MikesChevelle

So I was curious,

Situation : I am out riding, and I come up to a bump, crack or some small yet not insignificant change in the riding surface, how is it best to go over it.
Do I do a mini hop with my body, relieving the bike ever so short of time, of my body weight, so that the wheels and frame slightly glide over the bump.

or

Do I just go over it, wheel truing is a part of life.





Out of instinct I habitually do my mini hop, but with every cause there is effect or in this case affect. By doing a mini hop I am temporarily decreasing the body weight/stress on the frame, allowing the bike to take the bump with minimal shock, but how much stress is the bike taking when I come back down.

The main reason for asking is I have a Kestrel 4000 now and want to best avoid any "asplosions"

khatfull

Avoidance is always best. If it's not the Grand Canyon I just come off the saddle and ride the pedals, I think that's much easier on the bike as it can rock and flex however it likes. I rarely bunny hop (see avoidance recommendation). I have bunny hopped however when I've been on club rides and people don't call out hazards.

MikesChevelle

I didnt mean that I bunny hop the bike its self more that I do the riding my pedals part, Im just concerned that a 195 lb frame is to much when I come back down, if that makes sense?

sdold

I bunny hop over everything that I think might give me a pinch flat. Up-Unweighting to get the bike airborne, down-unweighting to land with little stress on the bike. It's fun.

MetinUz

Don't worry about the Kestrel 4000, they are built like tanks. I remember reading that Schwinn engineers put one on a stress testing jig and could not make it fail. I had one for many years, really solid ride.

DRietz

I try to pick out and avoid everything I can, but in a fast pace line or race, I have used the bunny hop to my advantage.

RFC

I bunny hop over what I can see and plow through the rest. Trust in the Gyrosopic Force.

illwafer

i ride around the raised asphalt spelling BIKE LANE.

bigbossman 

+1 on avoidance first. Anything major that I cannot miss gets a bunnyhop if I can manage it in time. I've gotten over some pretty big potholes that way - I'd rather flex the frame on the landing than taco a wheel at speed.

Sixty Fiver

I trust my wheels to handle any normal road hazards and post over bumps I cannot avoid... un-weighting the front wheel when I hit and settling back as I pass over whatever it is.

funkflex

Id rather take a hit on my rear wheel if I must take one. I wheelie over most small hazards. Living in downtown Portland, OR. for a few years has me watching the road like a hawk. Riding into a MAX rail line can get real ugly, real quick. Like most have already stated, avoidance is the key to victory.

norskagent

wheelie or bunny hop.
On my first fixed gear ride I tried to stand and coast over a bump, the bike reminded me real fast not to do that!

ftwelder

I do a wheelie and try to throw a peace sign if there is time,

gaucho777 

Avoidance first, or bunny hop if surrounded or late to notice, or stand and absorb if it is a big patch of gravel or the like. On some occasions, if the hazard is not too large or heavy, I've perfected a technique in which I flick the hazard out of the road with my front wheel--a little favor for my fellow cyclists.

ColonelJLloyd 

Avoidance first. Otherwise, I stand on the pedals over the bump.

rhm

^^+1.

I can only do a bunnyhop if I'm using my SPD pedals and cleats, and that's usually not the case anymore. And anyway, in the time/distance it takes to prepare to do a bunnyhop, I can avoid most potholes and similar bumps.

If I can't avoid a bit of rough road at speed, I'll stand up and distribute my weight as evenly as possible, with elbows and knees flexed as much as possible, and coast over it that way. I figure as long as I give the bike plenty of room to bounce around, the bumps are pretty harmless.

mustachiod

360 bunny hop while flashing a peace sign. and a wink at anyone who may be watching

caloso

I laughed because it's true. Nothing like instant feedback to get your attention.

fietsbob

Get that hop practiced .. cracked my femur when I came down wrong
after a hop not perfectly done

due ruote 

I almost always ride solo these days, so if I can't see what's coming I have no one to blame. But when the inevitable happens, I do try to unweight the wheels.

Years ago when I was living and riding with a group in MI, there was a descent with a set of RR tracks at the bottom. We all routinely bunnie hopped over the tracks. It was surprisingly easy to get across them. Not that I'm encouraging this practice. I was a lot younger then.

Zaphod Beeblebrox 

I stand up for Railroad crossings.
For wide cracks in the pavement I'll just loosen my grip on the handlebars a little so my arms and wrists don't get rocked.

The vast majority of stuff though I never see coming and I just run right through it. I much prefer to look around and enjoy the scenery than concentrate on the 20 feet of pavement directly in front of me all the time. If I flat a tire or bend a rim doing it (haven't so far) I'll be willing to pay that price.

nlerner

I run wide tires at low pressure and ride right over just about anything.

Neal

ColonelJLloyd 

I too like to take in the scenery and I'm glad I have Kevlar in my tires on most rides as I often hear broken glass under my tires. On a semi-related note; I went for a ride the other day with a couple buddies. I had just installed a new FD and was looking down and trimming it. I looked up just in time to see the tailgate of a parked truck! That Ford was a fraction of a second from having a dent the size of my head and neither one of my riding buddies ever shouted at me!

Chombi

I usually try to avoid most of them but some times they are unavoidable so I just raise my butt off the saddle and try to "float" over the bump or rut by keeping my knees and ankles flexible to act like suspension springs. It also helps to maintain your bike properly/regularly so nothing loosens or gets damaged easily from shock caused by bumps and ruts on the roads.

Chombi

Dylansbob 

I think this is an example of where ingraining a "fixie" riding style makes you a better rider. 90% of the time, when I go over any rough spot I'll "post-up" a leg mid-spin in order to float off the saddle. If that makes sense. After 12 years of riding fixed exclusively, it's just kinda automatic to not stop my spin. Although my knees are much happier with 10 to 18 speeds to choose from now.