How to manual: teaching my favorite skill

How to manual, and how to wheelie a mountain bike- two of the most requested tutorials out there, but also a great topic for a WMBC fundraiser! The WMBC is our local trail advocacy group, and are the reason we are so lucky to have access to so much trail on Galbraith Mountain. In fact, the WMBC inspired me to support advocacy in general, as I believe they are a model example for what advocacy can be. PLEASE VISIT the WMBC website here- any donations for the new parking lot project are very appreciated, too! http://bit.ly/WMBCdonationsJKW

Ya’ll have seen me manual- probably a lot. Reign and Jose had watched a few of my videos and had done some great diligence before the class by practicing a bunch on their own.

The 2021 Ibis Ripley, size medium, stock Ibis Light Tune DPS Evol shock bike I’m riding in this video is available at Jenson USA via this affiliate link: http://bit.ly/IbisJKW

My favorite way to teach a small group like this is by filming and reviewing the footage as we go. This is especially helpful when done with slomo footage.

Look at how close Reign’s chest is to his handle bars. I make this same mistake on my motorcycle as well. When we first start trying to wheelie, getting the upper body and torso further back is one of the hardest parts of the process. Look at how far back I’m sitting in comparison.

See how far back José is over the rear wheel? Then notice how low his front wheel is? This is a totally valid balance point. If he pulls the front wheel higher, he’ll also need to lift himself up higher from the wheel. I really like this type of balancing for faster manuals.

Here’s José again with another great example of a slightly higher manual. Still a totally valid position, just with the front wheel a little higher.

Reviewing the footage together helps everyone. I’ve learned TONS from editing my own riding videos over the years, and it’s great we have the technology to do this in our pocket.

BIG thanks to Reign for supporting the WMBC with the manual class!!!

Did you know I post a new riding tutorial every month? These are ONLY posted to my Patreon page, so join now to see these rad videos! Here’s the full list of my riding tutorials posted through February 2020:

Which brake to use when: https://www.patreon.com/posts/which-brake-to-48108425

Different bikes, different riding techniques: https://www.patreon.com/posts/46925782

How to ride FLAT PEDALS through the ROCKS: https://www.patreon.com/posts/how-to-ride-flat-45662347

How to ride wet roots and steep chutes: https://www.patreon.com/posts/44507851

How to ride with style: https://www.patreon.com/posts/how-to-ride-with-43349450

How to jump for height vs distance: https://www.patreon.com/posts/42202183

Common manual questions answered: https://www.patreon.com/posts/41006264

How to land jumps: https://www.patreon.com/posts/39928153

My 3 favorite skills drills: https://www.patreon.com/posts/if-i-could-only-38809964

How to manual: https://www.patreon.com/posts/how-to-manual-37684861

Cutty: https://www.patreon.com/posts/36579859

Manual a berm: https://www.patreon.com/posts/35496772