I've been riding a while. What helped the most was joining a club in PA (when I lived around that area), and riding with better riders who had more experience. Learned a lot from them! With drops, the "launch" and landing is very important, of course. In order to do both correctly, you'll want to better learn the "balance" of your bike. A bike with a heavier fork will, of course, have a different "balance" of a bike with a lighter fork. Try practice doing a wheelie, or when approaching a small incline, see if you can carry enough speed and "wheelie" just enough so the back wheel lands a little earlier than the front. Don't know how everyone else learned, but that worked for me. You could wreck while learning, but if you start with an incline that is shorter before leveling off, at least you don't have too far to fall!