Jumping: gas or clutch it?

[DieselX]

Sup guys. I'm new to motorbikes but not jumping, been downhill mountain biking for years.

When you jump, do you gas a little, not do anything, or clutch it?

I'm asking because I get a little paranoid of landing and hitting the throttle hard (falling back), so I usually land while pressing the clutch. I've landed with a little gas too before, I just want to know if I should stop being paranoid and let go off that clutch?

Thanks

 

[russdaddy]

i dunno about everyone else but i personally dont use my clutch when i do jumps,i normally justgive it a bit of throttle,becareful not to give it too much thow cuz it'll throw the bike backwards

 

[_JOE_]

It depends on the situation. You can use the throttle/brake to correct the bikes flight. Say you go foo the jump too hard on the gas and the front end goes way up on you, tap the brakes. If the opposite happens and you go off front heavy use the throttle to level it out. It's generally a good idea to land ON the gas. This will help the bike straighten out if necessary. Keeping a finger on the clutch to keep the engine from stalling while hitting the brake in the air is a good idea. Once you get some more seat time you will be able to tell how the bike will fly as you come up to the jump. Once you get a feel for that you can use body positioning to correct for it even before it happens.

 

[Chili]

Normal circumstances you land on the gas, it makes for a much nicer landing.

 

[kaboom1371]

I almost always pull my clutch in once i'm in the air. that way I never forget to do it if I need to hit the rear brake. nothing scarier than stalling a bike in mid air if you hit the rear brake and forget to pull in the clutch. it's easy to just dump the clutch with a fist full of throttle if your tail end wants to go over. then just before my rear tire hits I dump the clutch while on the gas. jumping is something you get the hang of by trial and error for yourself to get it. a lot of what you do is having your suspension set right and knowing how it will react and to never panic no matter how bad you think it is always keep a cool head and deal with the situation at hand. watch videos and pay attention to the sounds of the bike, the rear tire and what they are doing. there is so much to jumping. if your just hitting a 2 foot jump for 8 feet. I compress my suspession and stand up once my rear wheel hits bump.

 

[DieselX]

Thanks for the advice. One thing I definitely need to do is tune the suspension for my weight.

 

[hot125mod]

stay fluid in the air and on the approach I used to try to jump thinking I was a two by four and it never worked out. START SMALL never bite off more than you know you can handle as far as jumps, cornering is a big part too.