Jumping

[BBking25]

well i went to a place called durhamtown which has about 6 tracks (including the pee-wee), tons of trails.. and freestyle (and much more, recommend it to anyone in southeast)

i tried a small mx track with table tops and small jumps, at the beginning, since neither my father (who wasn't riding it this time) nor i knew how to jump these properly so i was just doing hit and miss... some jumps i do okay and can almost clear, others i tend to land on my nose or something like that

my terrible TTR125Ls suspension doesn't help either, but i'm gonna tighten it up... can someone give me suggestions about jumping in general, not just landing on your nose because i've landed on my rear wheel plenty of times too

we enjoyed it so much though, we came back this week too and i did a little better, but it was more crowded on the weekend so i couldn't practice as well knowing people were coming behind me or having to slow to let them pass...
thanks for any help!

 

[IndyMX]

just takes practice...

if you are landing nose down, sounds like you might be chopping the throttle on the take off... Don't do that.. Steady throttle...

If you land nose high, you probably tried to accelerate off the take off.. not good either.

May be best to get the speed you think you will need before hitting the take off, then roll off the throttle before the face of the jump. Don't chop hard, just don't be wound out, unless that's what the jump needs.

 

[mx4life]

if ur nose is going down , giv it a little gas in the air, it straightens right out, and iff its going nose up, tap the break.

 

[trial_07]

if ur nose is going down , giv it a little gas in the air, it straightens right out, and iff its going nose up, tap the break.

If you do tap the break, don't forget to pull in the clutch first.

 

[High Lord Gomer]

I wish I had known...I was out there Saturday, too. It was kind of a last minute thing for us. Next time I'll be sure to post beforehand.

 

[JD_MXRacer]

one of the most important tips is to keep an even throttle dont hit it right before you jump and dont let off right before or you will go nose first or land on your back wheel. just get the speed you think you will need and hold it there off the jump from there use the brake/gas thing to help in the air

 

[BBking25]

can i be constantly accelerating? i've been losing speed along the berms because there is rubble making it very slick...

if i'm constantly acclerating will i land tail side? why do you need to have the clutch and front brake pulled at the same time? thanks

i'm gonna try to take them a little faster next time in hopes to clear the whole table rather than getting almost to the end... i just gotta get this stuff in midair down

 

[atmasters]

I will always let off the gas once I am airborn. If you do not pull in the clutch you will stall the bike and that is not good LOL. Just keep the clutch in if you stall and make a good landing. at our track I just get the speed I will need and let off before the jump but I still ride the KX 250.

 

[David Rocci]

Where is durhamtown?

 

[rigi144]

practice practice practice, and if you do start doing better, dont get too cocky cuz i did and took a nice tumble so just keep workin at it! it takes time

 

[High Lord Gomer]

Where is durhamtown?

About 60 miles east of Atlanta.

http://durhamtown.com/

 

[BBking25]

ya you can do alot at durhamtown, but chicago is kinda far away...

i'm just gonna try to push myself harder, go faster in hopes of landing on the down slopes instead of the middle of the table...

is this smart or just foolish? i mean, thats why i where pads, so i might as well push harder to try and get better

 

[HubertGarfunkleIII]

you can push yourself, but dont go overboard or you will get hurt. Pads are good. If you take skateboarding for example, those guys that dont wear anypads, try and grind a rail down some stairs, fall on their(face,elbow, etc) than they get hurt real bad and cant try it again. However if they just had on some pads they could have fallen, not gotten hurt. And got right back up and tried it again and again until they got it. Thus improving. This way they can push themselves and be able to accomplish something that otherwise they couldnt have done had they not been wearing pads.

 

[BBking25]

ya, ever since i ripped my leg open i got (besides helmet and gloves) chest/elbow/kidney belt... also boots and i'm gonna wear some knee pads this time too

 

[High Lord Gomer]

I'll likely be out there Sunday the 29th if you want me to see what you're doing and make some suggestions.

I assume you're riding mostly the MX-3 track and the kid's track by the parking area?

