It is because you are too stiff. Relax when you are in the air that is the key. One thing that really helps is to move a little in the air... just a little bar turn does wonders. Also as you approach the jump do a little shake off move... and make sure you don't have a death grip on the bars.massmang said:
What am I doing wrong???
When I go over jumps.. even smaller ones I have a tendency to land on the side of my tirees... I am not straight up and down when I land I come down as if I am banking a sharp turn...
I crashed today when this happened..
I was hopeing someone here could shed some light on what I am possibly doing wrong..
I am hopeing it is a common noob mistake, that is easy to correct....
thanks in advance for your answers
I crashed today when this happened..
I was hopeing someone here could shed some light on what I am possibly doing wrong..
I am hopeing it is a common noob mistake, that is easy to correct....
thanks in advance for your answers
1 - 20 of 21 Posts
That would explain things.... I was a little nervous... (3rd day on clipless pedals) so I was probably stiffer than usual.Axis said:It is because you are too stiff. Relax when you are in the air that is the key. One thing that really helps is to move a little in the air... just a little bar turn does wonders. Also as you approach the jump do a little shake off move... and make sure you don't have a death grip on the bars.
I have gone over a few jumps no problem, but a couple times I have landed like I described... usualy also when I am going over one for the first time..
I will try to loosen up next time..
I found my biggest problem when jumping on anything mtb, snowboard or whatever else is I was trying way to hard to get air. Essentially I was lifting so hard off jumps that it threw off my positioning while in the air. I found the best remedy for both sports is just hit the jump faster and let your bike/board get the air rather than forcing it.* I saw the light while boarding a few years ago when I hit a jump extremely fast(relative to how fast I USE to) and I landed on the downside of the jump as opposed to the table top part. It actually absorbed my board rather than the feeling youd get of falling ten feet flat on to cement like I was before.(Kinda hard to control the landing like that)
Secondly and what was mentioned above was the mental block I had of stiffening up right before the landing. On the board I'd either lock my legs(a terrible terrible idea) or bike - stiffen up my body right before the landing. Just relax and absorb the jump its a hell of a lot fun-ner to just fly - jump - land and keep cruisin as opposed to jump - stiffen - land hard/rough and either barely pull it out or crash.
My .02. Bottom line I just think you need to relax in the air, let the bike do the take off and DON'T THINK TO MUCH! Whenever I think to much about anything (Can I fit between those two trees, is there enough room to land before that turn, can I make it up this hill, can i make it over that tree) I always fall or find myself on the verge of fallin.
* I am in no way shape or form responsible if anyone gets injured for trying to jump while going to fast.
Secondly and what was mentioned above was the mental block I had of stiffening up right before the landing. On the board I'd either lock my legs(a terrible terrible idea) or bike - stiffen up my body right before the landing. Just relax and absorb the jump its a hell of a lot fun-ner to just fly - jump - land and keep cruisin as opposed to jump - stiffen - land hard/rough and either barely pull it out or crash.
My .02. Bottom line I just think you need to relax in the air, let the bike do the take off and DON'T THINK TO MUCH! Whenever I think to much about anything (Can I fit between those two trees, is there enough room to land before that turn, can I make it up this hill, can i make it over that tree) I always fall or find myself on the verge of fallin.
* I am in no way shape or form responsible if anyone gets injured for trying to jump while going to fast.
whoa, holy smokes! :nono: your problems begin right there. do you also have your seatpost extended way up your crotch as well? I am in no way ripping xc riding here, as I do it as well, but DJ and XC are very different beasts that need to be kept separated!(3rd day on clipless pedals)
but, just practice like mad, bunny hops will help your flow as well. it won't be and easy fix necessarily. if you just keep crashing, hopefully your instinct will kick in after awhile, and you will learn to move in the correct motions, or it's darwinism for you.
