tips on mono's and hopping???

[Simmoclayto]

does anyone have any tips on improving monoing and bunny hopping

i can hop ok but wanna improve heaps more.

and i still suck at monoing

cheers
simmo

[shirtz]

ive been riding for years and ahve never been able to bunnyhop well. now with my plush dulie i find it even harder.

feel free to put up some pointers guys!

[floody]

For me, the best thing I ever did was set up a bunny hop height-rig in the backyar, and practice practice!!.
I used stacked housebricks in two stacks and a piece of flexible tube about 1.5cm thick (PVC stuff, like you run wiring through) between them..
Basically, You can build up the height, and you can see what you're doing and what gets definite gains.
The flexible tube flexes and falls off if you hit it, which is better than it either a) breaking or b) hooking up your back wheel.

I'm no bunnyhop king, but I got up to hopping around 28" on flat pedals which was good enough for me!
Mind you, now I'm on a 50+lb, 8" travel bike I can barely manage half that, but I'm getting better...
On the dually, the biggest thing seems to be learning to manage the rebound and compression of the shock to your advantage, ie the compression side can help get the front end up on more of an angle, the rebound can help kick the tail up.

[Sugez]

If your after actual technical advice IE the actual process involved...I can post it but I won't bother if you aren't interested so let me know.

[sockman]

If your after actual technical advice IE the actual process involved...I can post it but I won't bother if you aren't interested so let me know.

post post post :D

[Simo]

i learnt to bunnyhop using the following technique:

hold you bars with your hands rotated as far down as posible (so that your knuckles are pointing towards you). In this position your wrists should be pointing towards the ground and you will be clamping the grips from more infront of your body, rather than ontop of the bars. It's not easy to ride like this so don't try anything apart from pedaling around and bunny-hoping or you may cause injury. When your hands are in this position angle your feet forward on the pedals.
Lift the bike as a whole or lift the front a bit before you bring the back up. When your arms are in this position it makes it easier to lift all of the bike at once. As you get going with your arms in this stupid position rotate them bit by bit untill they come up to their normal position.

If you get stuck just drop your hands down a bit and try again. My explanation sucked. If you don't get it i'll try and clear it up a bit (or maybe someone else who knows what I'm tlaking about could help).

As for monos....I suck.

[gorno]

when you mono i find it easier to go all at the same speed instead of getting faster and faster so you should use ur brakes when you can. its hard but practise makes perfect...

[matty_2004]

To get a grasp on the foot positioning for bunny hops, or to try your first bunny hop. . .don't worry about the front. Lean forward (this helps keep your feet right and the weight forward) and push backwards on your pedals, with your feet angled downward, and just try to lift the back of the bike up. . .you should find that easy enough - do it a few times than try lifting the back with your body in the center, as well as the front with your arms...

I found it so much easier once i knew what i was actually trying to do, this worked for me. . .and 3 of my mates

:roll:

[Gripper]

Practice

I've always been able to mono any bike (even mom's shopping bike) for ages................

Recently I discovered manualling, which at my first attempts over a period of a few weeks I first thought were impossible for me.

Anyways, one day recently it all came together and now I can manual my duallie as well as my HT.

I'm stoked. woohoo

[Kammy]

i think the best one is just PRACTICE

[mtbmx]

the biggest problem i see in monoing is not leaning back far enough.

lean back heaps to the point of balance and if u need brakes tamper them softely so you dont fall back.

i can mono bmx not mtb. on my bmx i can mono for a while.

just lean back real far.

[olsson]

the biggest problem i see in monoing is not leaning back far enough.

lean back heaps to the point of balance and if u need brakes tamper them softely so you dont fall back.

i can mono bmx not mtb. on my bmx i can mono for a while.

just lean back real far.

you can MONO a bmx but not a mtb, that sounds really weird considering the fact a MTB usually has gears, and should be easier to pedal and you've got a bigger geo to move around.
Practice man, thats all it takes - I'm no pro and everyone knows that, I suck at hopping and 'monoing'. But just keep going about it, set yourself goal, find a distance to mono, or a ledge to hop up, and progress more and more.

