Back wheel action

mossychops

I have a week off next week and think I'm goign to learn to ride on the back wheel.

Does anyone have any tips?

I can get the wheel failry high by pedalling but once speed gets to high for me to pedal it drops. I am pretty sure I need to lean right back and balance the bike on the back wheel. Tips on how to know how are without going over the back would be good (going over the back is whats stopping me mentally).

I've been riding since a child and never mastered it and at 31 I think I should give it a proper go. My bike is a full suss (although I do have an old rigid fork bike I could practise on).

Almightydutch

Practise practise practise, it can help by finding an ever so slightly uphill slope to try on.

As for goin over the back, keep the brake covered and you've got your failsafe right there. Dont go for speed on the back wheel, try for slow controlled wheely. This will help in the long run.

mossychops

Cheers for that, do you get a good deal of notice to hit the rear brake before you do go over the back? Also if you centre of balance goes behind the rear axel (lean too far back) does the back brake not become unusable are you will still roll over the back on the tyre or does momentum keep you going forward and back down right way up?

Almightydutch

First thing i would do is lower the saddle a bit, so if it does tip backwards you can easily put your feet down.

You only get a warning notice if you know what your feeling for. The balance point is obvious, its when the front end feels weightless, much further than that and it will go over the back though.

the brake will make the front end come down yes, like you have said the momentum will do that for you.

Anonymous

mossychops wrote:

I have a week off next week and think I'm goign to learn to ride on the back wheel.

I unfortunately have nothing I can offer to help, since some days I can wheelie fine, other days I just can't, at all.
However, I really admire you for putting a week aside to just nail it!
Love it

FunBus

practise pulling up while pedalling slowly up a slight hill, push yourself enough to go over the back - if your seats low enough, you'll easily get your feet down. Repeat this a few times and this will show you where you need to balance and, will get you over that fear.

Other than that, just keep it in an easy gear, keep going uphills until you master it.

......then you can move on to manuals, down hills, you may need a month or two for that one though!!