another mistake then.. I tried hard to spring off of it aswell......GFisher2001 said:I found my biggest problem when jumping on anything mtb, snowboard or whatever else is I was trying way to hard to get air. Essentially I was lifting so hard off jumps that it threw off my positioning while in the air. I found the best remedy for both sports is just hit the jump faster and let your bike/board get the air rather than forcing it.* I saw the light while boarding a few years ago when I hit a jump extremely fast(relative to how fast I USE to) and I landed on the downside of the jump as opposed to the table top part. It actually absorbed my board rather than the feeling youd get of falling ten feet flat on to cement like I was before.(Kinda hard to control the landing like that)
Secondly and what was mentioned above was the mental block I had of stiffening up right before the landing. On the board I'd either lock my legs(a terrible terrible idea) or bike - stiffen up my body right before the landing. Just relax and absorb the jump its a hell of a lot fun-ner to just fly - jump - land and keep cruisin as opposed to jump - stiffen - land hard/rough and either barely pull it out or crash.
My .02. Bottom line I just think you need to relax in the air, let the bike do the take off and DON'T THINK TO MUCH! Whenever I think to much about anything (Can I fit between those two trees, is there enough room to land before that turn, can I make it up this hill, can i make it over that tree) I always fall or find myself on the verge of fallin.
* I am in no way shape or form responsible if anyone gets injured for trying to jump while going to fast.
kee p the suggestions coming ... so far good advise....
thanks guys
stay loose and relaxed, also keep your elbows level
yeah seat was up high as well, my bike is an all mountain bike, and that is mostly what I am trying to do.. there are some decent jumps at my local trails I want to start hitting, but not till I get better at jumping the small stuff... I guess I should have explained I was not dirt jumping... I just asked in this section cause I figured if anyone could answer questions about jumping it would be you guys... the jump was not big at all...BikeSATORI said:whoa, holy smokes! :nono: your problems begin right there. do you also have your seatpost extended way up your crotch as well? I am in no way ripping xc riding here, as I do it as well, but DJ and XC are very different beasts that need to be kept separated!
but, just practice like mad, bunny hops will help your flow as well. it won't be and easy fix necessarily. if you just keep crashing, hopefully your instinct will kick in after awhile, and you will learn to move in the correct motions, or it's darwinism for you.
I try to kind of bunnyhop off the jump... I am sure that is wrong too...
I've had this happen to me a few times when I didn't pull back enough or my front wheel dipped below my back one. It also happens when you don't take the jump straight on. It's a lot harder to straighten the bike in the air when you took off a bit tweaked. So, all in all, lean your butt back behind the saddle and make sure you hit the jump head on. Good luck...
I did that too... damn no wonder why I crashed.. I did everything wrong....pavement_hurts said:I've had this happen to me a few times when I didn't pull back enough or my front wheel dipped below my back one. It also happens when you don't take the jump straight on. It's a lot harder to straighten the bike in the air when you took off a bit tweaked. So, all in all, lean your butt back behind the saddle and make sure you hit the jump head on. Good luck...
Let me just put this all into one post. Loose and relaxed, ride it head on, with enough speed(overclearing is much better than casing on you and your bike), lift equally with both arms if you want to give it any boost at all, don't ride clipped in if you can help it(allows you to bail out easier), try to keep your bike level in the air, if your front wheel is coming down, lean back and land on both wheels or slightly rear wheel first, else it could hurt big time. That's all I can think of.
the only thing you can do wrong is not make it to the landing of the jump. like was mentioned, stop thinking, I know you need to get the basics down, but let instinct take over more. lower your seat to get some room to get your back tire up like a bunnyhop in the air, but don't exagerate the bunny hop so much on the lip.I did everything wrong....
ok I will give the loose, and relaxed thing a try... I will try to do all of the things you guys said but most importantly that...
not sure when though.. I think I broke a rib.. it hurts when I cough, or laugh..
it's weird cause it doesn't hurt when I press on them.. my back is a little sore as well...
I think the only thing I did do right was relaxed when I hit the ground, and didn't put my arm out to brake my fall..
I relaxed too late I guess..
not sure when though.. I think I broke a rib.. it hurts when I cough, or laugh..
it's weird cause it doesn't hurt when I press on them.. my back is a little sore as well...
I think the only thing I did do right was relaxed when I hit the ground, and didn't put my arm out to brake my fall..
I relaxed too late I guess..
