,but there is no gap obviously....so it is possible?

On FLAT Ground, From trackstand with MTB in light medium gear:

Stab Pedal with good foot - Manual bike through to above the rear wheel balance point - Lock rear brake - Lower the front wheel through the balance point - Straighten Arms, Bring pedal up towards you (like a recoil motion) - Violently stab pedal unlocking rear brake - Bunnyhop scooping motion upwards - Recoil pedal - Freewheel - Lock rear brake - Land - Absorb impact with the knees - Stab, Hop, Brake, Land - Stab, Hop, Brake, Land - Stab, Hop, Brake, Land - Stab, Hop, Brake, Land etc.

Your answers will help me to delve into to what i try to do,so any help we be appreciated.

..and i know what you would say:Practice,Practice,Practice.......

You should learn to manual on flat ground also. All these skills feed into and off of each other.

 

Edited June 29, 2020 by CC12345678910

[stirlingpowers]

On 26/06/2020 at 9:37 AM, basstrials said:

4.Back wheel hop - I can do basic front wheel lift trough my lead foot,but even founding my balance point,i still cannot understand how to hops?My feet are like glued on the pedals and either or i bail off backwards or bike fall forwards to.Any tips?

5.Bunny-up ,well i can do american bunny hop 25 to 30 cm in height( i know it is not much,but just learned to do it recently) and would like to understand how  to do bunny-up to some curb for example,something small?Watching at clips it is seems that there is some bar lifting after bar reaches one abdomen or not?

6.Gap jumps - can be practiced on flat in order for safety?I can do stand tall wheelie,so i thought is possible to make jump in the end of this movement on road ,but there is no gap obviously....so it is possible?

4. You can try to "stumble backwards" at first: When you loose balance backwards, you can compensate by hopping the rear end of the bike backwards a bit, mostly by bending your knees. From that "stumbling", you can try to move to an upwards jump, keeping the bike a bit more in place and in balance. Soon you will notice that the pedals will move backwards with each hop, making further hops impossible after a few hops. Therefore, you learn to open the brake a bit. Thereby, you can compensate your jumping motion by moving the pedals a bit forward. When you can do that, try to do little forward jumps, by pedaling a bit more. Don't jump off edges unless you can control the move quite easily on flat.

5. Neck roughly above handlebars, bend your arms to lower the upper body towards the handlebars, then straighten your arms relatively fast and with force and push the front end of the bike forward and upward in a rather circular motion (at least in your mind). Your body should move backwards, relative to the bike. Knees are bend a bit the whole time, you can bend a bit more while pushing the bike through, it helps with the jump: You need to find the right amount of force and motion, so that you can comfortably counter the rolling motion by jumping upwards "towards the handlebars", when the front wheel is high enough in the air. A bit of the jumping comes from the arms using the handlebar, but most is in the hips going towards the handlebar and the legs pushing against the pedals. Beware of losing pedal contact.

6. Yes. Just use 5 with less force and compensate by pedaling, but not with very much pedaling force. Focus on the jump, not the pedal kick. 
A gap jump from a standstill is an advanced move, worth years of training. You need to have a stable backwheel hop for this. It should feel a bit like a jump without a bike. Therefore, you turn your bike sideways a bit, so that your feet are placed more naturally side by side on the edge of the gap. Most importantly, don't kick the pedals actively, this is a common mistake. The pedal move just compensates for the jumping movement, a bit more than that, but not much. No hard kicking is necessary for me to gap 8 feet, and I don't think the pros do that when they gap 11 feet.

[basstrials]

Hi,thank you for your time.It is very helpful to be explained that way,especially from someone who knows how to do it.

Would think over your advice,i am sure that they will help me.I have quit practicing about week now in order to clear my head and start fresh,just stuck.....Very tough sport,indeed,for the mind,also.

The most difficult is to teach yourself to do stuffs over and over and over...again.

Have a nice day.