[alexMc]

I suck at hopping and 'monoing'. But just keep going about it, set yourself goal, find a distance to mono, or a ledge to hop up, and progress more and more.Yeah, BS, anyways basically what he said^ pedal to u can pedal no more, at the start of the mono start standing up give it a bit of power and let the seat ride up to underneath you then sit on it and just keep pedaling really

[DYJK]

I have seen people using their rear shock to bunny hop! seriously cronic.
Well the best way i think is to probably lift up your front then push it forwards in the air aswell as using your feet to pull up the bike.
For hopping, you need to get up onto your back wheel, you can do it easily by pedal kicking+doing a manuel pop up. then use your pedals + weight to bounce! :)

[mtbmx]

i thought mono was no pedalling.

pedalling i can go for ages on mtb.

but manualing i can go for a while on bmx

[Sugez]

mtbmx Posted:
i thought mono was no pedaling.

pedaling i can go for ages on mtb.

but manualing i can go for a while on bmx
I think that is manualing.

DYJK
Well the best way i think is to probably lift up your front then push it forwards in the air as well as using your feet to pull up the bike.
For hopping, you need to get up onto your back wheel, you can do it easily by pedal kicking+doing a Manual pop up. then use your pedals + weight to bounce!

This is the best way to get BIG hops the other ways are easier to start with but they limit the height you can get.


The manual pop up is where you pull up on your bars at the same time as you push the back wheel forward with your pedals when you are half way through it push up on your bars and HEY PRESTO a hop.

that is my oppinion.

[naz]

BUNNYHOP
Pick up some speed far away from the object, coast a bit, then at the right time, crouch down on the front of the bike, shoot the BIKE forward with your butt down so the front comes up a bit, then shift your weight forward and spring up off the pedals from your crouched position while the front comes up MORE. As you start to take off, push the handlebars up and out and squish your legs up, clear the object (imaginary object when practicing at first), then stretch your legs out to absorb the landing. It's like learning to trackstand, it takes a while to learn it, and no amount of great instruction is going to MAKE you be able to do it. Practice it and you'll eventually get it. Getting up onto bashguard is essentially the same as the pedal-up, as far as maintaining your balance goes.
MANUALS
The key to manualing is body placement. There is a "sweet spot" one must find in order to execute the manual successfully. Center of gravity has a major role in this creating the optimum placement of the body in relation to the bike's bottom bracket, which is designed to be the place where most of the weight on the bike is located. The purpose of this is to put the weight lower on the bike to create a more stable ride. As we all know, when the "sweet spot" is violated, you end up on the ground unless you caught it with the brake soon enough.

One's body must be centered over the bottom bracket at all times to maintain this balance that keeps the bike stable, no matter what angle it is at. During a manual, the front wheel floats while the rear wheel tracts underneath the rider, whose body acts as the counterbalance that keeps the angle of the front end of the bike in relation to the amount of weight placed over the bottom bracket. For example, if a rider manuals with the front wheel close to the ground, most of the rider's weight needs to placed behind the bottom bracket to counteract the forces pulling the front wheel down. On the other hand, if the rider manuals with the front wheel high, most of his/her weight will be placed more over the bottom bracket than a low manual. The reason for this is to keep the front wheel from traveling too far backwards, which would cause the rider to fall off the back painfully.

In order to attempt a manual successfully for the first time, find a hill that has a very slight angle and ride down it. Without too much speed, move your bodyweight rearwards slowly to get used to the weight transfer and how it effects the handling of the bike. When you find that you are comfortable with your effort to transfer your weight, give the bars a gentle tug while you are transferring your weight and the front wheel will leave the ground. In essence, this is a manual, but in order to do a manual for more than a few inches, you need to keep experimenting with your "sweet spot" on the bike, shifting your weight fore and aft to correct for the changes in speed and front wheel height changes that drastically effect the path of the manual. Once you have figured out how to find the "sweet spot" of the manual, you can experiment with combinations of bunnyhops and manuals that create the ability to bunnyhop onto something and hold the front wheel high and manual the length of the obstacle. The higher the ledge, the harder it becomes to hold the front end up to start the manual and compete the trick. Technique and practice both play large roles that create the perfect manual.

