Just getting into this world at 46 years old, so needing to know the results of each movement to avoid injury was important. Looping out on purpose definitely helped me to find that Balance point. Perfect advice
You're in my top 3 favourite riders. #1 Because you're humble #2 because you've got crazy bike skills and #3 Every time I watch your videos I want to (and often do) go and ride! Keep it up Peace ✌️
you must feel like Spiderman when you do this stuff. i feel like i could but do not own an appropriate bike yet. plus, i am 57, so, not so rubbery anymore. still, i feel compelled to learn. bravo!
Go for it :) I'm just starting out at 40 with the help of my teenage son and videos like this I'm determined to learn to track stand, pump and wheelie by the end of the year!
Yeah, I've just got a Whyte 905 after not riding MTB for about 15 years. I used to ride every day but still never learned these skills. I'm 43 now and really want to learn this now before I hit any trails properly. At the end of the day it's about enjoying your riding and this and being able to pump to me are skills that help you ride the trails and enjoy them.
Best comment about getting your pump on. Throwing yourself into a comfy chair, easy to get your head around, as I was having trouble getting the power from my hips and feet. This made it click. Thanks mate...
Hands down the best manual explanation on youtube. I must have watched a dozen of them without ever really being able to get the front end up high enough to find the balance point. The throwing yourself back on the couch cue got me on my back wheel (or at least looping out) within the first 3 or 4 tries. After another 40 minutes I was getting the balance dialed in. My progress today has been 10 times that of the last 2 years thanks to that one, perfect cue. Huge Thanks Tom!
@@luizashabetnick8059 as soon as you get comfortable stepping off the back of the bike when you loop out the fear is gone! Start on grass so if you do have a spill it won't cause too much heartache! Good luck and don't forget to cover that rear break! Oh, It might seem a little disconnected rom manuals but if you get a chance, practice your hip hinge (not a ton of mtb videos about it but lee likes bikes has a good one and its the position you need to be in for deadlifting so lots of weightlifting videos talk about it too). it helps load your legs and keep a neutral spine when shifting back which Improves balance and power!
Just started mtb yesterday, usually a roadie needed something to entertain me during winter. Can't believe how much fun it is in the mud using alot of different muscles! My forearms are hanging to but loved it. Now I'm watching stuff like this at 44 🙈😅👍 Cheers for the vid, never too old. Nobodies making it out alive 💪do what makes you happy. Cheers
One fun variable to play with, throw a backpack full of weight (Books or whatever) on. The added weight to your back give you a new CG to find, which allows for the lower front tire position, in case the high front freaks you out as your learning. As I was learning back in school I found some of my longest wheelies(which included peddling, sometimes uphill even) were with a full backpack and the front wheel barely a foot off the ground on a 20" bmx, and gradually worked into coasting sections and downhills.
I’m just teaching the point of maintaining a manual after years of trying. One particular thing that helped me and is never talked about (as it is taken for granted) is look to where you want to go. I was often focused on the ground directly in front of me and that’s where the bike would go. Now I look forward and the bike goes further. I do still struggle with tipping to one side tho.
What a video, loads of information broken down nicely. Im 35 and was never able to do a wheelie. Having learnt how to during lockdown the ‘manual’ is what im after next. Thanks! 👍🏼
Dude. This video was awesome. I'm in my 40's, an expert level mountain biker, and I had just wrote off manuals. 'Figured I just couldn't ever do it. While you didn't give me too much I already didn't know, what you did do is inspire me to practice more. You're damned right about manuals in a box track. I was toe to toe with my friend in the track until we came into the whoops. He can manual. He dusted me in the whoops.
Thanks Tom, practiced this for the first time today. After watching this realized that I was trying to do it wrong. After watching this, today done like 4 meter manual 💪👊🤙🤙 my arms are killing me now, but it was worth it. Thanks man👍👊
Amazing, just what I was looking for. One other tip I've heard alot is to not "slump into the sofa" in a straight diagonal line towards the rear axle, but what's more useful for a beginner is to drop/crouch down, then without loosing momentum go back/towards the RA, so its almost a right angle and not a diagonal. I've found, as a beginner, it really makes it easier and would suggest people to try it and see if there's a difference for them :)
Thanks so much! This was the first video I've seen teaching what to imagine and picture in head. Many other videos are just saying "do this movement with your body". Thanks!
