Wheelies

Badguyblack · 09-24-2009, 9:14 AM

Can you flip the bike in first gear if you are trying to do a power wheelie? I'm trying to learn how to wheelie the bike without popping the clutch. I heard you can lose sprocket teeth by popping the clutch. I'm not trying to mess up my bike, just trying to ride it better

dicknose · 09-24-2009, 9:19 AM

Yes you can flip the bike.
No learning wheelies is not trying to ride "better"

Badguyblack · 09-24-2009, 9:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dicknose

Yes you can flip the bike.
No learning wheelies is not trying to ride "better"

Is it better to pop the clutch or just do the power wheelie?

DukeCBR2008 · 09-24-2009, 9:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Badguyblack

Is it better to pop the clutch or just do the power wheelie?

oh dear...

setanta · 09-24-2009, 9:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DukeCBR2008

oh dear...

ldavis · 09-24-2009, 10:28 AM

this site does not regard stunting very highly, i suggest you check out some place like stuntlife dot com or one of many available out there.

bladeracer · 09-24-2009, 10:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Badguyblack

Can you flip the bike in first gear if you are trying to do a power wheelie? I'm trying to learn how to wheelie the bike without popping the clutch. I heard you can lose sprocket teeth by popping the clutch. I'm not trying to mess up my bike, just trying to ride it better

Any wheelie has the possibility of flipping it over. The problem with power wheelies is that it requires a _lot_ of power to start it compared to how little is required to hold it up. This requires very good timing and throttle control as you are closing the throttle long before balance point.
Popping the clutch is a misnomer. Done properly, you're actually slipping the clutch rather than just dumping it. It can cause more rapid wear on the chain and sprockets but I've never heard of actually tearing teeth off.

bladeracer · 09-24-2009, 10:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dicknose

No learning wheelies is not trying to ride "better"

I disagree totally.
Wheelies teach you much finer control of throttle and weight transfer so you can certainly learn a lot from it that helps your riding in general. The throttle control is especially useful for wet weather riding.

bladeracer · 09-24-2009, 10:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Badguyblack

Is it better to pop the clutch or just do the power wheelie?

To my mind, neither is the best way.
The best way is to bounce the front up using the front suspension. Accelerate, close the throttle and then whack it on again _just_ as the suspension begins to extend again. Timing is the most important part of it. Get the timing right and very little effort is required with the throttle.
For slower wheelies use the clutch. Power wheelies are far too fast for beginners. They start to lift very slowly but require so much throttle that the bike accelerates upwards very quickly.

slinky · 09-24-2009, 11:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bladeracer

I disagree totally.
Wheelies teach you much finer control of throttle and weight transfer so you can certainly learn a lot from it that helps your riding in general. The throttle control is especially useful for wet weather riding.

I agree with blade on this one. I think every rider should know the feeling of the front end coming up. Ive heard many stories of people rolling on the throttle to hard and not knowing what to do at that point as they were caught of guard and got spooked. I am in no way saying practice doing wheelies up and down your street as this is not safe.

sheepofblue · 09-24-2009, 4:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by slinky

I agree with blade on this one. I think every rider should know the feeling of the front end coming up. Ive heard many stories of people rolling on the throttle to hard and not knowing what to do at that point as they were caught of guard and got spooked. I am in no way saying practice doing wheelies up and down your street as this is not safe.

Never learned to wheelie in over 40 years of riding. I have had the front end come up and the back end come around and it hasn't bothered me because I didn't practice having less control. Of course it disappoints the drones on the side of the road trying to get me to wheelie since I have a 1000

Of course now I am fat old and slow

arthurbikemad · 09-24-2009, 4:29 PM

OMG! I think you do need to understand wheelies, I do not need to dip the clucth with my RR, she has the umph to pull long power wheelies with ease. My advice, go find something smaller like a trials/mx bike to learn the basics, then move on to other bikes. Seat position, throttle control, clutch control, balance, brake are all part of wheelies, you know when you are mastering it as they all feel like one. Don't go gunning your bike for the sake of looking cool. Take care. there are some good helpful vids on youtube.!