Manuals are used in BMX racing as well. When one races BMX, he/she wants to be the fastest rider on the tract in order to take the win. When a rider leaves the ground during a race, they are losing speed and momentum. A speed jump is then used to keep the bike on the ground and turn in the fastest time. Speed jumps are manuals that are the main difference between a racer and a casual dirt jumper who strives to catch air and get jacked up.

Remember--practice is key and pain can be part of the game, but we must learn from our mistakes and correct so we don't do it again.

there you go, if u dont believe that i can now bunnyhop about a metre, and manual forever down hills [/quote]

[Daneel]

I think we need to get our terms right.

A wheelie is when you pop the front wheel up briefly, usually with a pedal stroke or two.

A mono is where you ride along on your back wheel pedalling.

A munual is where you ride along on your back wheel without pedalling.

Just thought i'd clear that one up.

doesn't change the fact that i still can't pull manuals, but then again, frickin' cross county bikes aren't made for it..

why couldn't i have gotten a DH bike for my b'day..

[Sugez]

Daneel the DH would have been even harder to manual...if it was a full susser anyhow. Sure staying up once you find the sweet spot is easier but getting it up is way harder.

[big_pete]

BUNNYHOP
Pick up some speed far away from the object, coast a bit, then at the right time, crouch down on the front of the bike, shoot the BIKE forward with your butt down so the front comes up a bit, then shift your weight forward and spring up off the pedals from your crouched position while the front comes up MORE. As you start to take off, push the handlebars up and out and squish your legs up, clear the object (imaginary object when practicing at first), then stretch your legs out to absorb the landing. It's like learning to trackstand, it takes a while to learn it, and no amount of great instruction is going to MAKE you be able to do it. Practice it and you'll eventually get it. Getting up onto bashguard is essentially the same as the pedal-up, as far as maintaining your balance goes.
MANUALS
The key to manualing is body placement. There is a "sweet spot" one must find in order to execute the manual successfully. Center of gravity has a major role in this creating the optimum placement of the body in relation to the bike's bottom bracket, which is designed to be the place where most of the weight on the bike is located. The purpose of this is to put the weight lower on the bike to create a more stable ride. As we all know, when the "sweet spot" is violated, you end up on the ground unless you caught it with the brake soon enough.

One's body must be centered over the bottom bracket at all times to maintain this balance that keeps the bike stable, no matter what angle it is at. During a manual, the front wheel floats while the rear wheel tracts underneath the rider, whose body acts as the counterbalance that keeps the angle of the front end of the bike in relation to the amount of weight placed over the bottom bracket. For example, if a rider manuals with the front wheel close to the ground, most of the rider's weight needs to placed behind the bottom bracket to counteract the forces pulling the front wheel down. On the other hand, if the rider manuals with the front wheel high, most of his/her weight will be placed more over the bottom bracket than a low manual. The reason for this is to keep the front wheel from traveling too far backwards, which would cause the rider to fall off the back painfully.

In order to attempt a manual successfully for the first time, find a hill that has a very slight angle and ride down it. Without too much speed, move your bodyweight rearwards slowly to get used to the weight transfer and how it effects the handling of the bike. When you find that you are comfortable with your effort to transfer your weight, give the bars a gentle tug while you are transferring your weight and the front wheel will leave the ground. In essence, this is a manual, but in order to do a manual for more than a few inches, you need to keep experimenting with your "sweet spot" on the bike, shifting your weight fore and aft to correct for the changes in speed and front wheel height changes that drastically effect the path of the manual. Once you have figured out how to find the "sweet spot" of the manual, you can experiment with combinations of bunnyhops and manuals that create the ability to bunnyhop onto something and hold the front wheel high and manual the length of the obstacle. The higher the ledge, the harder it becomes to hold the front end up to start the manual and compete the trick. Technique and practice both play large roles that create the perfect manual.