I find this happens more with clipless too, you can't angle your bike under you as easily to correct any balances issues mid-air (by rolling your feet side to side on the pedals). The clipless pedals force your feet flat on the 'pedals' all the time, which means it's mainly your knees and hips that have to take up any side to side slack in mid air, not the easiest thing to do. Maybe think about getting a cheap set of flat pedals to throw on real quick while you work on the jumping.
Certainly possible to jump stuff in clipless (not ideal at all, but possible), but you might be better off with flats initially to help you learn better technique. Get those down and then go back and try it some more with the clipless once you're more comfortable in the air, and know how your bike handles.
I also found that the narrower handlebars on XC bikes work against you some too, your arms are tucked in more and you have less leverage to correct mid-air position as well. So really focus on keeping your arms relaxed, and elbows out and level to compensate.
Certainly possible to jump stuff in clipless (not ideal at all, but possible), but you might be better off with flats initially to help you learn better technique. Get those down and then go back and try it some more with the clipless once you're more comfortable in the air, and know how your bike handles.
I also found that the narrower handlebars on XC bikes work against you some too, your arms are tucked in more and you have less leverage to correct mid-air position as well. So really focus on keeping your arms relaxed, and elbows out and level to compensate.
makes sense about the clipless.... I have a pair of flats that I took off before I got the clipless.. I will throw them on before practicing anymore jumps for sure...Tarekith said:I find this happens more with clipless too, you can't angle your bike under you as easily to correct any balances issues mid-air (by rolling your feet side to side on the pedals). The clipless pedals force your feet flat on the 'pedals' all the time, which means it's mainly your knees and hips that have to take up any side to side slack in mid air, not the easiest thing to do. Maybe think about getting a cheap set of flat pedals to throw on real quick while you work on the jumping.
Certainly possible to jump stuff in clipless (not ideal at all, but possible), but you might be better off with flats initially to help you learn better technique. Get those down and then go back and try it some more with the clipless once you're more comfortable in the air, and know how your bike handles.
I also found that the narrower handlebars on XC bikes work against you some too, your arms are tucked in more and you have less leverage to correct mid-air position as well. So really focus on keeping your arms relaxed, and elbows out and level to compensate.
how bout some samples of how to correct in mid air...
for example the bike leans way to far to the right.. like what happened to me... what could I have done in mid air to get the bike back to a good landing angle?
what about if it were to lean to the left.. etc...
let say it seems like I am gonna endo, or come down with my front tire way to high up.... what can be done about that???
What happened? Hmm, you're too stiff, you pulled maybe a bit harder with one hand, your weight wasn't even on both pedalsm etc. Hard to say without seeing it.
I know I did a couple things wrong... I am just wondering what can be done to correct while I am in mid air if I ever find myself in this position again.... for example if the bike leans way right, should I turn the bars to the right, or left???? whould it make any difference?Tarekith said:What happened? Hmm, you're too stiff, you pulled maybe a bit harder with one hand, your weight wasn't even on both pedalsm etc. Hard to say without seeing it.
pedal options
When I bought my bike it came with clipless pedals. I had never used them before and when I started jumping and getting more daring I bought a set of flat pedals to practice with. I got sick of changing pedals all the time or having to wear my biking shoes just to mess around. I was also new to bunny hopping and felt I was cheating using the clipless pedals to pull the rear of the bike up.
My solution was to buy a set of dual pupose pedals (Shimano M324's) which have been on my bike 95% of the time since I bought them. I can now use my bike shoes and clip them in or I can flip the pedal over and use the flat side when I am trying something more daring than usual or practicing bunny hopping without cheating the back end up.
Good luck,
Matt
When I bought my bike it came with clipless pedals. I had never used them before and when I started jumping and getting more daring I bought a set of flat pedals to practice with. I got sick of changing pedals all the time or having to wear my biking shoes just to mess around. I was also new to bunny hopping and felt I was cheating using the clipless pedals to pull the rear of the bike up.
My solution was to buy a set of dual pupose pedals (Shimano M324's) which have been on my bike 95% of the time since I bought them. I can now use my bike shoes and clip them in or I can flip the pedal over and use the flat side when I am trying something more daring than usual or practicing bunny hopping without cheating the back end up.
Good luck,
Matt
are you sitting or standing when you launch??
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