Archive for the ‘Riding Techniques’ Category:
Starting Right
A new year brings a fresh start. Anaheim I is literally hours away and the atmosphere is intensifying. One thing about Supercross that seems to be a reoccurring issue with some riders is starts. With 250f mains lasting less the 15 minutes long, the initial jump off of the gate is extremely important. You can jump all of the rhythm sections and rail all of the corners, but if you get a bad start, you will be running through tear offs like they are going out of style. So, I thought to kick off the New Year, why not start with starts?
Each gate on the starting grid is different. Not because of the position it is in, but the rut behind and outside of the gate. At amateur events, you will see that some of the ruts right out the gate sway back and forth. You want to try and avoid these if you can because this side to side movement robs you of the crucial drive out of the gate. So, you want to find the straightest rut possible.
I have seen people prep their gate a million different ways. And it is funny because it is almost like a religious ceremony! This is really trial and error. I like to get all of the loose dirt out and then stomp it down. However, if it gets too deep, this will cause your front wheel to pop up and this will force you to slip the clutch; resulting in less drive from your back wheel. Others prefer to drag dirt in the rut with their boots, and then pack it down. Like I said, it is all trial and error to find what works for you. However, the main idea to keep is to make sure your surface is as hard as possible. The more rocks and loose dirt you have, the less traction you will get.
Another important aspect of choosing a gate is the way it lines up with the first corner. Some think that the shortest line to the corner is the best. This is not true. You want the straightest line to the first turn. This will allow you a solid drive to hold the gas wide open.
When you have everything prepped and the card goes sideways, technique comes into play. You want to start with elbows squared up and head over the bars. Your butt should be in the slight dip in the seat and both feet on the ground (or blocks). This helps keep the rear from swaying side to side. Keeping the clutch out just enough to get the chain tight will ensure a quick jump. You want the bike to almost creep forward. Throttle application is something that you have to play with. I always liked to have about third of the throttle open and as the gate dropped, I poured it on very smoothly. Too fast and the rear will spin.
Everything should be one, smooth motion. Apply more gas as you let the clutch out. DO NOT dump the throttle. You might think that you will get a better jump, but you will just bog down. As you exit the gate, it is a good idea to keep both feet down until you have to shift up. I never liked shifting with my heel as I have almost blown up my engine doing that. Don’t do it! This whole process takes a lot of practice and requires a trained touch. Once you find your routine, keep with it and you will be pulling holeshots like Andrew Short.
Diversity in your Training
Like the old saying goes, variety is the spice of life. This couldn’t be any truer for moto. When I was younger, I would find myself going through the same routine during the week and at the track. I guess you could say I was stuck in a rut (pun intended). I quickly took riding for granted and was frustrated when I wasn’t getting the results I wanted and expected. Like anything physically demanding, if you subject the body to the same stress long enough, it will adapt and overcome. This is why periodization is so important in our sport, but you also keep things interesting and become a well rounded rider.
One thing that happens to me is that I will go to the track and just bust out moto after moto. I would take the same lines during the same time of day at the same track. It was a mindless process and it eventually came to the point of muscle memory. My nervous system and body knew exactly what was coming on the track. This eventually led to a stagnant state where I was the same speed for the longest time. Doing motos like this is a good thing, but not all the time. If you are struggling in one section, take some time to break the section down and hit it over and over until you have mastered it. Another great way to switch things up is to go at a later time in the day; this is good if you can’t really get to any other tracks. Going later in the day will leave you with a rougher track and force you to switch lines up as well as testing your endurance.
This concept of diversity is especially important in the gym. For strength training, changing exercises and rep ranges is extremely important to ensure your body doesn’t “go through the motions.” You might feel a burn and think you are pushing, but you will hit a plateau eventually. Throwing in balance exercises and using different angles on exercises confuses the body which will keep your training interesting. This goes for cardio as well. If you have been running the same amount of intervals at the same speed for a few weeks, it is time for a change. Try shorter intervals for more intensity.
Making changes in your training doesn’t always have to be big, drastic differences. Sometimes it can be the subtle things that make a bigger difference. You will keep yourself from getting burnt out and have a fresh outlook on training. These changes can help motivate you to get to the next level or goal in your program. When you are progressing, you are getting stronger and faster.
Seat Bouncing
The Nationals are done and dusted. It was certainly a crazy 250 race for the championship and it was all Dungey and the Suzuki freight train for the 450s. However, now we are getting geared up for the 2011 Supercross season and the focus changes from all out speed to more technical, precise riding. The style and whole way you ride the tighter Supercross tracks forces you to use a few different techniques. One of these techniques is the seat bounce. Perfected by McGrath, this simple method can help you leap over low speed obstacles much easier.
As with any new jumping technique, you want to start small and slow. That is my disclaimer because this can get ugly quickly if you are not careful. So, now that is out of the way, you want to approach the face of the jump straight and sitting down. You want to apply a steady and smooth dose of throttle to maintain power to the rear wheel. This ensures you have plenty of drive to help keep the front end from diving and throwing you over the bars. To help counteract this endo process even further, you want your elbows squared up and grip with your legs as usual. Pulling back on the bars really helps pull that front end up and keep it there when you start flight. In addition, it is a good idea you want to continue a strong, steady dose of throttle up the face of the jump.
