pinkrobe

I find myself having to jump the odd pothole or texas gate now and again. I'm wondering how many road riders do this as well...

the beef

I'll pull the ocassional clipped-in bunny hop to get over a big crack or pothole, but usually I don't have to do anything too fancy.

yellowjeep

my experience with jumping over things has not been good

lotek 

only when I want to rebuild my wheels. . .

that said when something is unavoidable I've been known to attempt
it (not very good at bunny hopping). Its pretty rough on the wheels
a roadie doesn't have the rims of a MTB or BMX, pretty easy to taco a
wheel that way.

marty

racingpain

I only jump obsticals in a emergency...I also have problems bunny hopping...I can jump the front wheel and back wheel but so far not at the same time. So it is a choice for me at this point is it more dangerous to take it in the front or in the back of the bike.

pinkrobe

I jump things when I can't get around them easily. As an example, I was cruising along on yesterday's ride at about 45 km/h [tailwind], and I came up behind two riders who slowed down to cross a cattle guard. I swung wide [after a quick shoulder check] and jumped the whole guard, landing smoothly and riding away in style. I don't think I've ever busted a wheel doing this - but there's always next ride...

Reynolds 

Sometimes I jump to avoid a sharp bump or crack. But to clear it safely with both wheels I must be going at a minimum of about 25 kph. If slower, the back wheel hits the obstacle. I've heard pros jump railroad tracks (!).

mcoine

hah, look at all the roadies that can't bunnyhop! A lot of you are saying that bunnyhopping will destroy your wheels, but a good bunnyhop is far less stress than a direct hit in a pothole. I have done it, and have never had any problems.

georgiaboy

Saw a guy flying through Piedmont Park (large park in downtown Atlanta) the other day. He was riding what appeared to be a late 90's Bianchi road bike. He was not wearing a jersey or racing kit, but wore t-shirt and shorts. He was really moving quick down the road section then bunny hopped the curb to a walking/path section when he came to the steps he downshifted and climbed up a steep grassy hillside then reentered the pathway above the steps. He was smoking fast.

pinkrobe

If you ride with clipless pedals it's pretty easy. Get your pedals horizontal, keep your hands on the tops or hoods, and spring upwards with your body. Pull your bike up with your hands and feet -- voila! You're airborne! It takes a little practice, but you too can learn to fly...

watchman

As said before, bunnyhopping a large pot hole, cattle guard, railroad tracks or whatever is generally easier on your wheels if you will hit the obstacle at speed otherwise.

khuon

Hear hear. I don't understand the issue really. I regularly jump my roadbike over stuff such as potholes, harsh railroad tracks, rooted or broken up sections of pavement or when I want to transition up a curb. Generally I only do it in times of emergency but I still practice it nevertheless when I safely can. I think it's a good skill to have and my road bike wheels are not all that fragile. Knowing how to smoothly bunnyhop or transition to a landing from a drop is something that I think should be basic skill. And you're right, hitting a square edge of a pothole at speed is going to do a lot more damage than any jump will which if done right puts no more excess stress on your wheels than a hard sprint.

Barca

I just can't bunnyhop..

fruitless

I do it quite often since I'm always contending with broken pavement and inconvenient traffic. I'm over 165 and my high mileage wheels are 28h x3. So far so good, I might be a little less enthusiatic with a radial laced 20h in the front but I don't own one of those.

biker7

+1 Do it all the time...much better then a direct hit assault with broken pavement...edges of wooden bridges etc. Up off the seat, hands on the hoods and yank. Power of pull is proportional to the size of the obstacle No wheel problems either...but I don't ride real light wheels and I am 185 lbs.
Believe there is more stress on my steerer, stem and handlebars then my front wheel.
Cheers,
George

jeff_o

i've been riding for years sometime mid 90s and if you were ever in the philippines, you would know how 'nice' our roads are... so during training on open road, if we couldn't avoid potholes (because we share the road with cars and car drivers there are like maniacs), we just jump over them... so far my wheels are still in 1 piece and i never had a problem. We still have 36hole rims back then... i just dunno maybe because the wheels you guys are using have +-20 spokes or so. just my 2cents.

Also what exactly is a wheel taco? is that a chipped off portion of your rim?

khuon

I'm rolling with Ksyriums (18 in the front, radially laced and 20 in the rear, radial lacing on the driveside) and haven't had any problems despite the bashing I put them through.


A wheel taco is what happens when you case a jump or something and warp the wheel in such a way as to make it look like a taco shell.

slvoid

I actually like hopping my road bike. I can get like, a foot of air on both wheels cause it's much easier jumping my 20lb road bike than my 35lb commuter.

Bob S.

+1. Kind of a no brainer to me. Bob

umd

There was a great clip of a rider hopping up onto the center divider and switching to the other side of a traffic circle in the tour de suisse recap coverage yesterday when he realized that side was shorter.

caloso

As some others have said, a bunnyhop is a hell of a lot easier on your wheels than plowing into a pothole or curb. IMO, it's an essential bike handling skill.

worker4youth

I thought your commuter was a litespeed..

superdex

I had to bunnyhop a pothole Saturday; didn't see it because I was pointing out another pothole. Good times.

caloso

Just think of a bunnyhop as a Z-axis swerve.

Hambone

I'm the Clydesdale all the other horses make fun of for being fat. That said, I bunny hop stuff all the time... the metal joints on the Brooklyn Bridge, potholes, whatever.

I figure that my mass slamming my rim into something is going to be a lot worse for my rims than the landing.

So far, I've never taco'd a road wheel.

(I did a mtn bike wheel once jumping a log into a little puddle. It turned out I was jumping into a hole filled with water disguised as a simple puddle. Mother Nature created it, I'm convinced, to punish those of us who did not show her her due respect that day... But that is a posting for a different board...)