Stay cool!

slinky · 09-24-2009, 4:39 PM

i guess i should have clarified that it was more for the NOOB then anyone. I have heard a lot of stories lately about people buying 1krr as their first bike and that is what is happening. They are goosing it and coming up and then don't know what to do as they have not ridden before

steingar · 09-24-2009, 4:44 PM

Wheelies don't teach you a damn thing about how to ride the bike, they just demonstrate how big an asshole you are. The skills you most need to ride a bike well are how to turn and stop quickly. The rest is judgement. Superior judgement allows the superior rider to avoid relying on his/her superior skills.

arthurbikemad · 09-24-2009, 4:47 PM

I think after over 20 year of riding dirt,mx,enduro,quads, etc etc, even now my RR makes me think wow! How did we get to this, how do honda make the 1krr go like this, well plus an akra and a few other bits, but still a new rider on a 1krr! Now thats scary! No wonder some end up toast... :S

I do think that if you can't pull a safe wheelie then you are only half a rider, not an asshole, there is a difference between a controlled wheele and a nob. A nob is dangerouse on both wheels!!!!

Twincam · 09-24-2009, 6:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by arthurbikemad

I do think that if you can't pull a safe wheelie then you are only half a rider, not an asshole, there is a difference between a controlled wheele and a nob. A nob is dangerouse on both wheels!!!!

When I used to run MX bikes I would constantly be on the back wheel... although I was also in a controlled enviroment.

I don't think you need to be able to wheelie to make you a rider at all, you just need to know how to control one and land one properly therefore reducing the chance of a tank slap.

DukeCBR2008 · 09-24-2009, 6:25 PM

amazing how many replies he got, apparently no real answer to his question though

Option 1: shift in the first gear, completely release the cluth and fully open the throttle and that lil bike of yours is going up when u reach around 7k RPM.
Option 2: shift in 2nd gear, pull the clutch and push the throttle until you reach approx 11k RPM and slip it and that front wheel will not touch the ground anymore...
thirdly if you wanna do long wheelies, take some air pressure out of the rear tire...
BUT NOW MOST IMPORTANTLY: ONLY ATTEMPT this on the TRACK (when u r by yourself whilst all the others are having a refreshing drink already after a long track day or in a closed environment. Bad enough that you wanna hurt yourself, dont hurt others at least.
BTW, that may help: leave your foot on the rear brake so that you can quickly get the front wheel down safely in case of emergency. If you wanna stand while doing a wheelie, use your left foot on the rear peg, never let your right foot leave the brake.
Last but not least, rent a bike with full coverage for your first attempts, i am sure you dont want to wreck your own ride...

Badguyblack · 09-24-2009, 7:21 PM

Let me start off by saying i'm not trying to kill myself and that i respect my bike to the fullest. I layed down my friends Suzuki 500 when I was learning how to ride. So I have much respect for two wheeled machines and its not about looking cool or being an asshole. I took the Abate class and got my license, I practice riding the bike everyday. cornering , stopping, breaking, etc. Just want to be a better rider thats all. Thanks for everyone's feedback.

jazzy · 09-24-2009, 7:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Badguyblack

Is it better to pop the clutch or just do the power wheelie?

Quote:

Originally Posted by DukeCBR2008

oh dear...

Twincam · 09-24-2009, 8:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Badguyblack

Let me start off by saying i'm not trying to kill myself and that i respect my bike to the fullest. I layed down my friends Suzuki 500 when I was learning how to ride. So I have much respect for two wheeled machines and its not about looking cool or being an asshole. I took the Abate class and got my license, I practice riding the bike everyday. cornering , stopping, breaking, etc. Just want to be a better rider thats all. Thanks for everyone's feedback.

I would say to improve your riding I would book myself into as many motorcycle classes I can, improve on your techniques, be more "flowing" with what you do and lastly, to book myself into a few track days (you can learn bundles from them).

I'm not sure how learning to do wheelies will improve your riding abilities - unless you want to be a stunter (if thats the case, although we don't promote anything to do with that field, I would say go buy yourself a Motocross bike and practise on some dirt tracks - go back to basics and build your way up).

bladeracer · 09-24-2009, 9:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by steingar

Wheelies don't teach you a damn thing about how to ride the bike, they just demonstrate how big an asshole you are. The skills you most need to ride a bike well are how to turn and stop quickly. The rest is judgement. Superior judgement allows the superior rider to avoid relying on his/her superior skills.