I always struggle with confidence doing the manual. As soon as the wheel comes I jam on the rear brake. This is the best video I've seen so far on how to gain confidence.
My Mountain biking training Experience so far I am 63 years old went out last Friday too work on the manual wearing clipless, that means I am snapped into peddles, popped the front up and down a few times, got more aggressive and went off to the side and crashed on a hard packed dirt road, took some skin off my side, back, forearm, shoulder, hip and that’s the hip with the full hip implant, I was a little worried that it may be damaged but got up just a little sore. Went into the house cleaned the wounds got the dirt and pebbles out of the gouges, lot of peroxide. Cut an old sock and put it on my arm to hold back some of the bleeding and off I went to try again. Well same thing crashed the opposite side, took off skin from back forearm shoulder. Got back on bike started to peddle and my chain was off from the crash so I crashed again to the same side I crashed the first time, landed on my shoulder forearm, hip, wounds getting worse, but just skin damage, and few deep gouges. Cleaned the wounds, more peroxide, old socks rapped around my arm to slow down the bleeding, and off I went again. So then I just went for a ride and practiced going up and down some hills near the house, and popped my front wheel up some banks got a little more of a feel for it and jumped some small washes and came home and cleaned up. Spent some time stopping the bleeding, super glued myself back together, ordered some flats and when they come in I will go practice some more… I went through a lot of the same thing when I started ridding road bikes, but I held up a lot more traffic flopping around on the hot asphalt on Carefree Hwy and New River road unable to get unsnapped from my clipless peddles in the middle of the hot Arizona summer day… But as we say in the Roping arena, don’t ever quit until they’re in the catch pin… Ya All have a nice day
Probably the most in-depth and informative manual tutorial among the many manual vids, I've seen. Covers off on many of those small nuances which are killer frustrating and which I know I've struggled with learning to manual. Good one, Tom! 👍🏻
Awesome! A lot more comprehensive than a lost of videos. The manual has been so hard for me to learn I thought I'd never learn it but I am finally getting it dialed! Keep it up bro!
Hey Cards! After watching this video I tried to manual my enduro bike. And I did my longest manual so far after just three try, with no warmup and in flip flops! Seeing your body position and how far you lean back helped me a lot!
For those who are just starting out on manuaing it really helped me to keep looking ahead an have your heels pointed down also the most important keep ur butt as close as you can to the rear wheel
Wow this video was really helpful I just went outside and after some attempts I was on my back wheel, it was such a good feeling, although I was holding it for about 2 seconds and I guess my weight got too far back and my wheel slipped out and I fell back, wasn’t to bad of a fall but I’m still really happy that I kind of got the hang of it now thanks!
I think this is the best tutorial I've seen on learning to manual... I'm an old guy with a long white beard, so I'm a little more fragile and not as spry as I was 40 years ago. That last tip is probably going to be a big help for me. I got my first mtb about a week ago, and so far I've only gotten the front wheel up about 6 inches, then right back down. I can ride the back tire pretty good on my ninja, though!
I ride bmx and have been struggling with manuals ever since i started i have just got a dirt jumper for xmas and cant wait to take your tips to both bikes!
Thanks for the tips and demonstration. It is very clear and the small things to consider and how to get familiar with the feel. I'm going to start working on it.
I’ve enjoyed all your skills videos and have found them very useful on the trails. Thanks for doing this. And congratulations on reaching the 100k subscriber’s milestone!
Never had anyone share the intentional flip to feet yet it .makes all the sense when practicing the manual. Cant wait to practice again with advice from this video!!
Best place to use a manual, is everywhere. Its the wellspring technique, from which everything else flows; the ability to control the bike on one wheel.
