How to Track Stand

lost_in_thought
lost_in_thought Posts: 10,563
edited November 2008 in Commuting chat
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  • Jen J
    Jen J Posts: 1,054
    A helpful tutorial sent to me by a friendly forum reader!

    http://www.teamestrogen.com/content.ep? ... trackstand

    Brilliant - I have actually printed that out to study at home later!

    Quick question - I'm still using the freewheel on the Bowery - do I need to be riding fixed to trackstand?
    Commuting: Giant Bowery 08
    Winter Hack: Triandrun Vento 3
    Madone

    It's all about me...
  • chas67
    chas67 Posts: 13
    I'd say it's easier to learn with a fixed ...... since you don't have to hold it on the brake if you're not on a slight uphill ...... but freewheel is fine for learning - just take your time and find slight inclines to practice on (even a raised white line or irregularity in the roadsurface can be enough) ....... once you get the hang of that then you can practice them on a downhill!
  • daniel_b
    daniel_b Posts: 11,538
    Great page, duly printed out.

    I like the whole 'practice in the living room' bit :D

    That's defo not a fixie she's on, as it's a geared mountain bike.

    Dan
    Felt F70 05 (Turbo)
    Marin Palisades Trail 91 and 06
    Scott CR1 SL 12
    Cannondale Synapse Adventure 15 & 16 Di2
    Scott Foil 18
  • Hmm. trackstands.

    It is my opinion, and therefore a fact* that trackstands are like skiing bumps. Unless you can nail them, avoid them.

    A bad trackstand provides the same hypnotic entertainment that a circus chimp on a bicycle provides. You wonder how he does it, but you wonder more when he's going to fall off.

    A good trackstand, OTOH, leaves you wondering why the stander isn't yelling "LOOK AT ME! LOOK AT ME!" (rather like the skier, nailing bumps. And for the avoidance of doubt, I do yell that when I'm nailing bumps).


    EDIT: all of which pales in comparison to this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eGhEAvFlL_U

    I saw him do this routine. In the rain. Those bars are steel, narrower than a scaffold tube. Quite slippery when wet. And he provides a calm-as-a-serial killer commentary while he does it.



    *Attrib: that utter c0ck Piers Morgan.
    Swim. Bike. Run. Yeah. That's what I used to do.

    Bike 1
    Bike 2-A
  • Jen J wrote:
    A helpful tutorial sent to me by a friendly forum reader!

    http://www.teamestrogen.com/content.ep? ... trackstand

    Brilliant - I have actually printed that out to study at home later!

    Quick question - I'm still using the freewheel on the Bowery - do I need to be riding fixed to trackstand?

    I think they are two quite different techniques - with a freewheel you are balancing against the front brake and can roll forward and reset your feet. With a fixed you need to roll back and forth more to ensure your feet stay in the same position. I was pretty good at freewheel trackstand (could do seated without too much problem) but it took me a while to learn the fixed trackstand (still can't do seated)
    <a>road</a>
  • jedster
    jedster Posts: 1,717
    Unless you can nail them, avoid them.

    Which begs the question, of course, how do you learn to nail them if you avoid them?

    Whether it's looking like a performing monkey or jettisoning pole and skis in all direction while you flick-flack down the mountain, you've got to serve your apprenticeship...
  • Greg T
    Greg T Posts: 3,266
    Don't tell anyone but......

    I'm having trouble getting to grips with my fixed trackstands....

    I just can't get used to the rolling back with my feet going backwards thing, I'm carrying too much weight on my front foot and just creep forwards all the time.

    Argh

    More practice.
    Fixed gear for wet weather / hairy roadie for posing in the sun.

    What would Thora Hurd do?
  • daniel_b
    daniel_b Posts: 11,538
    jedster wrote:
    Unless you can nail them, avoid them.

    Which begs the question, of course, how do you learn to nail them if you avoid them?

    As the lady said, practice in your living room :D
    Felt F70 05 (Turbo)
    Marin Palisades Trail 91 and 06
    Scott CR1 SL 12
    Cannondale Synapse Adventure 15 & 16 Di2
    Scott Foil 18
  • Greg T wrote:
    Don't tell anyone but......

    I'm having trouble getting to grips with my fixed trackstands....

    I just can't get used to the rolling back with my feet going backwards thing, I'm carrying too much weight on my front foot and just creep forwards all the time.

    Argh

    More practice.

