Will a 29er work for college campus commute?

On 21 Oct, 05:27, "Dre" wrote:

With practise, there is nothing stopping you from hopping over gates, fences
etc. *Unfortunately my technique still needs work and I can only clear a
beer carton and a half standing on the ends (approx half a meter high)

Actually Rob van der Plas recommended that racing cyclists jump milk/
beer crates. So about 10" high and 20" long. The idea, I think, so
you could clear a fallen rider for which you were otherwise unable to
avoid. Plenty of off road riding on a road type bike seemed to work
well enough for the training aspect for when required on the road. I
never actually got a full torso in front of me, so I dont know if I
could have jumped.

On 21 Oct, 23:37, RonSonic wrote:
On Wed, 21 Oct 2009 12:57:35 -0700 (PDT), thirty-six
wrote:

On 21 Oct, 05:27, "Dre" wrote:

With practise, there is nothing stopping you from hopping over gates, fences
etc. *Unfortunately my technique still needs work and I can only clear a
beer carton and a half standing on the ends (approx half a meter high)

Actually Rob van der Plas recommended that racing cyclists jump milk/
beer crates. * So about 10" high and 20" long. * The idea, I think, so
you could clear a fallen rider for which you were otherwise unable to
avoid. *Plenty of off road riding on a road type bike seemed to work
well enough for the training aspect for when required on the road. *I
never actually got a full torso in front of me, so I dont know if I
could have jumped.

I failed to keep a link of it, but there is some great footage of a pro bike
race, a small group of riders out on a break, two of them jump and are off by
themselves. Now one is trying to drop the other and they fought it out for
miles. Finally one starts his attack just before a huge intersection, sort of an
ovoid roundabout, bunny hops onto the huge traffic island at a dead sprint,
keeps pounding across the island flies off the other side and made good his
separation.

It was a thing of beauty. The hop onto the island was perfect, it didn't look
like he was even an inch higher than the curb, both wheels came down together
and in perfect balance. Flying off the other side, again perfectly smooth no
wasted motion and the bike just gently put back on the road.

Hopping while clipped in is much easier. Apparently BMX and trials guys can make
the bikes stick to their feet or something.


They have gheko in their blood.

The shortcutting of race route by jumping kerbs is not unknown to me.
I was most impressed when a local pro managed it on the final bend to
win the finishing sprint on a stage in the Tour of Britain. He went
on to win the tour. Thing is with a circuit race or criterium, you
have to leave it until the final sprint or everyone gets the idea.
Unfortunately, my breath didn't seem to hold out for long enough,
enough.

On Oct 21, 3:57*pm, thirty-six wrote:

Actually Rob van der Plas recommended that racing cyclists jump milk/
beer crates. * So about 10" high and 20" long. * The idea, I think, so
you could clear a fallen rider for which you were otherwise unable to
avoid. *Plenty of off road riding on a road type bike seemed to work
well enough for the training aspect for when required on the road. *I
never actually got a full torso in front of me, so I dont know if I
could have jumped.

My best jump was over a dog that suddenly ran out directly in front of
me on a narrow country lane. I had a riding buddy on each elbow and
nowhere to go but up. And it wasn't a perfect jump; the rear wheel
caught the dog and broke its shoulder. Wasn't even a very big dog.

But back in those days I was getting lots of practice. My commuting
route had a bad set of RR tracks that I'd fly over most days. I'm
more staid now.

BTW, the way I've always visualized what I'm doing is this: Using my
hands and feet, I propel my body upward, then pull the bike up after
myself, by the handlebars and toe clips. Keep that handlebar straight
for the landing.

- Frank Krygowski

On Oct 21, 6:37*pm, RonSonic wrote:

Hopping while clipped in is much easier. Apparently BMX and trials guys can make
the bikes stick to their feet or something.

I can do it a bit without clips, but not nearly as easily or as high.

It happens so fast it's nearly unconscious, but I think the physics
goes like this: Rider jumps up, and pulls handlebars up after
himself. Mass center of the bike rises while the rear wheel is still
on the ground. Then the rider pushes down on the bars, to rotate the
bike about its mass center so it's horizontal. The end effect is two
wheels off the ground.

I've seen that explanation given for the similar trick of jumping a
skateboard, except that the start of that sequence is kicking down on
the back of the board as the rider jumps up, so it "wheelies" on its
rear wheel.

But the explanations don't cover the smoothness and skill with which
some guys perform these moves. People are capable of amazing things.

- Frank Krygowski

On Oct 21, 8:00 pm, Frank Krygowski wrote:
On Oct 21, 6:37 pm, RonSonic wrote:



Hopping while clipped in is much easier. Apparently BMX and trials guys can make
the bikes stick to their feet or something.

I can do it a bit without clips, but not nearly as easily or as high.

