Mountain Biking - How do you bunny-hop?

Hey guys,

I don't know how to bunny hop at all, but Im a quick learner. I see people saying that you lift your front and quickly push down on it to level the bike out. I can't seeem to do it all I end up is sending the front wheel down. DO I need clipless pedals or anything? Because I use those platform pedal that come with bikes priced 400 CDN and lower.

Btw, I found a womens rigid no-model-name norco, for trash riding, as my current bike in the store for warranty purposes. Plus, if this thing breaks...noone was using it anyways!

You don't need clipless at all. In fact you can jump quite a bit higher without as people with clipless 'tend' to have very poor form. Do a search it has been explained in excruciating detail in the past. In short you lift your front wheel to the height you want and then explode with your legs while pushing the front end up and out...

You don't need clipless at all. In fact you can jump quite a bit higher without as people with clipless 'tend' to have very poor form. I'll agree that you don't need clipless pedals to bunny hop, but I'd like to hear an explanation of how you can jump higher without them. Clips allow you to cheat but they aren't an impediment.

-s

I'll agree that you don't need clipless pedals to bunny hop, but I'd like to hear an explanation of how you can jump higher without them. Clips allow you to cheat but they aren't an impediment.

-s

I put tend in there on purpose because I knew someone wouldn't understand. Simply put clipless riders are lazy and do a level lift. If they come from a flat pedal background, or a bmx backgound, it is really irrelevant what they have, they will jump higher. On average if you take a regular person doing a hop the clipless rider will beat them. But take a street rider (bmx or otherwise) and the flat pedal wins simply because the flat pedal rider is still performing the best form of the jump while the other 'usually' does not.

Simply put clipless riders are lazy and do a level lift.

Hey Mael, I ride flats and do leval hops all the time. I remember as a kid a level hop was a bunny hop and one where the front was lifted first we caled a J-hop.
Any ways, they both use just about the same technique.


...but I'd like to hear an explanation of how you can jump higher without them

Providing you have good technique, the hight you get does not depend so much on your pedals as your own power. If you are not a great jumper (standing not on a bike) you will never be able to get a lot of lift but if you have a big vertical jump you will be able to get more lift. Most every one I ride with can hop just as high with flats as we do with clipless.

:beer:

we called pulling both wheels up at the same time a bunny hop and pulling the front up first a bronco. i still do broncos all the time and every time i try to get over or on an object. pull up front first, level pedals, jump, push forward on handlebars, level bike. that's basically the routine. takes practice to get higher.

You don't need clipless at all. In fact you can jump quite a bit higher without as people with clipless 'tend' to have very poor form. Do a search it has been explained in excruciating detail in the past. In short you lift your front wheel to the height you want and then explode with your legs while pushing the front end up and out...

yeah...


have you ever ollied a skateboard? its the same principle.

yeah...


have you ever ollied a skateboard? its the same principle.

Are you asking me or the original poster? But yes I have...

Im trying Im trying...but Im relatively new to bunny hopping, and no...I cant jump really high. Im really new to biking, so I can barely do anything but go forward quickly :P. I can't catwalk or nething so, Im just looking around the posts for some help.

you need to unweight the bike evenly, if you pull up on the bars, you push down on the pedals, no way around it, physics says so! you have to jump up from your pedals and pull the bike up under your feet. Flat pedal riders have better form, 100% true. my friends rode clipless, I didnt have a mtn bike...they showed off their bunnyhops...I learned on flat, I am now the better hopper

Are you asking me or the original poster? But yes I have...

sorry, i was asking the original poster...

Hey Mael, I ride flats and do leval hops all the time. I remember as a kid a level hop was a bunny hop and one where the front was lifted first we caled a J-hop.
Any ways, they both use just about the same technique

Too funny, I was just explaining this the other day in a similar thread. We called the "J-Hop" a Joiner. Probably where thr J comes froms? This was in the late 70's.

Too funny, I was just explaining this the other day in a similar thread. We called the "J-Hop" a Joiner. Probably where thr J comes froms? This was in the late 70's.

I think it was sometimes called a j-hop cause is resembled the shape of a J...

This was in the late 70's

I started riding BMX in '72 so it would be from the same era. As Mael said, we called it a J-hop because it resembled a J. All in all they are one in the same.

Hey Hooigan, what you could practice is lifting the rear off the ground. Sort of like a front wheel stand. Once you can lift it consistantly then add the front.

I found a site a while back that explained it step by step. I shall see if I can find it again.

:beer:

It takes years of practice to be able to jump high, consistently.

www.bmxtrix.com go to the 'how-to' section and then 'flatland'
they even have video. forget bunny hops...try hang-nothings :)

We called the one where you pull the front wheel up first a bunny hop and both wheels at the same time a husky.

Hey.......that bmxtrix site...do you flatland......or just browse around there?.......

ANYWAYS:

about the bunnyhopping...i started a thread about a week ago about it....and oh man....were they ever right....PRACTISE. I also find liftting the rear is as important...once your front wheel is all the way up. I find its alsmost like a frog jump to get high..... :D

Hey.......that bmxtrix site...do you flatland......or just browse around there?.......

ANYWAYS:

about the bunnyhopping...i started a thread about a week ago about it....and oh man....were they ever right....PRACTISE. I also find liftting the rear is as important...once your front wheel is all the way up. I find its alsmost like a frog jump to get high..... :D

when the weather is decent i make attempts at flatland...i can't tell you how many dents in bones i have from learning tailwhips, whiplashes, hang-5's, and decades.

Nice to see others promoting my site.

Bunnyhops are a bit more difficult to master on mountain bikes because of the longer length, it forces the motion of the hop to be more exaggerated I think. You really gotta get back to get the front end up and you have to be really comfortable snapping the back end up.

The key with height is pulling your legs up as high as possible. Your butt may get behind the seat even so you can lift the bike even higher than you could normally. The best bmx pros can push about 42 inches or so from flat ground. I personally have cleared 30 gallong trash cans when I was at my prime. But, I don't mt. bike so I have more luck with other stuff on that bike than I do with bunnyhops.

Thanks BMX,

I listened to alot of the advice on your site and I can bunnyhop now, although now very high at all. Maybe 3 inches? Maybe a bit more. I just listened to the "point pedals down" stuff. It worked for me.

Pull up.

Eh, this topic is over now. I wonder how bmxtrix found it.

could someone pls explain clipless peddles to me??

Eh, this topic is over now. I wonder how bmxtrix found it.

His site is mentioned in the thread. Me think he did a search on it.

Very well once I get the beat of the music.

Okay can't have been the only one that thought of that when we saw the subject of this???….LOL Oh it has been a long day….

Ummmm....huh?

Ummmm....huh?

Really the Bunny Hop was a dance a long time before it was a bike thing....LOL