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How to Wheelie
The wheelie has captured the attention and imagination of riders and spectators alike since the inception of dirt bike riding.
The movie “On any Sunday” starring Steve Mc Queen and several stars from that era proved to start a dirt bike craze, with Jeff Ward wheeling a trails bike slowly in first gear a few hundred meters in the movie. What made Jeff Ward’s wheelie antics really impressive is that he was probably only 10 years old when he appeared “on any Sunday”. From the first time I saw Jeff Ward wheelie I knew that was something I really wanted to be able to do one day. It took me many hours of practice, rear fenders and roasties but by the time I was 15 years old , I had mastered the slow balance wheelie with my rear brake on my trails bike. Here are a few tips to help you start your first chapter off , “on learning how to wheelie”
Now that we have spoken about the ingredients and location we move on to the wheelie.
 
Extra Wheelie tips The best way to learn how to co-ordinate your clutch, throttle and rear brake control.
Remember it takes many hours of practice to wheelie like a pro but even if you are busy it only takes 10min of practice a day. Don’t give up if you don’t succeed at first and remember to keep your bike in first gear otherwise you will blow your confidence if you flip at speed. Hang in there at Balance point, don’t give up and remain positive if you want to be a wheelie king.
Back to top PICTURES WILL FOLLOW SHORTLY Executing a wheelie is cool , but being able to pull off a front wheel wheelie is even cooler. A normal wheelie on your back wheel is controlled with your foot on the rear brake pedal but when it comes to front wheel wheelies it all comes down to , your right hand applying the correct amount off pressure to your front brake leaver. In 1995 I first saw the late Murray Smith going flat out down a grass field and pulling off the most incredible front wheel wheelies. In January 2007 I saw Brian Capper and Andre Kriel hooking up mean front wheel wheelies at the Aquelle Enduro Cross, after seeing Andre and Brian’s front wheel wheelies I decided that is was time for me to learn how to do them properly. I spent half an hour a day practicing front wheel wheelies and after a week I was beginning to master the technique. It goes to show when you really want to do something and you approach it with a positive attitude you will achieve your goals. Preparation before attempting front wheel wheelies.
Executing front wheel wheelies. Picture 1 In the first picture I am going about 40km/h and I am sitting in the middle of my bike with my arms up and even. My two index fingers are on the front brake lever ready to gently squeeze the lever. Picture 2. I slowly bring the bike up onto it’s front wheel by pulling the front brake lever gently after I tap off the throttle. Imagine you have a peeled orange in your braking hand and that you have to squeeze it quite hard to compress the orange but not to hard that the juice gets sprayed out of the orange. Basically you have to apply pressure on the front brake lever, release and reapply to maintain your front wheel wheelie ( learn how to play with your front brake to keep your balance and momentum in the front wheel wheelie position)
Picture 3. The bike is now at it’s highest position and again all you have to do , is to let the lever gently on and off to maintain your balance point on your front wheel. It is best to first learn how to do a basic endo at low speed before going straight into the high speed front wheel wheelie proses. As you progress with many hours off practice you will be able to increase your speed and distance on your front wheel. When you are out trial riding try doing a small endo every time you stop. You don’t have to bring the rear wheel high up when you are learning to get a feel for your front brake. Your back wheel only has to lift up 5cm to start getting the feel. Picture 4. This clown skipped all the basic that I tried to teach him recently and he tried to pull off a front wheel wheelie at 60km/h on the tar, fortunately he was fully kitted with his EVS safety gear. Good luck with your front wheel antics. WILD WILL
PICTURES WILL FOLLOW SHORTLY The first round of the Enduro World X-Country race was really cool to compete in , it was held just outside
After the event there were freestyle riders pulling off mean stunts way up in the air followed by Brian Capper showing us the art of riding a motorcycle with total control and balance. Being a trials rider myself, in my youth, I decided to share some inside information with you on the “Art of Balance.” With more and more events in
The art of balance can be summed up as follows – no matter which way your bike leans, you need to keep your body upright and centred. To keep your balance you can use handlebar pressure, peg weighting and body movements. Bar pressure is when you push down on either side of your handlebars to maintain balance and is not associated to BAR Pressure from your mates at the Pub. To apply bar pressure try standing on your foot pegs while going slowly or balancing in a stationary position. Lift your left leg off the foot peg and immediately you can feel the weight of your bike transfer to the right. Now push down on your left side of your handlebars and you will automatically feel the bike move upright while your left leg is in the air. With peg weighting we push down on either the left or right hand foot peg to maintain our balance. My general rule is that which ever side my rear wheel starts to slide out is the side that I weight. If my bike starts moving to the right then I weight my right foot peg. If my bike starts sliding to the left then I weight my left foot peg. When going over or up an obstacle , I control my bike from my torso. For example if my bike slides to the right and I start to lose my balance , I push down on my right hand foot peg and on the left hand side handle bar at the same time. If my bike slides to the left , I push down on the left foot peg and the right hand side handlebar. Once you master bar pressure and peg weighting you will see how easy it is to maintain your balance on rough or slippery terrain. Balancing on your bike can be practised at home in your garage.
To gain your balance stand on your bike with the handlebars turned onto full lock either to the left or right and use foot peg and handlebar pressure to correct any imbalance. Don’t stress if you can’t balance straight away as it takes a lot of time and dedication to learn the art of balance. Remember these techniques might sound boring to practise but they are definitely the fundamentals of bike control, safe riding and can save you loads of energy. If you can balance on your bike you may be able to ride through the Barn at Riverside-Mix with style in front of the zesty spectators. Well, until next month lets go and practise our balance skills and remember not to confuse bar pressure on your bike with Bar pressure from your mates in the local Pub. WILD WILL
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