Crests in the road = FUN

[Kris]

Okay I'll set the scene. You're gracefully arcing along a nice set of twisties having the time of your life when all of a sudden the road opens up infront of your eyes. As you wind on the throttle and tuck in from the wind you see a crest in the road further up. It is a clear straight road and the crest will easily be enough for a small jump, maybe some airtime for the front wheel...

So what would you do?

I had exactly this scenario present itself to me yesterday. (Well actually there was an oncoming car but I left that out on purpose). I chose to keep it pinned at about a ton as the front wheel left the tarmac, the bars went light and monowheeled down the other side. All over in an instant and the front wheel was probably less than a foot in the air but... it was such a buzz that on the way home I purposely did it again Just wondering if anyone else finds these as amusing as me, I literally laughed my head off like a maniac and had a huge grin all day afterwards.

Moral of the story? Crests are fun children Next week - Humpback bridges
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[r1_lad]

You gotta wind back the throttle for them really haven't you!

Theres a quality road near my work, about 5 hairpin turns, then a bit of a straight with a big humpback bridge then a mile long straight. Best thing is it's a quiet country road so not many other cars use it! Great for wheelie practise.

[Korn]

[Kris]

[iCraig]

I went over a bridge the other day and didn't realise there was a crest on it and the GS's front end lifted and then landed with with a horrible shake of its head .

Not a good thing to do me thinks with buggered fork seals .

[ProXimaCore]

I was going to ask about this at one point. How do you do it so that the rear wheel lands first? I've watched people in bike videos do it when both wheels come off the ground and the front seems to go higher. All the weight in the front of my bike lands hard and before the rear wheel lands. I figured I probably just need a more powerful bike or something.
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Honda NSR125R -> Suzuki GSXR400R GK76a -> Kawasaki ZX636 B1H -> Honda CBR400RR NC29 -> Nothing

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[Andy99]

Then the following week a trip to the Nurburgring,not one for the faint hearted

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<thread hijack>
How was it?
</thread hijack>

[Andy99]

absolutely blinding mate,what a piece of road,everybody should try it once.
It makes you realise how fast some people really are. I can now say i've been overtaken by an M3 BMW going sideways and i'm not ashamed by it.Track knowledge is everything.

[Demonic69]

Done it once by accident, coming from aour lass' aunties pub. Shat meself as I didn't even know the front wheel had left the ground, till it hit back down
Fun indeed.
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Back on a Blade. Just feels so right.

[stinkwheel]

Great until you find out it is a tabletop and you should have hit it about 10mph faster

As an exponant of the supermotard variety of motorcycle, I can vouch for the positive effects of crests and humpback bridges on my state of mental wellbeing .

There is a particularly entertaining section of what I can only describe as 'whoops' on the road that heads north out of Durahm, heading towards Otterburn. Be warned though, my mate Chris once launched his GPZ550 over one such crest to find a row of stationary traffic on the other side of it. He did the only respectable thing under the circumstances which was to jump off the bike in mid-air and roll down the verge while the bike stuffed itself under the rearmost car
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“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.”
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.

[il-dottore]

has anyone here flipped it on the mountain???

[Korn]

[JonB]

[stinkwheel]

More throttle = wheel spinning = bike pitches backwards.

Less throttle = wheel deccelerating = bike pitches forwards

Rider leaning forwards = landing on crossed-up front wheel and going over bars.

Rider leaning backwards = loop, bike lands on top of you

Rider in neutral position on pegs controlling pitch with throttle so it lands on back wheel then touches front down with 'screetch' like aeroplane landing = fanny magnet.
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“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.”
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.

[PikeyNSR]

I agree with stinky.

Crests are great fun,

There is a little one on a road out towards Ledbury.
Well its more like the road falls away from under you, but it has the same effect.

Throttle wide open and up, up and away!

AVE IT!

Pikey
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Pound of sausages please butcher!

[Sparks!]

[Trunecka]

Yes, it's huge fun

If you want to jump higher without hitting the crest any faster, then on the approach press down on the bike from the bars and footpegs to squash the suspension a bit more.

As you jump, release this pressure, allowing the bike to 'spring' higher. Some people release this pressure on the crest, some at the peak and some in the air, all depends what you find most comfortable, although I suppose there must be an optimum technique.

When you've got the hang of this, try extending your arms and legs as you release pressure then pulling the bike higher mid-air by pulling the bars towards you and bending your legs more.

You're now halfway to becoming a freestyle motocross rider
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"I'm gonna get free, Ride into the sun..."
-The Vines

[Demonic69]

Also backing off the throttle a bit can stop wheelies and make both wheels leave the ground. Works damn well at Cadders on the mountain
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Back on a Blade. Just feels so right.

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