What do wheelies have to do with being an arsehole?
I've been doing wheelies for over twenty years. Rarely do I do them when other people are around. I enjoy them for myself not to show off to others.
In fact, I STRONGLY recommend not practicing them if you're riding with other people. As a beginner, you need to stay focussed on controlling the bike and feeling what it is doing. You do not want to be thinking about who is watching or what other riders are doing. And you most definately do not want to be wasting your attention watching out for other road users or Police officers.

Twincam · 09-24-2009, 9:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bladeracer

You do not want to be thinking about who is watching or what other riders are doing.

Get the basics sorted first, then you can start playing around (in controlled enviroments that is)

bladeracer · 09-24-2009, 9:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DukeCBR2008

amazing how many replies he got, apparently no real answer to his question though

I thought I addressed his questions fairly well.
He didn't ask _how_ to do wheelies.

greyghost1krr · 09-24-2009, 9:20 PM

Personally I would not entertain any thoughts of using first gear for any attempts of wheelies. Second would be the better and safer choice to start a wheelie. Too much torque in first, get to know the power first and where it comes on.

dicknose · 09-25-2009, 1:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bladeracer

I disagree totally.
Wheelies teach you much finer control of throttle and weight transfer so you can certainly learn a lot from it that helps your riding in general. The throttle control is especially useful for wet weather riding.

There are better ways to learn it that wheeling - especially if you are doing it public roads.

Sure its handy to know what happens when a bike wheelies and how to control it. They are all too easy to do with someone on the back.
But I dont think learning to do them is improving your riding compared to lots of other things you could learn.
Certainly as an attitude its a bad sign - someone who wants to wheelie is probably the sort of person who is going to be a danger on the road. Thinking that mastering wheelies is an important step for a new rider to be safe is also a bad idea!

Destructo · 09-25-2009, 3:33 AM

We have wheelie schools over here in the UK - maybe there's one near to where you live? They teach you how to wheelie on their bikes. Be careful though as I have heard some schools gear their bikes down to make it easier, so when you get back on your own bike their techniques do not work.

bladeracer · 09-25-2009, 4:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dicknose

There are better ways to learn it that wheeling - especially if you are doing it public roads.

Sure its handy to know what happens when a bike wheelies and how to control it. They are all too easy to do with someone on the back.
But I dont think learning to do them is improving your riding compared to lots of other things you could learn.
Certainly as an attitude its a bad sign - someone who wants to wheelie is probably the sort of person who is going to be a danger on the road.

I think you're painting a whole lot of very different people with a very broad brush. I know _heaps_ of people that wheelie and they aren't endangering people on the roads. I also know riders that are a danger to everybody out there and they couldn't wheelie to save their life. I know one moron that actually worked at a bike shop, got pissed after work, wheelied his GSXR up the street and flipped it into somebody's parked car. He simply picked up his bike and rode off leaving them to try to find him - which wasn't too difficult at all.

bladeracer · 09-25-2009, 4:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dicknose

But I dont think learning to do them is improving your riding compared to lots of other things you could learn.

There are lots of ways to improve your skills. It's a fact though that learning anything is much better and easier the more enjoyable it is.

dicknose · 09-25-2009, 7:05 AM

Improving your riding is mostly about having a bigger gap between your ability and what you attempt.
Improving your ability but pushing closer to your limits doesnt not make you safer. Throw in that your limits can be increasing, so when you do get it wrong its far worse.

So sure - his throttle control and ability to do wheelie will improve.
But is he a safer or better rider?
He is probably a lot more likely to have a big accident. In my book thats not better!

denzee · 09-25-2009, 10:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dicknose

Improving your riding is mostly about having a bigger gap between your ability and what you attempt.
Improving your ability but pushing closer to your limits doesnt not make you safer. Throw in that your limits can be increasing, so when you do get it wrong its far worse.

So sure - his throttle control and ability to do wheelie will improve.
But is he a safer or better rider?
He is probably a lot more likely to have a big accident. In my book thats not better!

First with wheelies, it most definitely requires a high degree of skill. Sure there are places wheelies should not be done but that doesn't remove the skill required. Others who critisize ones who do great wheelies are usually envious. I admire the talent provided it's done in a safe place.

Does it make you go around corners faster because you can do great wheelies? I don't believe so because like wheelies, cornering is also a skill on its own, although some skills are shared between the two like balance and throttle control.

With greater speeds around corners also comes higher risk but with that being said, some riders are riding more unsafe going slower speeds through turns because they may not have the skills of someone going faster. So basically because you are slower doesn't neccessarily mean safer.