Standup Wheelies

[Cleaner]

Anyone here in Columbus do standup wheelies? I've been trying here for a couple of weeks and can only get my front end up about a foot. And that only happens 1 out of 10 tries. I would like to go riding with someone who knows what they're doing so I can watch and learn. Let me know if you'd be willing to help a rookie stunter out.

Cleaner

[NinjaNick]

I got a buddy that can ride all types of wheelies for miles. So I'm not help obviously..lol But I will tell you, start off with left foot on passenger peg, and right foot covering the rear brake. This is the easiest way to learn, my buddy had me doing it once and it worked. But that was all, cuz I'm not interested in keeping doing it. Hope that helps a little. Learn in a parking lot please though.

[CbrGirl]

Learn in a parking lot please though.

Empty parking lot!!

[NinjaNick]

Learn in a parking lot please though.

Empty parking lot!!

+1 Forgot the empty part. Yeah, don't be up at Walmart at Noon doing it.

[yotaman88210]

+12 on keeping the right foot over the back brake. That will save your ass!!! Tap that back brake and the front end will instantly fall down. As long as you have that for insurance you can be more comfortable ripping it up really hard.... parking lot with NO cars FTW!!

[Pedro]

Learn in a parking lot please though.

Empty parking lot!!

We were at Iron Pony a week or so ago and somebody was doing wheelies in a parking lot full of cars. .

+1 to the empty parking lot.

[Chrome]

Good luck on that, make it interesting and do it in a full parking lot there are cars on the road you know!!

[Cleaner]

I'm usually on Riverside. So if you see a guy on a silver CBR 1000 yanking and trying to bounce the front end (and fill with glee once the front end comes up 5 inches) that's probably me.

(I head over to the parking lots sometimes too though)

[SuperHawk]

you guys are crazy, fuck wheelies,lol.

I saw some idiot going down bethel at like 45 w/ his arms crossed, and this wasn't for like 10feet or anything, it was definitely like a full minute at like 40ish mph. He looked like he was doing the indian squat, but just w/ his arms.

And even though I think its cool that people fly by me on the hwy at like 100mph riding wheelies, its really stupid and unsafe at the same time.

I saw some guy trying to do a wheelie the other day, he kept giving it gas and the wheel would come up like 2 inches then it looked like he braked and did it all over again multiple times, lol. i giggled like a schoolgirl to myself. :?

[NinjaNick]

you guys are crazy, fuck wheelies,lol.

I saw some idiot going down bethel at like 45 w/ his arms crossed, and this wasn't for like 10feet or anything, it was definitely like a full minute at like 40ish mph.

I don't do wheelies and not interested, but I have taken both hands off the bars before and sat straight up to stretch backwards and pop my back. I've done that at 100mph before and It was definately over 10feet, more like 1/4-1/2mile realisticly . The Gyro affect keeps that sucker straight up and straight, I'm not going anywhere. Now a wheelie...shit 1 wheel is never total control.

[SuperHawk]

not sure what the gyro efffect is you're speaking of but I wouldn't want to be in your position when you hit a pothole or something in the road or a car swerves over, can you say fuuuuuck?

[flounder]

Ive got a buddy Tim that can do standups for a long damn time.. your best bet if you want to learn them safe is to get ahold of Hinds and ask them when and where you can pay to ride their wheelie machine.. usually about 15-$20. its a zx10 mounted on a trailer with the back tire on a drum and a pivot in the axel.. a rope is tied to the front tire so you cant flip it...

Tim actually learned on it and rode it quite a few times.. It helped his standups alot

[NinjaNick]

not sure what the gyro efffect is you're speaking of but I wouldn't want to be in your position when you hit a pothole or something in the road or a car swerves over, can you say fuuuuuck?

Neither would I, but that's why I don't hit a pothole..lol I don't have cars stuck to my fairings while I travel either..lol. There are times where there aren't cars around. :roll: :tongue: And 100% of the time there isn't cars around me when I have both my hands off the bars. I ride nowhere near Columbus, so I just have to worry about maybe 1 car per 5minutes of traveling. Hell dude sometimes I ride with 1 hand for miles @ 100mph on US35 near Jamestown or Washington Courthouse if I need to take the freeway. You want a deserted freeway, go there. That is topspeed heaven if you came down this way.

