Can you stay balanced on your bike when stationary?

[gdl_gdl]

Just got back from my 100km ride. (Best time today 26.4km average which beat my previous best of 25.9km! )

Anyway, when I hit a set of road works in Perth CBD there was a rider in front of me who was balancing stood up on his bike when the bike was stationary. Bloody amazing! He was doing a slight jig to keep his balance but he looked fully in control!

Anybody else here skilled enough to do this? I saw this performed on cycling central a couple of months bike by the 'pros' but I've never seen it done before by a local rider.

Cheers,

Gary

[chain_reaction]

i was in my car in traffic and saw a roadie doing the same thing, me and the mrs watched him move back and forth and braking trying to keep his balance all the while we were we were maikng noises like we were wtaching aome dangerous circus act, amazing what can entertain u in a grid lock

[europa]

Someone has to say it, so it'd might as well by my reputation that takes the hit.

I can ... until someone takes the wall away

Track standing, which is what it's usually called, is easier on a fixie (because you can back pedal) but if you want to learn it, do so on a slight slope as gravity then provides some backwards movement and a bit extra to pedal against. It's supposed to be a useful skill but never having mastered it, I can't comment on that. If nothing else, the pose value is really good.

I was at the Adelaide Superdrome soon after it was built (roughly 15 years ago). By that time, they'd either banned track standing during sprint events or were about to. I watched Jens Voigt and ... dammit, can't remember his name, the top Aussie sprinter at the time ... sprinting. The no-track stand rule was suspended for this event (it wasn't official, might even have been one of the opening events for the stadium). These two heros did a 20 minute track stand until the one behind broke, moved in front of the other and they started all over again. It wasn't an official race but they were taking it pretty seriously (and having a lot of fun too). Awesome stuff.

Richard

[Bnej]

I can't do it, but have read instructions on the Internet of how it's done. You just need to have enough left/right motion made by turning the front wheel against a slope to allow you to maintain balance.

However, it's more difficult than riding in motion as there is no trail to keep you balanced naturally. You can't do it no-hands.

[mikesbytes]

I can do it on my road bike, but I'm usually too lazy to do it, its easier just to put a foot down.

Its easier to do on a fixie, so europa has no excuses.

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[Mulger bill]

"...hopethoselightschangesoonhopethoselightschangesoon
hopethoselightschangesoonhopethoselightschangesoon....bugger", unclip, foot down.

So cool to watch, so beyond my abilities.

[Mr888]

I can't really do this, but I've found a trick that might make you appear that you're standing stationary.

Very rapidly release and reapply the brakes whilst putting a bit of power down (like a trigger action) This should give you enough movement to stay upright and you can stand for maybe 2-3 seconds between each brake release. With some practice you might only move a couple of inches forward...works well at traffic lights

[AUbicycles]

Some of you guys know more about the nuts and bolts in biking... but I can do a track stand.... And not only that, I am trying to perfect the seated track stand, staying stationary at the lights while comfortably seated and no feet on the ground.

It's just a matter of playing the pedals and front brakes, a small bit of tension helps. Here are some tricks:

- hills/inclines work the best
- you can turn the wheel inward towards the curb and rest it on the curb... infact even a tiny stone can offer enough resistance to assist a track stand.
- when there is a decline/downhill you can shuffle your weight back and forth and create movement.

If you think a track stand looks good, even better (more suitable on a MTB but possible on a racer) is to come to a roaring stop at the lights with the weight on the front and hard on the front brakes, bring the back wheel up and balance on the front for as long as possible, then pull back onto the back wheel and bunny hop until the lights change again.

[stryker84]

If you think a track stand looks good, even better (more suitable on a MTB but possible on a racer) is to come to a roaring stop at the lights with the weight on the front and hard on the front brakes, bring the back wheel up and balance on the front for as long as possible, then pull back onto the back wheel and bunny hop until the lights change again.

Heh, you mean pull a stoppie? I almost did something like that once... my variation was instead of balancing on the front wheel, I brought the back wheel up ALL THE WAY over the front - "OH CRAP!" - and then went over in a flailing heap... beat that!

[Halfanewb]

Yesterday we were taking a lunch break on the river walk path at Southbank when we spotted these young guys on those small trick bikes. At the edge of the path there are a series of alternating steps and then large stonework (tree) plant boxes about 1m high.

This guy slowly cycled his bike parallel to one, balanced perfectly for a while to let walkers pass then hopped his bike to his right, onto the top of the stonework and was still perfectly balanced the moment his wheels landed, then popped a mono held it for more walkers then hopped down to land on the back wheel, still holding the mono did a few bunny hops to get back into parallel then up again onto the stonework in a mono. amazing stuff

[tuco]

If you're riding with a few riders then all you have to do is slow down and wait for the first person to unclip then the lights WILL change green.

[heavymetal]

I can do it. I can balance for hours without moving and not falling over. All it takes is lots and lots of practice. I have it down to a fine art and can do it everytime I get on my exercise bike.

[europa]

I have it down to a fine art and can do it everytime I get on my exercise bike.

That's the one with the big, padded seat, the padded arm rests, the foot rest that pops up when you pull the lever and the beer holders in the arms isn't it?

Richard

[heavymetal]

That's the one with the big, padded seat, the padded arm rests, the foot rest that pops up when you pull the lever and the beer holders in the arms isn't it?

Yep It also has 4 computer monitors and several keyboards. The good thing with this set up is that no matter how much beer you drink, you can never fall off.

Kev.

[AUbicycles]

Yesterday we were taking a lunch break on the river walk path at Southbank when we spotted these young guys on those small trick bikes.

Trials bikes... come in micro size (eg bmx size) or 26" mtb size .. one thing in common is that they usually have no seat or a seat that is big enough for a two year old. One of the pioneers is Hans "No Way" Rey, he has been around since the 80's and has some amazing videos, here is his website ... well hansrey.com.

Trials riding is great for MTBing because there are a lot of tricks and technique to help you quickly and more efficiently overcome obstacles.