Wow, Bunny Hop / JHop is insanely complex and Hard AF.
11-16-20, 02:04 PM
#26
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You sit on the kid side of that story, do things for a while, then you sit on the middle aged side. Life is good.
11-16-20, 03:52 PM
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Ali Clarkson shows the mechanics best, in my opinion. There are two parts to a big bunny hop, and the first is a manual. This gets the front wheel up and allows you to raise your CG by standing on the pedals when your front wheel is off the ground.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5zBbLWIhHY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5zBbLWIhHY
11-17-20, 08:36 AM
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I have been mountain biking for 23 years. I’m pretty good at clearing big logs and technical obstacles..
But I still can’t do a true proper bunny-hop. I still need clip-less to get fully off the ground.
I have recently decided I would make myself learn this with flats. I think I have pulled off a few small ones, but I am mostly still flailing.
But I still can’t do a true proper bunny-hop. I still need clip-less to get fully off the ground.
I have recently decided I would make myself learn this with flats. I think I have pulled off a few small ones, but I am mostly still flailing.
11-17-20, 11:48 AM
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Bunny hopping a full suspension bike is a massively more difficult skill to master. I have the scars to prove it. You try and jump and instead of pushing your body into the air the suspension compresses.
Full suspension bikes are a young man's game. Use old guys don't heal fast enough, that is why I sold the bike after only a few months.
I've sailed over unexpected storm drains on my road bike before. Just jump your body into the air than lift the bike to meet you. If you have to think about it you are probably doing it wrong.
Full suspension bikes are a young man's game. Use old guys don't heal fast enough, that is why I sold the bike after only a few months.
I've sailed over unexpected storm drains on my road bike before. Just jump your body into the air than lift the bike to meet you. If you have to think about it you are probably doing it wrong.
11-17-20, 11:50 AM
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Bunny hopping a full suspension bike is a massively more difficult skill to master. I have the scars to prove it. You try and jump and instead of pushing your body into the air the suspension compresses.
Full suspension bikes are a young man's game. Use old guys don't heal fast enough, that is why I sold the bike after only a few months.
I've sailed over unexpected storm drains on my road bike before. Just jump your body into the air than lift the bike to meet you. If you have to think about it you are probably doing it wrong.
Full suspension bikes are a young man's game. Use old guys don't heal fast enough, that is why I sold the bike after only a few months.
I've sailed over unexpected storm drains on my road bike before. Just jump your body into the air than lift the bike to meet you. If you have to think about it you are probably doing it wrong.
11-17-20, 12:18 PM
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IME, no one says "j-hop." it's a weird regional thing that sticks around now because of the internet. I hope it goes away.
pulling up both wheels at the same time is a quick, lazy, and inefficient technique that gets the job done sometimes. pulling up the front wheel first is just a good technique for getting a high bunnyhop. I learned how to do it on a heavy, cheap BMX bike when I was 13 years old and it's definitely awkward until you get the timing right, much like doing an ollie on a skateboard. one way you might get practice it to stand on the ground next to the bike and practice pulling the handlebar up suddenly and trusting the handlebar forward to lift the rear wheel and level out the bike. most of the power of getting the bike off the ground starts with lifting with your arms, which is why BMX guys tend to have huge forearms. the second step is getting the bike to float under your feet without actually taking your feet off the pedals. so there's a yank of the arms, followed by a jump from the feet.
See also: Brad Simms
pulling up both wheels at the same time is a quick, lazy, and inefficient technique that gets the job done sometimes. pulling up the front wheel first is just a good technique for getting a high bunnyhop. I learned how to do it on a heavy, cheap BMX bike when I was 13 years old and it's definitely awkward until you get the timing right, much like doing an ollie on a skateboard. one way you might get practice it to stand on the ground next to the bike and practice pulling the handlebar up suddenly and trusting the handlebar forward to lift the rear wheel and level out the bike. most of the power of getting the bike off the ground starts with lifting with your arms, which is why BMX guys tend to have huge forearms. the second step is getting the bike to float under your feet without actually taking your feet off the pedals. so there's a yank of the arms, followed by a jump from the feet.