There are a few things to determine before you go and start seat bouncing. First, the speed at which you hit the jump determines how far you sit forward or back on the seat. The rule of thumb is that the faster you go, the further you want to sit up on the seat. If you were to sit on the fender, hanging off the back of your bike, you have the shock loaded with a tremendous amount of weight. When you hit the face of the jump, that shock compresses even more and the high speeds sling shot anything upwards. This results the dreaded endo.
Another factor affecting the seat position is the steepness of the jump. This combines the speed you’re going as well because as I said before, you don’t have to be wide open, hanging off the back of your bike approaching a massive double. If it is slower and steep, you can sit further back to load the bike more. For less steep faces, I would start out just in front of that slight dip in the seat and work your way back. Again, this takes time to get used to, so take it slow and start small!
Here’s a great example of a textbook seat bounce by the GOAT:
Grip Positioning
If you have ever seen or been to a riding school, they often go over the basics: grip with the knees, elbows up and look ahead. I have gone over those plenty of times and they should be engrained into your brain! However, there are some little things that can help keep your form correct. The often overlooked techniques are usually grip positioning and posterior alignment. The basics form a solid foundation and the smaller ones build upon those.
Correct grip on the bars obviously keeps your elbows up, but it is also minimizes the extent you have to roll your wrist back. The further forward you grip the bars, the more your elbows want to come up. The goal is to keep your wrist in line with your forearm when you are on the gas. One thing that can affect your wrist position is your lever position. Some riders rotate their levers so far down, it forces you get over the bars and keep your weight forward. This is okay some of the time, but there isn’t a need to be over the bars every second of your moto. If you have to lean back, your levers will be so far down, you won’t be able to reach them.
To help with breathing and prevent your back muscles from tiring out, a good thing to remember is to keep your back straight. When there are no curves in the spinal cord, your diaphragm is opened up and you allow the lungs to work properly. To help with this, rolling your hips back puts you in the attack position. This straight line will align your body up and allow the bike to pivot evenly underneath of you. In addition to rolling your hips back, rolling your shoulders back will help you relax and breathe easier.
Like I said, unless you really think about your technique, most people would overlook these aspects. Keep these in mind if you have trouble with arm pump and/or endurance problems.
Block Pass Breakdown
If you haven’t looked already, my previous post went over passing opportunities. To recap the article, you don’t want to follow because if you are copying the guy in front of you, you are just going to stay behind him. As far as the mental aspect, you can rev your engine and make as much noise as you can to break the concentration of your competitor, but use sparingly. Today I really want to go over the block pass to complete the whole passing idea. It is pretty simple concept, but requires a lot of bike control.
Below is a video of an epic battle between Chad Reed and Kevin Windham. You can use it as a visual aid and it is a great race to watch as well. A great example of a block pass is at 6:55.
Before you even get to the corner, you want to set up in the section prior to it. You want to set it up so you can be on the inside of the other rider. You can see Chad Reed is right behind and on the inside of Windham. If you notice, Reed sets up for the corner the same time as Kevin which ensures that he can cut inside while Windham goes wide.
When the two are in the corner, they are even and Reed has complete control of where Windham goes. One thing Reed could have done is drift out wide, but he kept to the inside which allowed Kevin to keep that 450’s momentum up. That allowed Windham to make a pretty easy pass on the next straight.
As I said earlier, this requires a lot of control over the bike. In the section before the corner, you want to make sure that you are squeezing the bike with your lower body and your elbows are up. When your elbows are up in the corner, there is less of a chance of your handle bars coming together. This is somewhat of a tricky technique, so take it slow and when you feel comfortable with it, try in a race situation.
Passing 101
Unless you are Mike Alessi (on a 450) and holeshot almost every race, you have to make some passes to win. So, if you want to save your tear offs, you will have to get creative and find a way around your competitors. At the amateur level, concentration and mentality play a big part. However, line selection and commitment will make or break your pass.
Like I said, at the amateur level, racing is a little frantic. If you are behind someone, you can rev the hell out of your engine, scream in corners or anything that breaks their concentration. When they aren’t concentrating on the track ahead of them, they are going to make mistakes. Now, this really isn’t something you want to do every race, just as a last resort. Sometimes, just pressuring the rider in front of you will force a mistake on their part. Again, this is more for the amateur level because professionals are just that, pros. They are used to the mind games.
As far as line selection, you never want to follow the person in front of you. How do you expect to get around someone if you are doing the exact same thing they are? If they go wide, try to slip in on the inside and vise versa. On race day, the main line around the track may not be the best place to make passes because it gets beat up. Searching for smoother lines at the end of the day will also help you conserve energy and also keep your speed up to make a pass.
Being that the amateur races are generally shorter in duration, it is better to make passes at the beginning of the race when everyone is still close to each other. If you are going to make a pass, you need to commit to it. The longer you stay behind someone and eating dirt, the less time you have to move up in position. So if you are going try to get around someone, do it quick and do it cleanly. There’s no sense in taking out the both of you.
Tomorrow, I will go through block passing, so stay tuned!