Awesome video man! Great tips for beginners, have never seen that last part with standing one feet down. Have tried this damn skill for years without getting there. Time for some serious training now! Thanks
The video is really Amazing! it s detailed and you show a gazillion trick in seconds 😆 I've been back on a bike for 8 months now, after yeaars of letting it aqixe. I ' M ADDICTED ! I also just got a full suspension bike (yaay for me), was with a semi regid one that was also great. the thing is I think I ve always tried to manual with my head really down and that really makes a difference as I gave discovered in this video ( daa! ) I feel like I m gonna have a good time watching the rest of your videos ;) your awsome
That was awesome, thnx for posting. What are the top ten things someone just getting into the sport? I just purchased a Scott Scale 930 and would love some guidance on what I should work on to make trail riding better here at home in the Pisgah forest. Thanks
Earlier I tried to manual without any tutorials, I was struggling to lift the front up and I’m used to wheelies so I thought it would be easy, since I was struggling to lift the front up I put all my energy in and legit felt like I did half a backflip on the concrete. Man my elbows hurt lol
I can do wheelie already but i have not learned to do a manual. My longest wheelie was 15 minutes. But when i do a wheelie i sit down so i dont put alot of weight on the pedals so if i fall back its really easy to catch myself with my feet. But if i do a manual i put all weight on the pedals and i know if i fall back i will smash my head in the ground. I know it because i have tried it and thats exactly what happend, i have no idea how you were able to fall back and land on your feet but i guess it's because you have been doing it milions of times... But i would really like to know more about that part. I can ofcourse take out the bike and test it myself but i would rather want a more detailed guide before i do that to avoid getting my head smashed.
I can do a perfect manual on a BMX for how long I want with any speed (extremely slow) but since I moved to a 29" that thing feels impossible to manual...
i just started got a levo because somedays i need electric wheelchair,saved for 18 months so i dont wanna use it to learn tricks that risks the bike too much ,,but im living in norway and wehave great trails in the nature staRTING RIgth outside my door.but im practicing wheelies manuals and bunny jumps i learned the day after i bendt the training wheels upwards so i could lay down in the corners,,but its kind of learning it again with a heavy bike with full suspention..if im riding soft setup and slow rebound i just manual two meters and bounce on the curbe ,kinda like a ollie on the coping with a skate board because or else it takes so much enegy,jumping and pulling the bar forwardsand a bit down then push the legs so you landon the back wheel again ..its my best trick nice for urban riding,when i cross the road or something like that people think im a good rider ,but i cant manual more than i need to do that approximately two and a half metters depending on the speed.all kids even those who doesnt like bikes that much can bunny jump here its nessesary in norway just to comute ,and everyone has a cross country bike which they use in the cross country tracks for skiing just in the summer..only seriuos riders who wanna do a little downhill and has a big budget has full dampers and almost no one knows the difference between dh and enduro.i kida did same trick to get over logs when driving moped the mopeds here are full size enduro bikes ,im tried to follow a few of my old moped tracks but me and brose together wasnt strong enough but downwards its a bit similar .i hope we will see hybrids in the future like hybrid cars mixing the power of an l motor and a gasoline engine .would be cool to try putting the largest hub motor for e bikes in the front wheel of the moped or both wow i wish i had a garage larger than this comment
Great video, just wondering what exactly to do with the arms (I know that might be overthinking). Do you rather push off the bars and keep arms stiff (like doing push-ups or bench-press) or do you use your lower body (hips and legs) to throw your weight back and your arms are more like ropes on your bars? Hope that makes sense. 😁
Julien Herold well it’s effectively both you do need to keep your arms relatively stiff to get into the manual but after that I’d say it’s mostly lower body, you should never pull the bars too you. Hope it helps and actually made sense
LMFAO i cant even get the confidence to lean over the rear wheel... like sure i can compress the forks and lift the front wheel like a few inches but thats it 😭
I'm 5'8 with a 27 inch inseam and I find is basically impossible to get my weight rear ward enough in manual to get into it. I have 210 mm dropper, I can ride a wheelie, and have been riding for 24+ years.
Thanks, Tom! I never heard about example with sofa, so when I'll pick up my bike from repair and I'll try it! One question, in all manual tutorials dudes say "Keep your hands straight", but you keep your hands a little bit bended, is it for better control? =)
