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trx400ex
09-16-2001, 06:30 PM
alright guys n gals,,,, i need some help. i want to know the best way to tackle those big hills. ive read the article in dirtwheels and found it so close to pointless it wasnt even funny. see where we normally ride there are no hills, just mx tracks and rolling woods. so then when we go to ride at a place where there are big hills my quad goes rubber side up. so if you have any tips please share.....i know so far

keep wieght forward but not to far


also how do you do ones with big chuncks of sod or dirt hanging over the ledge to create a lip...just hit it normally?


thanks

09-16-2001, 06:47 PM
I try to go up hills in 2nd gear unless its short and steep. Hit it hard before you start up and work the throttle off and on to keep from spinning and to keep the front end down.
John

4punksdad
09-19-2001, 03:38 AM
I have some experience with this...........

Hills that are in question for me I normally try to go down before I go up..........this way you can study and of the rocks or ruts on the hill which you might not see until its too late on the way up.

hills with steep faces & beyond vertical tops should be hit like a jump, not like a hillclimb. Once your front tires hit the top, throw your weight forward to continue the momentum in the right direction............hope this helps.

bsr
09-19-2001, 12:26 PM
Just get some speed and go up in 2nd, but beware of roots and logs on the hill. One of my worst enemys when climing a hill is mud. Like 3 punks said "you should go down the hill before you go up" that way you get to examine the hill. But im some cases you have no choose but to go up first :)

09-19-2001, 03:15 PM
I've done a little studying one this. Hills that are long and somewhat smooth you want to hit with all the speed you can get. But be careful in higher gears, because before the rpms drop to far you want to down shift. Use clutch work to keep the rpms up. You may have to down shift more then once. You allways want to be in a seated position leaning forward. If you stand and lean you will be looseing traction. If you feel the front wheels comeing up on you, you want to quckly pull in the clutch. But not for vary long, just enough time to get the wheels on the ground then you need to be hard on the gas agin. I've learnd through experiance that the key to most hills is getting and keeping momentim.:cool:

booneTRX
09-19-2001, 04:44 PM
Some hills I have climbed would scare me trying to go down while in control. 80-90 degree lips the last 5-8 ft are tuff to come down first. Take hills in mid 2nd gear and try to shift your weight forward, sometimes nutz on tank, to keep the front down. Most people flip on hills because they get on and off the gas. The key is consistant momentum. Try to hold a steady throttle until momentum slows, then gas a tiny more.

Keep trying.

Next time post pics of you trying, we like to see others fail the way we do. Its only funny when it happens to someone else!!!

bsr
09-19-2001, 05:22 PM
There was this one hill that I use to climb that was almost straight up. It was scaryer going down then going up, when going down it looks like it was just going to hit dead on and flip. But now the hill's all screwed up, its now so rutted up and grown in by weeds it would be imposible to climb. One thing that sucks for me is when I go from 1st to 2nd on a hill I seem to sometimes hit neutral (this never happens on flat ground). It's also better to get 14t front sprocket, it improves 2nd gear alot.

trx400ex
09-19-2001, 06:51 PM
ive got a 14 tooth on order....ill try to get those pics, but i never seem to have a camera...welll be goin to the badlands soon and ill have some friends take pics.....either way theyll be good, (i kinda hope i dont flip) but if you never roll it over in your life then you dont ride hard enough.....no offense to anyone that does ride hard and doesnt flip..........ive even got sucked into a bank turn and got thrown about 10 feet...im getting tired...

nakomis0
09-19-2001, 08:16 PM
Probably the absolute most important factor in hill climbing has gotta be confidence. For me that is 85% the battle. Don't chicken out.:grr

xXx*PREDATOR*xXx
09-20-2001, 04:58 AM
I usually hit a hill with a lip at the top in 3rd if it isn't to big of a hill you will get major air!:devil

trueblue450
09-20-2001, 04:57 PM
Yeah, I agree totally with nakomis0.

it is all about the nuts. When I first started hill climbing I wouldn't do most of the hills cuz they looked crazy. But my friend also has a 300 and I would see him doing the same hills I thought were crazy. So I would try that and finally relize the power of my machine and that it will climb those crazy hills. But experiance also helps. You never want to hit a steep hill in 3rd cuz you will bog down completly making you shift down into 2 and that could cause some screwed up stuff. So I usually use 2 gear as my climbing gear. If you hit the hill hard at the bottom and slowly let the throtle down (no farther than 1/3 to 1/2 if nessisarry) while hitting the steeper parts to keep the front end down. I see people feather that clutch real well also to keep their front end down also. It's just what fits you best I guess.

