Track stand?
I was reading posts around these forums and came across yet another term I didn't recognize, being a newbie. So I looked it up. The term as you might have guessed from the subject line is: track stand!
For other newbies who might stumble here, a track stand is a technique where the bicycle rider seems to be motionless on their bike without putting feet down or dismounting. They balance! A youtube search can show actual track racers and how they seem to be staues on the bikes trying to force their oponent to go first so they can draft and then whip into the front to win the race. I thought it would simply be a really cool way to wait at red lights that you know are about to change, or as an alternative to just standing there straddling your bike waiting. Mountain bikers can use a track stand to pause and select the best route to handle an obstacle or tricky trail.
My realization after poking around online is that most people seem to do this with fixed gear bicycles, not "freewheels" which are the bikes like mine (and most, I think) where pedaling backwards does nothing but spin the chain around.
I'd still like to learn to do a track stand, so do you all have any tips? I think its pretty flat here around work. How long did it take you to learn?