    I had the same problem. It is a bit of a leap of faith. Be very positive on your backwards roll, don't nancy about. You can easily do a quarter crank turn (eg front foot from 7 o'clock to 10 o'clock). You will find it's as easy to stay upright as it is rolling forward.
    <a>road</a>
  • chas67
    chas67 Posts: 13
    ...yes, push back, rather than roll back, if that makes sense ........
  • Daniel B wrote:
    jedster wrote:
    Unless you can nail them, avoid them.

    Which begs the question, of course, how do you learn to nail them if you avoid them?

    As the lady said, practice in your living room :D

    Give that man a gold star.

    Privacy of your own home is the key. As it is for so many things.
    Swim. Bike. Run. Yeah. That's what I used to do.

    Bike 1
    Bike 2-A
  • biondino
    biondino Posts: 5,990
    Greg, an impressive video but I can't hear a word he says because there's some sh!tty rock track over the video LIKE THERE IS OVER EVERY F*CKING EXTREME SPORTS AND RELATED NONSENSE EVER.
  • wgwarburton
    wgwarburton Posts: 1,863
    I would have thought that singlespeed was the worst of both worlds:

    If you have gears & a freewheel, you can use a low gear, which makes it easier to balance (you don't have to push so hard to move the bike). I aim to use the camber of the road to roll-back.

    If you are fixed, you can backpedal to balance, but you need to push hard to adjust the bike.

    With a single, you've got a big gear AND no backpedalling... surely that's harder?

    Cheers,
    W.
  • jedster
    jedster Posts: 1,717
    Privacy of your own home is the key. As it is for so many things.

    and how does that work for skiing bumps? :shock:

    Incidently, I suspect you came out of the womb being able to endo your trike down the bannister but I for one would have brained myself on the coffee table if I'd tried trackstanding at home. Either that or the missus would have brained me with a convenient blunt object.
  • jedster wrote:
    and how does that work for skiing bumps? :shock:

    Umm. It doesn't. I did say for "many" things. Not all.

    When I buy my Stately Home, I shall convert a staircase to a bumps field.
    jedster wrote:
    Incidently, I suspect you came out of the womb being able to endo your trike down the bannister but I for one would have brained myself on the coffee table if I'd tried trackstanding at home. Either that or the missus would have brained me with a convenient blunt object.

    Ummm, actually, not so much. I can't trackstand. Which means, obviously, I don't want to. I tend to slow down early and try to carry momentum through slow areas, and avoid stopping whenever possible.
    Swim. Bike. Run. Yeah. That's what I used to do.

    Bike 1
    Bike 2-A
  • Greg T wrote:

    I just can't get used to the rolling back with my feet going backwards thing, I'm carrying too much weight on my front foot and just creep forwards all the time.

    Yeah, me too. Exactly the same problem. Combined with lots of audible swearing at cars in front which don't pull away the very second the lights turn green.

    Greg66 wrote:
    Ummm, actually, not so much. I can't trackstand. Which means, obviously, I don't want to.

    How very convenient!

    I, on the other hand, do want to track-stand, so will be entertaining passers-by with failed attempts on a regular basis.
    I was pretty good at freewheel trackstand (could do seated without too much problem) but it took me a while to learn the fixed trackstand (still can't do seated)

    My heart bleeds for you. :roll:
  • don_don
    don_don Posts: 1,007
    More stuff here (although the site is, ahem, MTB related :oops: )

    http://www.63xc.com/gregg/101_12.htm

    And if you really fancy a challenge:

    http://www.63xc.com/gonterian/reverse.htm

    :)
  • Jen J
    Jen J Posts: 1,054
    Hmmm....I now want to move to the fixed wheel on the Bowery for the sole purpose of mastering (there's confidence for you) the trackstand. That's just a stupid idea. Isn't it?

    Can I go fixed already, when yesterday was the first time I forgot to be scared of cycling?
    Commuting: Giant Bowery 08
    Winter Hack: Triandrun Vento 3
    Madone

    It's all about me...
  • Jen J wrote:
    Hmmm....I now want to move to the fixed wheel on the Bowery for the sole purpose of mastering (there's confidence for you) the trackstand. That's just a stupid idea. Isn't it?

    Can I go fixed already, when yesterday was the first time I forgot to be scared of cycling?

    There's only one way to find out...

    Bite the bullet! Go for it!
  • Jen J
    Jen J Posts: 1,054
    Jen J wrote:
    Hmmm....I now want to move to the fixed wheel on the Bowery for the sole purpose of mastering (there's confidence for you) the trackstand. That's just a stupid idea. Isn't it?

    Can I go fixed already, when yesterday was the first time I forgot to be scared of cycling?