 

[BBking25]

ya MX-3.. .my dad have tried to the woods mx courses, but htey were waay to tough...

i'm not sure if i'll be there, my dad hadn't taken me mxing ever and he took me last week and we enjoyed it so much we went back the week after!!! thats a good thing :)

except this weekend i think we're gonna do some wakeboarding (or me at least, i'm the only one who'll jump in the water!!!)... so we gotta clean up the boat and prep it...

if i go that weekend i'll keep you posted, and if i don't i'm the kid whose too big for his 04 ttr125L haha

 

[hunter #51]

i can clear all of the table tops and singles but my big problem is the doubles what should i do and my first race is on the 28 my true age is 13 and i ride a kawisaki KX250F i dont no what to do i gonna lose probaly

 

[JD_MXRacer]

dude dont expect to win your first race. it might even be bad if you did. if you go out there and ride faster than your skill level you could get hurt.
for your first race just take it easy and kind of hang back the first couple of laps to watch how others handle certain parts of the track

 

[DannyMoto07]

can i be constantly accelerating? i've been losing speed along the berms because there is rubble making it very slick...

if i'm constantly acclerating will i land tail side? why do you need to have the clutch and front brake pulled at the same time? thanks

i'm gonna try to take them a little faster next time in hopes to clear the whole table rather than getting almost to the end... i just gotta get this stuff in midair down

First off, when you're in the air, your pitch is decided by your takeoff... you control the pitch with the rear wheel. Accelerating the rear wheel with cause the bike to nose-up via a low-pressure zone under the bike caused by the spinning rear wheel. Applying the brake in the rear will take the spinning momentum and transfer it up into the rear of the frame pushing the nose of the bike down. Unless you are positive you are going to land too far back on your rear wheel, you don't really need to ever tap the rear brake... landing on the front 1/3 of your rear wheel is perfect, flat-landing on a downhill ramp is what you want to shoot for.

Tapping the front brake in the air won't do a whole lot... plus it's EXTREMELY dangerous if you forget you've applied the front brake as you land... noseplants hurt.

As for the MX training... big, flat fields and a coned or poled out figure-8 will give you some amazing practice with clutch, brake, gear shifting, and acceleration/deceleration through conrners. You need to pull your clutch in FIRST once you approach a corner then apply your front brake, then shift, then let out the brake and clutch at the same time and accelerate out. It's all balance... you just need a good space to practice.

Good luck.

Dan

 

[High Lord Gomer]

Accelerating the rear wheel with cause the bike to nose-up via a low-pressure zone under the bike caused by the spinning rear wheel.

OMG, that is too funny!

You've got the action and effect correct, but the reason is way off. The conservation of angular momentum applies both when you speed up or slow down the rear wheel. Your description for what happens and why when you hit the rear brake was dead on, though.

landing on the front 1/3 of your rear wheel is perfect

Maybe on an RT or when you expect to land really hard, but on a properly executed jump with an MX bike with good suspension, landing with the front wheel just before the back (with the gas on) is generally preferred.

 

[DannyMoto07]

landing with the front wheel just before the back (with the gas on) is generally preferred.

Really? Even with all my quad experience I've always been told to land on my back wheel(s) first. Landing on the front creates more potential to throw the weight of the bike off and throw your back end left or right.

Maybe with lighter MX bikes this is totally different and I simply haven't had enough experience to try that... sorry for the confusion!

P.S... that low-pressure zone was half-joking... :)

Dan

 

[High Lord Gomer]

If you land with the rear first you pretty much have to wait for the front to come down before you can get on the gas. If you land front first (slightly) you can be on the gas and driving forward as soon as you land. Also, if you get kicked sideways in the air at all, it is much better to land with the front wheel first, with it pointed in the desired direction. That will help the bike follow the front instead of high-siding from landing sideways on the rear wheel.

The only time I try to land on the rear first is if I have over (or under) jumped something and expect a really hard hit that my wrists may not be able to take.

 

[High Lord Gomer]

BBKing...you going to be there Sunday? I may be able to drag out a KX85 for you to try.

 

[BBking25]

weather depending, i know we gotta clean our boat, and me wakeboard on saturday or sunday :)

it probably depends on which day is cooler, because my dad prefers the cool rather than hot, which of course is much better for me and wakeboarding, but i'll keep you posted, thanks for all the help

 

[High Lord Gomer]

Awww, the weather will be the same Saturday and Sunday. Tell dad that an old, fat, slow guy is going to show up with lies about how he used to be fast. :)