[NinjaNick]

not sure what the gyro efffect is you're speaking of ?

Once a wheel is rotating, it develops a certain inertia towards changing direction. The inertia depends on the speed and the weight of the wheel.

And actually it is also the gyro effect in the wheels of the motorcycle that make sure that you don't fall over.

Here's a little of reading I found for you SuperHawk on the gyroscopic effect:

A little physics here to explain this, but we'll make it painless - When you turn, the bike goes from straight up and down to some degree of lean - some angle from vertical. Because of the gyroscopic effect of your wheels the bike tends to resist this change.That's right - those wheels turn into big gyroscopes when they spin! The "gyro effect" is what tends stand the bike up when you ride. When the wheels spin they make the bike want to stay up. You can demonstrate this on your bike - find a safe place and ride your bike at about 30 mph and take your hands off the bars. The bike stays up because of the gyroscopic effect of the wheels. As the bike slows the gyro effect lessens and if you keep your hands off - the bike tips. The amount of "gyroscoping" is dependent on two things - how fast your wheel/tires spin and - that's right - how much they weigh! One ounce of weight on the rim of a 17 inch rim turns into 25 lbs at 100 mph (here's where the physics guys would go into the "mass and acceleration" discussion, but we're going to skip it...) - we want the bike to tip - to change from vertical to lean - and the faster we can go from vertical to leaning the better. That's what is meant by a bike's "turn in" ability. The easier it is to lean into that corner the easier it is to take it faster. We're not about to reduce the speed of the wheel, so to lessen the gyro effect we reduce the weight of the "spinning mass".This is usually the most noticeable difference after changing to lighter wheels. Racers say the bike feels lighter when it weighs virtually the same - it just fights you less....

[Cleaner]

Thanks for the Hinds suggestion Flunder. Hopefully that helps.

That may have been me you saw Superhawk...lol. I can ride 1 wheel pretty good though. Its the standups that are giving me fits at the moment.

[CBRRider]

I'm in Lima, so it's a bit far to help, but..

Are you clutching or powering up your wheelies?

Use the staggered stance, right foot covering the brake at all time, left foot on the passenger peg. It'll feel wierd at first, but once the front end comes up close to the balance point you'll understand why its more comfortable. I've been practicing and trying to learn standups myself.

Im sticking to first gear, for now. I prefer first gear for two reasons, first being that there is more engine braking, second 2nd gear wheels are generally pretty fast, 50+ mph. Id rather have a spill at 15-20 then 50.

Roll to about 15 mph or so, slip the clutch and rev to about 10k, front end up comes up smoothly. just cover the brake.

maybe if im in columbus sometime we can practice, i havent been able to find a decent spot to practice in lima.

[Cleaner]

Thanks for the advice CBR Rider. I've been doing those things. I use the staggered stance too. I can get it up easy in first by rolling on the power. I clutch in second and its not a problem getting it up. I'm just trying not to bite off more than I can chew. So each time I go out and clutch it up in second it comes a bit higher and higher. I'm sure I'll get to bp soon enough.

I am trying to power it up in third with the left foot on the passanger peg. I can only get it off the ground a few inches. Not sure if its my speed (50-60) or I'm not getting enough bounce, etc. That's why I'm looking for some stunters to roll with so I can see what they're doing.

[ohiogsxr750]

DO NOT TOUCH THE CLUTCH IN 1st GEAR!!!!

[NinjaNick]

DO NOT TOUCH THE CLUTCH IN 1st GEAR!!!!

Sure you can! My buddy who can do tank wheelies, stand ups, one legged, etc. Taught me how to do a wheelie before and he had me learning that way...going about 10mph and clutch it up and BAM, I had left foot on passenger peg and right foot covering rear brake. I rode it for about 10 seconds and I couldn't hold it up anymore. That was it, but it was easy learning that way. I haven't done any since then though, I love my bike too much and it's easier to crash on 1 wheel than 2. But there is nothing wrong with clutching up in 1st.

