Balance Part 3 - One Wheel

Getting onto the back tire and into a back tire stance is pretty easy. There are three ways. Perhaps the easiest way is rocking. You've probably done this at one time or another. While riding slowly and in fact coming to a stop, lock up your front brake, don't use the back brake at all. You should rock forward onto the front tire just a little bit. Practice the feel of the quick stopping and the balance of it. While still going very slowly, repeat this manuever and this time rock your weight forward onto the handlebars when you lock up the front brake. You should roll a lot farther onto the front wheel. If you don't, try a little more speed. Again, try this several times and learn the balance. Now you're ready. Execute this manuever with this one additional move. After you rock foward onto your front wheel and then as you rock back off the front tire lock up the back brake and lean back hard. You'll either rock into a good start on a back tire stance or you'll rock way too far back and have to step off the back of the bike. A few minutes practice at this and you should be able to find your balance point on the back tire and be able to get into it pretty easy. Practice is all it really takes.

Another technique: Now that you have gotten used to leaning back into a back tire stance you might not need the forward rocking bit. There is a good chance you will be able to simply come to a stop, balance on two wheels, get your balance stable, and lean back while pulling on the handlebars. Of course, this is a much easier technique for getting onto the back tire. Probably safer as well. Build up to it. Simply roll back on the back tire while leaning back with your back brake lock of course. Don't strain your back or arms. It should be a smooth move.

If you use either of these techniques you will end up quite some distance from the edge of whatever you may be preparing to drop off of. That is the point of this manuever, getting off a shear drop safely.

At this point you need to learn how to move around by hopping.
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