See also: Brad Simms
Last edited by mack_turtle; 11-17-20 at 12:29 PM.
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11-17-20, 12:57 PM
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bunnyhopping a bicycle is like jumping on a pogo stick without the help of a spring. (of course, on a bike with suspension, the rebound can help.) pull up with your hands and unweight your feet. synchronizing those two motions takes practice and coordination.
11-18-20, 09:33 AM
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This thread makes me sad. And disappointed. And it makes me slowly lower my head, eyes closed, slowly expelling air from my puffed cheeks (with that quiet “ppfffffffff” sound) gently shaking my head in a “This can’t be real” type of way. I fear for our future.
11-18-20, 09:35 AM
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Why? Some people have discovered that they might want to try something new with their bikes - learn a new skill. Why does that make you "fear for our future"?
11-18-20, 09:52 AM
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Because it made me aware of a large part of the population that entirely missed out on a fundamental aspect of cycling in their youth. If I believe the children are our future, and these children are simultaneously amazed and unable to bunny hop, then yes, I fear for our future. And I fear for your sense of humor.
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11-18-20, 10:00 AM
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Because it made me aware of a large part of the population that entirely missed out on a fundamental aspect of cycling in their youth. If I believe the children are our future, and these children are simultaneously amazed and unable to bunny hop, then yes, I fear for our future. And I fear for your sense of humor.
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11-18-20, 10:02 AM
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Because it made me aware of a large part of the population that entirely missed out on a fundamental aspect of cycling in their youth. If I believe the children are our future, and these children are simultaneously amazed and unable to bunny hop, then yes, I fear for our future. And I fear for your sense of humor.
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11-18-20, 10:03 AM
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Bunny hopping a full suspension bike is a massively more difficult skill to master. I have the scars to prove it. You try and jump and instead of pushing your body into the air the suspension compresses.
Full suspension bikes are a young man's game. Use old guys don't heal fast enough, that is why I sold the bike after only a few months.
I've sailed over unexpected storm drains on my road bike before. Just jump your body into the air than lift the bike to meet you. If you have to think about it you are probably doing it wrong.
Full suspension bikes are a young man's game. Use old guys don't heal fast enough, that is why I sold the bike after only a few months.
I've sailed over unexpected storm drains on my road bike before. Just jump your body into the air than lift the bike to meet you. If you have to think about it you are probably doing it wrong.
I believe what your are talking about is sometimes called an English Bunny Hop. What most people here mean is the American Bunny Hop (or J hop) is far more effective once mastered. And it does not require clipless. This is the technique that people will spends hours of practice trying to nail.
Last edited by Kapusta; 11-18-20 at 11:31 AM.
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11-18-20, 11:27 AM
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learn to bunnyhop:
find a spot with a runway to practice
put a solid object like a small box or a 2x4 in your path
pedal at it and try to lift your bike over it without touching it
repeat until you can do this successfully.
if you need more than that, you're overthinking it.
find a spot with a runway to practice
put a solid object like a small box or a 2x4 in your path
pedal at it and try to lift your bike over it without touching it
repeat until you can do this successfully.
if you need more than that, you're overthinking it.
11-18-20, 11:37 AM
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learn to bunnyhop:
find a spot with a runway to practice
put a solid object like a small box or a 2x4 in your path
pedal at it and try to lift your bike over it without touching it
repeat until you can do this successfully.
if you need more than that, you're overthinking it.
find a spot with a runway to practice
put a solid object like a small box or a 2x4 in your path
pedal at it and try to lift your bike over it without touching it
repeat until you can do this successfully.
if you need more than that, you're overthinking it.
11-18-20, 11:59 AM
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it's a start. of course, you'll need to move up from there and learn to get higher by improving your technique. getting both wheels in the air long enough to get over any object allows the rider to clear the first mental gate preventing them from doing anything else. that's how I started and at my peak, I could easily hop over a 24" tall object.