[NinjaNick]

Here's something I found for you to read if you want:

The first thing you need to understand is the different types of wheelies a sport bike can do and what those differences mean to you, the rider. There are several variations of wheelies that can be done on a sport bike however for all intents and purposes now we are going to cover the "at speed" wheelie. Basically the at speed wheelie is in my opinion better for learning and does not require any modifications to the motorcycle.

There are two types of wheelies at speed; one being the stand up wheelie and the other being the sit down wheelie. I also recommend the stand up position for learning, it is easier to get up to the balance point, which is generally higher than most expect as well as provides greater control of the bike once in the balance point. You must perform an action to get the bike up in the wheelie position before concentrating on riding the wheelie.

There are two ways to get a sport bike up into a wheelie. You can either clutch the motorcycle up into a wheelie or you can power it up. Powering the bike up simply involves a good twist of the throttle using the motorcycle's horsepower to pull the front end up off of the ground. This is generally the easiest method to both explain as well as perform. Depending on the size of your bike this can usually be done easiest in 1st gear however I would advise learning in 2nd based on the chances of looping the bike being much greater in 1st gear. 2nd gear on most stock sport bikes is the best spot to learn. The motorcycle is much more forgiving in 2nd gear yet should still have enough power to get all the way up. This is true for both power and clutch wheelies.

To power the bike up simply accelerate to the beginning of the power curve (around 6 thousand rpm's typically) and quickly close and reopen the throttle while pulling up and back on the bars. As the bike floats up come back off of the throttle with it avoiding looping or passing the balance point. Once you are in the balance point the rpms will no longer climb or fall. Also as the bike comes up higher and reaches the balance point it will feel lighter and lighter.

To clutch up a sit down wheelie again accelerate to the beginning of the power curve and in one fluid motion pull in the clutch with only 2 fingers, give the throttle a good whack and snap the clutch out. By snap I mean just let it slip right out of your fingers. This will take several attempts to find the beginning of the power curve and amount of throttle whack to use. Using this method the bike will come up much quicker so be careful with the throttle.

As the bike passes the balance point it will feel as though it is coming out from underneath you and your first reaction will be to panic. Don't. It is almost never too late to save it. Always cover the rear brake in case you experience this feeling. Applying the rear brake will save almost any wheelie from looping out or falling over backwards.

Extra tips:

Setting the wheelie down is another maneuver in itself. If your bike didn't come equipped with one buy a steering stabilizer or damper. I can't tell you how important this little piece of equipment is when setting down a wheelie at speed. Of course always keep the front wheel as straight as possible but realize that after the wheel has been in the air for a while it will no longer be spinning which will make for some interesting set downs. Try to back off of the throttle just slow and easy enough that you actually have control over how softly the front end sets back down on the pavement. Then just as the front wheel is about to set down get back on the throttle to increase speed as the tire makes contact with the asphalt, this will smooth out the wobble caused by the tire returning to speed.

Never practice without a steering damper.

Always stay geared up and DO NOT practice in traffic or on surface streets where there may be traffic or vehicles entering traffic from side streets. When the motorcycle is in the wheelie the headlight is pointing up in the air making you almost invisible to cars entering traffic.

Performing the wheelie on a Sport Bike can be awkward and go against most general Sport Bike riding fundamentals and technique. It is always best to complete a motorcycle-training course and acquire the fundamentals before attempting a stunt as dangerous as a wheelie on a Sport Bike.

[CBRRider]

DO NOT TOUCH THE CLUTCH IN 1st GEAR!!!!

...why? clutching it up, in first, is by far the safest way to go about it.

[CBRRider]

practice practice practice, thats all i can say.

[asian900ss]

Yeah I wanted to learn that shit when I got my bike and like it every once in a while. But then I go to get my suspension set up and come to find out because of it I need new front fork springs. Fuck it it was fun and 150$ well spent. But just a little FYI.

[NinjaNick]

You could suck it up and pay for a wheelie school.

[url:dc48d]http://www.ononewheel.com/[/url:dc48d]

[Bananas]

whats a stund up wheelie