Manuals are used in BMX racing as well. When one races BMX, he/she wants to be the fastest rider on the tract in order to take the win. When a rider leaves the ground during a race, they are losing speed and momentum. A speed jump is then used to keep the bike on the ground and turn in the fastest time. Speed jumps are manuals that are the main difference between a racer and a casual dirt jumper who strives to catch air and get jacked up.

Remember--practice is key and pain can be part of the game, but we must learn from our mistakes and correct so we don't do it again.

there you go, if u dont believe that i can now bunnyhop about a metre, and manual forever down hills [/quote]

From Olsson: THANK YOU! now mtbmx will get his terms right!

[mtbmx]

BUNNYHOP
Pick up some speed far away from the object, coast a bit, then at the right time, crouch down on the front of the bike, shoot the BIKE forward with your butt down so the front comes up a bit, then shift your weight forward and spring up off the pedals from your crouched position while the front comes up MORE. As you start to take off, push the handlebars up and out and squish your legs up, clear the object (imaginary object when practicing at first), then stretch your legs out to absorb the landing. It's like learning to trackstand, it takes a while to learn it, and no amount of great instruction is going to MAKE you be able to do it. Practice it and you'll eventually get it. Getting up onto bashguard is essentially the same as the pedal-up, as far as maintaining your balance goes.
MANUALS
The key to manualing is body placement. There is a "sweet spot" one must find in order to execute the manual successfully. Center of gravity has a major role in this creating the optimum placement of the body in relation to the bike's bottom bracket, which is designed to be the place where most of the weight on the bike is located. The purpose of this is to put the weight lower on the bike to create a more stable ride. As we all know, when the "sweet spot" is violated, you end up on the ground unless you caught it with the brake soon enough.

One's body must be centered over the bottom bracket at all times to maintain this balance that keeps the bike stable, no matter what angle it is at. During a manual, the front wheel floats while the rear wheel tracts underneath the rider, whose body acts as the counterbalance that keeps the angle of the front end of the bike in relation to the amount of weight placed over the bottom bracket. For example, if a rider manuals with the front wheel close to the ground, most of the rider's weight needs to placed behind the bottom bracket to counteract the forces pulling the front wheel down. On the other hand, if the rider manuals with the front wheel high, most of his/her weight will be placed more over the bottom bracket than a low manual. The reason for this is to keep the front wheel from traveling too far backwards, which would cause the rider to fall off the back painfully.

In order to attempt a manual successfully for the first time, find a hill that has a very slight angle and ride down it. Without too much speed, move your bodyweight rearwards slowly to get used to the weight transfer and how it effects the handling of the bike. When you find that you are comfortable with your effort to transfer your weight, give the bars a gentle tug while you are transferring your weight and the front wheel will leave the ground. In essence, this is a manual, but in order to do a manual for more than a few inches, you need to keep experimenting with your "sweet spot" on the bike, shifting your weight fore and aft to correct for the changes in speed and front wheel height changes that drastically effect the path of the manual. Once you have figured out how to find the "sweet spot" of the manual, you can experiment with combinations of bunnyhops and manuals that create the ability to bunnyhop onto something and hold the front wheel high and manual the length of the obstacle. The higher the ledge, the harder it becomes to hold the front end up to start the manual and compete the trick. Technique and practice both play large roles that create the perfect manual.

Manuals are used in BMX racing as well. When one races BMX, he/she wants to be the fastest rider on the tract in order to take the win. When a rider leaves the ground during a race, they are losing speed and momentum. A speed jump is then used to keep the bike on the ground and turn in the fastest time. Speed jumps are manuals that are the main difference between a racer and a casual dirt jumper who strives to catch air and get jacked up.

Remember--practice is key and pain can be part of the game, but we must learn from our mistakes and correct so we don't do it again.

there you go, if u dont believe that i can now bunnyhop about a metre, and manual forever down hills

From Olsson: THANK YOU! now mtbmx will get his terms right![/quote]

From Me: Danell already cleared it up.

[big_pete]

Its daneel..