Wheelie
09-20-2001, 07:57 PM
Lean back as far as you can, and when you get to the steepest part, stab the throttle and pull up on the bars!:devil

Seriously:

Like Nakismo said 85% if it is confidence, if your not sure, don't try it, chances are you will wreck. From my personal experience leave the clutch out of it, the clutch can cause sudden changes in the power output to the back wheels--not good. Have plenty of momentum, lean forward a bit while standing and give er hell!!

For those steep spots on top, keep the throttle consistent as your front tires go over it, then back off a touch as your back tires come over it. This should make your landing resonably level.

09-23-2001, 08:29 AM
I do alot of hill climbing and momentum is the key( besides having confidence). If you cant fly up most of the hill then you only have negotiate the very top at a slower speed. And that is the trickiest part and where most crashes occur. Get up on the tank and roll on the throttle smoothly. Try not to wheelie because you can get off course.

WyoDuner
09-23-2001, 09:11 AM
I agree with what most people say here; 2 things I would like to point out:

1. Learn to use the clutch, especially on a 2 stroke or bike with less bottom end power. You WILL need to slip it to keep the engine in the powerband if you lose momentum too fast. On really steep hills you lose speed fast and often downshifting is all the time it takes to slow down too much.

2. Don't try to go too far up in too high of a gear. You may hit the bottom in 4th but may end up in 1st or 2nd by the time you hit the top. Better to rev it out in 1st then bog it down in 2nd.

Nausty
09-24-2001, 11:19 AM
Originally posted by trx400ex
ive got a 14 tooth on order....ill try to get those pics, but i never seem to have a camera...welll be goin to the badlands soon and ill have some friends take pics.....either way theyll be good, (i kinda hope i dont flip) but if you never roll it over in your life then you dont ride hard enough.....no offense to anyone that does ride hard and doesnt flip..........ive even got sucked into a bank turn and got thrown about 10 feet...im getting tired...

so stock front sprocket is 15 am i right?

09-24-2001, 04:10 PM
I agree with WyoDuner rev it out in first on super technical hills. I am a big rider 225 pounds and alot of time second runs out of power too quick. So I rev it too the limiter in first to get as much speed as I can to build momentum. This takes shifting out of the run, no chance of hitting neutral on the steepest part of the hill. (that is for sucks!) If you can make it in second thats good too, speed is an asset.
Alot of the bigger hills I go up you have to go around ruts, big rocks and sections of tree roots and first is just better.
It all depends on the hill and and your skill.

jordan_400ex
04-29-2006, 10:56 PM
if ur not sure bout the climb walk up it .
dont let the revs fall
if they do slip the clutch a little
dont sit down if your sittin up you can switch to front or back positions a lot faster
dont panic cuz a lot of people gas it when they panic and lose common sense

jordan_400ex
04-30-2006, 02:09 PM
cuz im looking for more people too ride with and too go on some new trails

TargetBow
04-30-2006, 05:34 PM
Here are a few videos I took with my digital camera of a few hill climbs in Trevorton on Saturday 29 April. Don't expect real good quality but they are viewable.
These are steep hills and you see how the riders stays seated with there wait forward. Hope this helps you with the hillclimbs you may try.
Let me know if the links work and are viewable. Thanks

http://www.box.net/public/static/rp2pbtkk7q.MPG http://www.box.net/public/static/3qbhxnn668.MPG http://www.box.net/public/static/ds7lqpvp84.MPG http://www.box.net/public/static/qbpiie2pfn.MPG

1fst400
05-04-2006, 10:13 AM
http://media.putfile.com/redline-racing-jaffrey-pit


me skrewing around. Prette diecent hill climb in there. Nothing to serious with out sand tires tho.