    There's only one way to find out...

    Bite the bullet! Go for it!

    OK, so when I post from my hopital bed on Monday, can I blame you? ;)

    Just need to work out how to flip the wheel over...or wait until the weekend and get someone to do it for me...:D
    Commuting: Giant Bowery 08
    Winter Hack: Triandrun Vento 3
    Madone

    It's all about me...
  • Not that hard, but I'd suggest getting a second sprocket for the other side - my bowery has only one sprocket..

    That way you can flip it back easily if need be. Actually, I have the sprocket that came with the Bowery kicking around somewhere, I'll see if I can find it for you. Or have you changed the gearing on yours too?
  • Jen J
    Jen J Posts: 1,054
    Not that hard, but I'd suggest getting a second sprocket for the other side - my bowery has only one sprocket..

    That way you can flip it back easily if need be. Actually, I have the sprocket that came with the Bowery kicking around somewhere, I'll see if I can find it for you. Or have you changed the gearing on yours too?

    The whole bike is as I bought it. I know absolutely nothing yet about chinging stuff, except pedals!

    Thanks for the offer, for now I'll say no thanks, but I'm sure I'll come crying to you in a week asking for help! :D
    Commuting: Giant Bowery 08
    Winter Hack: Triandrun Vento 3
    Madone

    It's all about me...
  • daniel_b
    daniel_b Posts: 11,538
    Jen J wrote:
    Just need to work out how to flip the wheel over...or wait until the weekend and get someone to do it for me...:D

    Just 2 nuts either side of the wheel, loosen them off.
    Push the wheel forwards to slacken the chain enough so you can hook it over one of the stays.
    Extract the wheel, put it back in, making sure you've spun it around :D
    Put the chain back on put a finger or 2 at the front of the wheel, and push it back until you have the desired tension (Check it's central as well), tighten up the bolts (Might be easier to have 2 people to do the last bit)
    Felt F70 05 (Turbo)
    Marin Palisades Trail 91 and 06
    Scott CR1 SL 12
    Cannondale Synapse Adventure 15 & 16 Di2
    Scott Foil 18
  • Daniel, if there's not a sprocket on the 'fixed' side she might struggle... :D

    I know that's not what you meant, by the way. ;)

    And the bowery has chain tugs, which make the tensioning even easier... Go Bowery!
  • Jen J
    Jen J Posts: 1,054
    Daniel, if there's not a sprocket on the 'fixed' side she might struggle... :D

    I know that's not what you meant, by the way. ;)

    And the bowery has chain tugs, which make the tensioning even easier... Go Bowery!

    It may well have two sprockets actually, as I remember checking that it had a flip flop hub when I bought it, even though I didn't know what it meant :oops:

    Bike is 7 floors down so I can't check...damn my lack of a photgraphic memory...
    Commuting: Giant Bowery 08
    Winter Hack: Triandrun Vento 3
    Madone

    It's all about me...
  • Cool, well that removes your one excuse for not going fixed immediately!

    Mine only has one.... :cry:
  • daniel_b
    daniel_b Posts: 11,538
    Apologies, I'm not au fait with the workings of the lesser spotted Bowery :oops:

    I assumed, incorrectly clearly, that SS/Fixies would all have similar infrastructure.

    I can't even begin to picture what a chain tug is I must be honest!

    Dan
    Felt F70 05 (Turbo)
    Marin Palisades Trail 91 and 06
    Scott CR1 SL 12
    Cannondale Synapse Adventure 15 & 16 Di2
    Scott Foil 18
  • Jen J
    Jen J Posts: 1,054
    Daniel B wrote:
    Apologies, I'm not au fait with the workings of the lesser spotted Bowery :oops:

    I didn't even really know myself. And I have one... :oops:
    Commuting: Giant Bowery 08
    Winter Hack: Triandrun Vento 3
    Madone

    It's all about me...
  • here is one in situ

    482502434_c5b63248e8.jpg
    <a>road</a>
  • Clever Pun
    Clever Pun Posts: 6,778
    Greg T wrote:
    Don't tell anyone but......

    I'm having trouble getting to grips with my fixed trackstands....

    I just can't get used to the rolling back with my feet going backwards thing, I'm carrying too much weight on my front foot and just creep forwards all the time.

    Argh

    More practice.

    this... but if I see someone track standing in front of me I make doubly sure I skin them when it comes to actual cycling
    Purveyor of sonic doom

    Very Hairy Roadie - FCN 4
    Fixed Pista- FCN 5
    Beared Bromptonite - FCN 14