It happens so fast it's nearly unconscious, but I think the physics
goes like this: Rider jumps up, and pulls handlebars up after
himself. Mass center of the bike rises while the rear wheel is still
on the ground. Then the rider pushes down on the bars, to rotate the
bike about its mass center so it's horizontal. The end effect is two
wheels off the ground.

Good analysis, I think. I've never practiced it. I think maybe
there's a forward thrust / rotation of the bars component. Obviously
the rider cannot "pull up" on unattached pedals (it's definitely all
in the handlebars), but does use the inertia of his body to lift the
bike off the ground.


I've seen that explanation given for the similar trick of jumping a
skateboard, except that the start of that sequence is kicking down on
the back of the board as the rider jumps up, so it "wheelies" on its
rear wheel.

But the explanations don't cover the smoothness and skill with which
some guys perform these moves. People are capable of amazing things.


Remarks like "it's nearly unconscious" and "explanations don't cover"
are atypical coming from you. I'm impressed :-)

On Oct 21, 11:49*pm, Dan O wrote:
On Oct 21, 8:00 pm, Frank Krygowski wrote:

On Oct 21, 6:37 pm, RonSonic wrote:

Hopping while clipped in is much easier. Apparently BMX and trials guys can make
the bikes stick to their feet or something.

I can do it a bit without clips, but not nearly as easily or as high.

It happens so fast it's nearly unconscious, but I think the physics
goes like this: *Rider jumps up, and pulls handlebars up after
himself. *Mass center of the bike rises while the rear wheel is still
on the ground. *Then the rider pushes down on the bars, to rotate the
bike about its mass center so it's horizontal. *The end effect is two
wheels off the ground.

Good analysis, I think. *I've never practiced it. *I think maybe
there's a forward thrust / rotation of the bars component. *Obviously
the rider cannot "pull up" on unattached pedals (it's definitely all
in the handlebars), but does use the inertia of his body to lift the
bike off the ground.

As a former BMX racer, current BMX dirt jumper, skate park and street
rider and someone with a lean toward trials style on the MTB, I'll
chime in here. I can hop higher on my BMX, no clips, than I can on
anything I have with clips. The way I do it is entirely weight
transfer and momentum through the handlebars. It goes something like
lean back, into a manual (wheelie) that you know would loop out. When
the bike passes the balance point, throw all your weight forward
(which is now 45 degrees from the ground at a minimum, likely higher,
exactly where depends on the bike).

The basics can be practiced in a much more mild way. Lean back and
pull up on the bars to get your manual (wheelie) and then shove the
bars forward with all your weight and momentum. It feels more natural
to throw the weight forward in relation to the ground rather than the
angle of your bike, that's fine for starting out. The only limiting
factor is it will not allow you to hop higher than you can manual. Be
sure you are transferring your body weight and momentum into the bars
and over the front wheel and not just pushing with your arms with your
weight still back on the pedals. The reason we're able to control the
rear of the bike so well when doing this on a BMX with platforms is
there is basically no weight on the pedals at this point, we've thrown
all our weight and momentum into the direction we wish the bike to
go. The pins on the platform provide sufficient bite into our
sneakers for small adjustments.

Another way to practice is to find a small rise, say 4", that is not
sharp enough to pinch your rear wheel. Ride up to it and manual your
front wheel on, then throw your weight forward into the bars and lean
forward, lifting your rear wheel up onto the rise. Once you can do
this, it's just a matter of speeding it up to hop up the same rise.
Then you can work on height. BTW, practice on things/times/places
that won't get you really hurt or damage your bike (i.e. if you think
you are hopping 5", don't try to hop a 4" curb at an angle in front of
traffic). You're never going quite as high as you think you are. The
only way to know is to clear obstacles. You can start with 2x4's on
their side, if you're not getting the 3.5" you'll knock it over. Then
2x6 (for 5.5"), etc. Once you can clear a section of 2x12 (11.5")
consistently you're ready to start looking at larger obstacles. My
current challenge is a downed trash can, it was easy-peasy in my real
BMX days but these days I tend to clip the things.

snip

On Oct 17, 8:03*pm, Dan O wrote:
On Oct 17, 11:36 am, wrote:

I live abt 3 miles away from university I attend.

I want to buy a bike that I can commute with

Problem is I want the fastness and low rolling
resistance of a mt bike but the ability to jump curbs
and cut across grass a mt bike give

There are MANY curbs between me and school..... and
many curbs and obstacles on campus.

Will a 29er be the best of both worlds? *Will it allow
me to feel "fast" on the streets to school.... yet
allow jumping curbs and such?

A 29er will have the cool factor you'll probably desire on campus.
Fast is all about gearing, my 20" MTB is faster than my SS 29er. I
can also hop it WAY higher. In fact, while I can clear any curbs I
come across on my 29er, that's about it. On my BMX I can get over a
downed trash can, although these days I'm likely to clip it with my
rear wheel on the way over (no big deal, doesn't even slow me down,
just annoying since I used to be able to hop so much higher when I was
more in practice).