[hairy]

to manual i find it easiest just to lean back as far as u can go and just use your back brake to help u keep your self balanced. i can mono for ever and the best way to do that i found id to just stand up a little to put the front up and hang of the back of your seat trying to keep a constant slowish speed and using the back brake to prevent u from going off the back.

[Mahoney_007]

Awesome reply there naz I think there was something in that for all of us.

Practice practice practice then when you think you'll never get it and your about to give up practice some more.

[Daneel]

has anyone got tips on how to hold the brakes? whenever i try it, i can't get a good enough grip on the handlebar to actually pop the front wheel up for a mono..

[Sugez]

I don't, when hopping they aren't going to be useful until you hit the ground anyhow and in a manual if you get past the sweet spot then you still have time to get your finger to the brake. Alternatively have one finger over the rear lever and grip fully with the other hand.

[hairy]

yer very good naz i never seen any one manual as far as him. yer i put two fingers in the brake lever just in case u need more brake power like when u pop the front wheel up on a uneven track the little extra helps.

[W2ttsy]

ive found manualling on my d8 really easy. but thats because i learnt to manual on it.

i find just having on finger on each break works for me.

just lean back and get comfy in that position. try it on grass, cos then you can remove the fear of falling back element from your mind. once you get past that, its alot easier.

just get into a good monoing momentum and when you are feeling balanced, just stop pedalling.

W2ttsy

[Daneel]

does this mean i have to have my brakes set up tight?

WAAAAAH!!!

I like mine to be on when it's almost touching the handlebar!

[W2ttsy]

its always preferable to have your brakes set finger tight when doing anything that requires a tweak of the break.

id recommend it even if you werent manualing/monoing. it just makes it so much easier to control the bike, as you are griping the bars and not trying to pull the break with all your fingers....

W2ttsy

[olly1oo6]

id recommend it even if you werent manualing/monoing. it just makes it so much easier to control the bike, as you are griping the bars and not trying to pull the break with all your fingers....
thats a good point i learned too slowly, but yeah, only one finger on the break is the best way to control manuals, it takes abit of gettin used to tho

EDIT: woops, forgot. one finger on the rear brake, front ones pretty useless for a manual :wink:

[shak]

Which finger do you use though? i use my middle, more leverage

[Kona.S.P]

Nup, i use my index finger. Just lightly place it on the rear brake and everytime you feel like your going over the back apply a tiny amount of brake, If you use too much it will slam your front wheel down.

[W2ttsy]

id recommend it even if you werent manualing/monoing. it just makes it so much easier to control the bike, as you are griping the bars and not trying to pull the break with all your fingers....
thats a good point i learned too slowly, but yeah, only one finger on the break is the best way to control manuals, it takes abit of gettin used to tho

EDIT: woops, forgot. one finger on the rear brake, front ones pretty useless for a manual :wink:

actually, the rotation of the front wheel is very important, as it adds stability to the front of the bike. so if you have the wheel spinning nicely, then you will have better balance in the front.

also, helps when turning.

plus if you leave your finger on the front brake, it feels more balanced and natural.

Which finger do you use though? i use my middle, more leverage

apparently, if you set your brakes up right, then the lever should finish where your index finger is. giving optimum reach and leverage. but since most people mount their brakes rammed up against the grips, it puts the levers in a weird position.

i suggest sliding the lever closer to the middle of the bar, itll give you better braking straight away.

W2ttsy

[naz]

haha, if u want to do a true manual you dont need to use a brake.

and brake lever setup. haha. i run mine atleast a inch in from the grip so i only use one finger and index if that.

[aldo_boz]

i learnt to bunnyhop just from rolling over the bits on gutters where peoples driveways go in. just going off them and gradually jumping with it. i just did that a bunch of time and eventually i could get off the ground without a lip. worked for me

[Sugez]

i learnt to bunnyhop just from rolling over the bits on gutters where peoples driveways go in. just going off them and gradually jumping with it. i just did that a bunch of time and eventually i could get off the ground without a lip. worked for me

Thats how I originally learned (when I was about 7) but I stopped riding for a while and could no longer do it so learned the way I saw in a mag which is how I described it above.