learning to jump

[450robot]

well, all of my race career so far has revolved around xc racing, which doesnt really involve big jumps, and the trails i ride on and practice dont have any jumps either.

i have got some air though, a friend and i found these little kicker style jumps while we were up at my cousins camp, but we didnt get much air

i plan on going to the rausch creek ride on the 19-21, but im kinda scared to jump, and make a fool of myself by front ending or not doing it right

so my questin to you guys is

what are some jumpin techniques? and how do you guys balance yourself in air? i heard you should hold in your throttle over the jumps, but how much?

thanks for the help!

[Jason250ex]

first, when you jump, to avoid not front ending you should let off the gas just before the ramp, and then gun it at the bottom and pull up.if you stay on your bike and just hit it full speed and dont lean or pull back, chances are your face will be in the dirt. believe me man, the only way to get the hang of it is to do it a few times, and after you have, youll just get better and better at it.....we were all amateurs at jumping at one time, so dont feel stupid if you dont get it right on the money....hope that cleared it up, if not, ask away..

Jason

[aman]

One of the biggest pieces of advice I can give ya is this-always know what your jumpin. No matter what jump it is, you should always get a good feel of how it shoots you off before you start trying to do the whole thing. Its not so bad doing a tabletop, because you really cant wreck if you dont do it right, but for doubles, its always best to just get a taste of how the ramp is, and then try doin the whole thing. As for doing the whole thing, remember this.....its always better to overshoot than to undershoot and case it. As for approaching a jump itself, it is best to keep speed aproaching the jump so you do not have worry about pinning it right before it or anything. A sudden blip of the throttle may catch you a little off guard when you take off, so it might make the landing part of it a bit more challenging and even more dangerous. How much throttle you should hold over a jump just depends on the jump, if its a 30 ft tabletop or somethin, you shouldn't need to go in 5th pinned to make it. If you have already shot the jump before and know what it takes to make it, just keep that speed approaching and going off the jump.
As for balllancing in the air, it really isnt a problem unless you get alot of wheelspin, or, very little wheelspin. Both are usually pretty easy to fix in the air if you have at least a couple seconds. If the front end comes up, simply pull in the clutch and give the rear brake a tap, and it will come down. If you come off a jump in a nosedive, stab the throttle to bring it back up.

Hope this helps ya man......

[Jake250ex]

Its all in confidence, really

I dont think anyone ever looks at a double and says, I need to hit that in 3rd gear at 4500RPM... You just kinda go for and estimate how quick you need to be to clear it. Remember this - its always better to overshoot then to some up short. Always ride over the jump before you try it to avoid :eek2: in midair. Usually, you want to come up to the jump at a constant speed then "blip" it right before hitting the face of it.

[eslride1]

usually for me i let off before it then snap the throttle once im on the jump then i let the bike or quad or whatever im riding go straight then once i get close to the ground i give it a little gas to bring the back end down to the ground and if get pitched to far forward i lean back like hell and hope i dont wreck but on doubles i normally don't let off before the jump if im hitting the double for the first time, better safe then sorry