For that ride, personally, I'd want a BMX. Huge toy/fun factor.
Throw some pegs on whatever side you rotate towards, and you'll find
places to throw stalls and grinds in along the way. Next thing you
know you'll be looking for jumps.

If you want a 29er, however, it'd work fine for this application.
Just make sure you can hop one high enough to clear a curb, or get
ready to spend some time practicing. It's a lot of bike to will into
the air.


IIRC, MTB Dan (who I expect is very good at the sort of riding you
describe) said his 29er was much harder to bunny hop and stuff like
that.

This is true, this describes a typical city ride for me, which could
be done on my BMX, my 29er, a 26" MTB, whatever's around. Only bikes
I don't do this stuff on are the road bikes with the very skinny tires
and drop bars. My 29er is certainly much harder to bunny hop than a
smaller bike, but that's true all the way up the line. Try a scooter,
or a 16" kids bike. You'll be amazed how easy it comes up, since it's
so small. The bigger the bike the harder it gets.


Do I need a front shock or will balloon-like tires
work?

I find my rigid 29er to be fine. Suspension is not going to help your
cause hopping things, and 29ers are plenty comfy for bombing around.

On Oct 21, 12:36*pm, Dan O wrote:
On Oct 20, 6:49 pm, Andre Jute wrote:





On Oct 21, 1:49 am, "Dre" wrote:

"(PeteCresswell)" wrote in message

.. .

Per Andre Jute:
Is the implication here that if I blow up my Big Apples a bit higher
than the 2 bar (approx 30psi) they are now, I can go kerb-hopping?

I'd think so. * I mean, you have to be a *little* bit cool about
it - throwing your weight forward and off the pedals as the tire
hits the curb, but the only pinch flat I've ever had on the
55/55's was when the rear tire was down around 20 psi - so low it
was squirming on corners.
--
PeteCresswell

This is where bunny hops come in *real* handy. *I have no problems hitting a
curb at full speed because I bunny hop up onto it. *Both wheels clear the
curb so no pinch flats ever

Cheers Dre

What do you have to do to make the bike bunny-hop? Give it to me in
steps, if you please, leaving nothing out.

It helps to have a lightweight bike.

Meh... weight is overrated in this respect. My 20" BMX is my
heaviest bike. It's also the smallest. It's also the one I can hop
highest, by orders of magnitude.

" wrote:

For that ride, personally, I'd want a BMX.

Funny you bring BMX up as there are a TON of them on
campus and ridden by younger students.

BUT.... I'm a full size adult student! Where do I get a
BMX frame and bike that fits a 200 lb adult??!

On Oct 22, 11:38*am, wrote:
" wrote:
For that ride, personally, I'd want a BMX.

Funny you bring BMX up as there are a TON of them on
campus and ridden by younger students.

BUT.... I'm a full size adult student! Where do I get a
BMX frame and bike that fits a 200 lb adult??!

www.danscomp.com

The only measurement that matters is top tube length, the rest is just
to work the geometry. I'm 5'10, 180lbs. I can ride a standard L or
XL 20" BMX with no problem. Oddly enough, when I was at my best I was
about 200lbs, since it was before I took up mountain and road biking.
I've been abusing the same 20" BMX for the past 12+ years. 48 spoke
Peregrine Superpro wheels & sealed hubs by the same, DK General Lee
frame, Profile cranks, the rest is really just what you like. I have
not bought major BMX components since the 90's as there is simply no
need, my old stuff is still bulletproof. I have ridden with some
younger kids, and the "new thing" is to use a much smaller chain ring
and freewheel (which requires a different size hub, standard now but
very rare or nonexistent when I built my bike). I assume this is done
to increase clearance, a 45T chain ring on a 20" bike doesn't leave a
lot of clearance. The gear ratio's stay the same.

Also, when I was racing back in the day some of the "older
guys" (probably the age I am now) ran 24" BMX bikes. We called them
cruisers, but they were really just BMX bikes built around 24"
wheels. 20" is plenty big enough though, as my best friend who is
6'4" and can out ride anyone I know on a 20" on any given day would be
happy to demonstrate.

I wouldn't worry about being 200lbs, as long as you get something
designed for abuse. I'd look for a dirt jumper over a racer or skate
park bike. You can still do all the skate park stuff (I do on mine)
and they're rugged as can be and built in such a way that it's
comfortable to ride pretty darn quick. Once concern with a BMX is
they are not the 20" bikes of yesteryear, i.e. "RAD", with the S
shaped seat posts and high seats where it was comfortable to sit and
ride. On any mid 90's forward BMX you stand while riding, and the
seat is really low.