Clearing a Tire Trap

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Clearing a Tire Trap

Bunny Hop: If you have enough speed, you can bunny hop the whole bike over at once. This is done by throwing your weight down on the pedals to "jump" your body up into the air, then dragging the bike up under you by lifting up (gently) with both your feet and the handlebars. This is the only way to clear large holes (wider than about 18 inches).

Approaching the gap, sprint to increase your speed. Keep your eyes high, looking past the hole. Get up off the seat, and level your feet on the pedals. (Most of us have a "preferred foot forward" -- if we usually jump with the right foot in front, it seems clumsy having the left foot in front. Practice bunny-hopping while alternating your leading foot.) Center your body over the crank, feeling the weight in your feet.

As the front wheel reaches the edge, jump as if you're going up for a basketball rebound. The bike will compress down (with the weight going straight through the crank), and both wheels will rebound up equally. Lift up lightly with both hands and feet, then wait for the bike to return to earth. Practice longer and longer jumps -- for this jump, "flight distance" must be 8 feet if the rear tire is to land on rock.

Side Hop: When approaching a small crack at a sharp angle, you can clear the "not rock" by side-hopping the rear wheel. This works well for an angle of approach of 30 degrees or less, and can be done at slower speeds than a standard bunny hop. Begin the bunny hop as above, but make a slight lean towards the crack as you start the jump. As the bike comes up into the air, swing the rear end around towards the crack. Let the bike come sideways a bit past your center of gravity. (This takes a bit of parking-lot practice.) The bike will land on the far side of the crack, aiming in a direction of travel more parallel to the crack than before.

Dip with a tire trap at the bottom:


Dip with a tire trap: As the bike drops into the dip, let your body rise off the seat higher than you usually would. Keep your body over the seat -- in "freefall" position.	As the front wheel approaches the bottom of the dip and tire trap, pull the front of the bike up hard under you. (Don't hang back and "wheelie" -- you need to pull the bike up and a bit back.)


As the front tire approaches the far side, your body is actually moving forward of the seat. As the tire touches, put your weight on the handlebars to unload the rear wheel. (Rear tire can lift off the ground.)	As the rear wheel hits the far side, your body continues forward relative to the bike as it climbs the far wall of the dip, with weight on the handlebars.

Dolphin: Smaller tire traps can be cleared with a "one-two" motion, clearing the front wheel, then the rear. When approaching a hole or crack at slower speed, compress the handlebars as the front wheel reaches the edge. As the bike rebounds, pull up on the handlebars until the front tire has cleared. Immediately shove down on the handlebars, transferring your weight forward onto your hands. Pull up slightly with your feet to keep the rear wheel from dropping in.

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