Mountain Biking - cant control jumps

hi ive just started to do some bigger jumps about 8 foot in the air. but i have a problem, i cant keep my balance in the air, and i loose total control in the air have you lot got any tips to help me gain control over my 2 tonne bike any help would be great thanks

What do u mean, loose control? If you lock up the rear wheel, the front will drop....other way around too, that might help. Try possibly "pumping" in midair, or whipping the bike....might help also. Im no huge jumping expert, but those have really helped me out alot.

do you get nurvous knowing the jump is a lil bigger then normal?

might take some time to adjust to the new sizes of the jumps. just relax and ride it like you own the world

Some questions.

Are you sitting when you are jumping?

Do you have too much weight shifted towards one direction?

Are you captain dead sailoring the jumps?

Are you holding on in fear of something bad happening?

Do you stiffen up like a plank board?

Those are some pretty funny and useful questions. Having no experience with jumping, but knowing that fear is the limit, I'd say practise as your body could probably handle but your fear won't let you do it right. Once your fear is gone, then it's time to control.

I lose balance if I pull up too hard (if I even do pull up) for some reason I lose my balance that way...

my jumps have never been any higher than 3-4 ft., and when i'm in the air it's like everything just STOPS. i can't think, i can't move, and it's like that 'til touch down. that's just with a bicycle, on a motorcycle, you get the same experience metioned above x 100000. it's like you don't hear the engine, friends yelling wooo wooooooo woooooo, or the wind whistling through your helmut, it's wierd.

i too wish to be able to control jumps better, i guess it just takes time. i'm getting to a point where i can whip the bike a little though.

That...is a dead sailor...

If it is a bmx style jump just ride it out at speed. If you look at the pros their bodies stay stationary. (excluding tricks I am talking strictly being upright) they move the bike under them. At the face of the jump they are still perpendicular to the horizontal ground...the bike is pointed up...

in air, while tricking, the bike is more horizontal (depending on the jump, some like to come in front high) but the body hasn't moved...When first arriving in the air is when you start your trick. Not on the face as that will screw up your takeoff.

When landings they force the bike down and finally move the body a little bit forward and match the tranny...

IF you have a jump to flat...it really varries on the face. If it is a slow sloping jump you just ride it out. It feels more like a drop then a jump. If it is short and sharp upwards...build a tranny.

Basically..don't freeze up, stay relaxed, and control the bike...don't like the bike control you.

i stay as stiff as a board in the air thinking that im gonna fall off or somethin lol i dont know who i think i need more practice oh and i stand up not sit down

NEver sit when jumping and stay relaxed. Once you have the figured out practice with speeds to figure out how to clear stuff.

my jumps have never been any higher than 3-4 ft., and when i'm in the air it's like everything just STOPS.




Watch out man, your riding an EXTREMELY nice bike, so I would suggest you be careful with jump height. I was riding a bike very similar to yours, a rocky mountain etsx-70. (all mountain race) I jump about 4-6 feet mostly, and I wrecked my etsx on a 4 ft jump. I had to sell it today to for a better bike so I can jump without having to be careful with breakage. If you plan on jumping 4ft or anything higher you should really put landings on your jumps, for your bikes sake. You can read "I was wrong" the thread about my mistake.

I just starting getting into some jumps around my area, I mastered the little ones(think curb size) and I was just about to progress into some bigger ones.

I was riding this super extreme trail (at least that is what the Park called it) when I finally got my first big air off this big dirt jump, I didn't even realize that it was a jump at first it was so big I could not see the other side. but anyways I had the perfect take off & was soaring thru the air, it was soo amazing, then I saw the other side of the trail, and noticed that once I landed the jump I would have to ride up a log wall. I think I totally froze up thinking about the next obstacle as I ended up flat on the ground.

I learned my lesson. NEVER loose your focus . Practice more jumps!!

Umm...ok another rule for jumping, scope out landing before becoming airborn :)

Glad that didn't end up in injury. Sounds like it had the potential to really mess you up.

Umm...ok another rule for jumping, scope out landing before becoming airborn :)

Glad that didn't end up in injury. Sounds like it had the potential to really mess you up.

So true. I nearly broke my arm when I thought a 4' jump was less than half that. Thankfully I could move my arm again after about a week :D

Umm...ok another rule for jumping, scope out landing before becoming airborn :)

Glad that didn't end up in injury. Sounds like it had the potential to really mess you up.

Yeah I know I should have scoped it b4 trying it, I did end up bruising a rib too. It was a new trail for me and I thought that it was just a really big whoop, Ooopps. It was such an awesome trail though