TIP #2: During the forward thrust, your front wheel may leave the ground. You want to push forward and not pull up on the bars. A perfect start is when your front wheel is hovering over the gate as it hits the ground. Crank, crank, crank! Continue to lay down the power to grab the “holeshot” and sprint to the lead.
SPEED JUMPING:
You’ve seen BMX on YouTube, right? You’re probably thinking every jump is there to catch huge air over. WRONG! The object in BMX racing is to get from point-A (the start) to point-B (the finishline) the fastest. And often, catching huge air over the jumps actually slows you down. Not always - but most often.
SNAP!
Believe it or not, pedaling over a jump takes just as much skill as skyin’ over it. Start off speed-jumping the small jumps and build your way up to the larger obstacles - crankin’ the whole way, non-stop. Start off speed jumping the smaller jumps and as you improve, build up to the big ones.
Here’s how to do it: The idea is to
never stop pedaling and keep the rubber to the ground. Coming up to the jump, pull up on the bars—getting your front wheel off the ground and over the first peak of the jump.
TIP #3: As soon as your front wheel clears the peak of the jump, shift your weight back towards the rear wheel to absorb the jump. Body and arm position is key. Use them like a shock absorber as the bike comes up to your stomach, and keep on crankin’!
< MANUALING:
A “manual” looks similar to doing a wheelie in between a set of obstacles; keeping the back wheel attached to the ground the whole way while your front wheel is in the air. The objective is to keep the same momentum, or better yet - build up more, while you whiz thru a section of the course without pedaling. When done properly, it can be a thing of beauty - and the better riders can manual thru entire rhythm sections or straightaways. The secret to manualing like a pro is finding that right balance point. It takes a LOT of time and practice to dial in manualing. Once you’ve mastered it, then you’ll have a huge advantage over your competition.
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