Do you guys normally track stand at lights on your geared bike or just unclip? I decided to try and teach myself to track stand the other day, and after about 30 minutes gave it a rest. I was improving, but not quite there. I've heard that on a geared bike, you need some sort of uphill since you can't go backwards like on a fixie.

Should I just give it up and unclip? But track standing looks so cooooool!

Keep practicing but be selective about when/where you do it unless you're extremely comfortable...AND quick enough at unclipping to not eat it into a lane of moving traffic or other riders. I trackstand at every stoplight on my way to work and home each day, most days never putting my foot down between pushing off and rolling up to my destination. In group rides however, I usually unclip because others have no idea how in control I am and would likely be nervous, plus it feels too much like showing off and would likely be taken as such despite it's other real benefits.

Oh, and it doesn't require an uphill, although it makes it much easier. With practice you can 'bounce' your balance point off of your front brake instead of an incline, but this can reduce further the appearance of being in control, but can be fine tuned with even more practice to help with that.

I do it for a couple of reasons. It's much easier to get a quick start at a green light and clear the intersection, AND just as importantly it gives me something to distract myself with during the red light waits. With practice you'll be able to swivel your head around, check for traffic behind you, and watch cars go by etc. without losing balance. It truly is a fun skill to master. Happy practicing.

I learned on a Mnt. bike years ago and when I got started with road it realized how much easier it was. It was years later when I had the opportunity to try it on a fixed gear bike, and wasn't really comfortable with it. The technique is very different between the two, and moving from one to the other requires some adjustment. I suppose some other past interests of mine may have helped me with the balance part...but who's to say...

-Jeremy

I trackstand at lights, almost always. I don't have spectacular balance; it's not about balance. There are several websites with good instructions on learning how to do it. I have a YouTube video of me doing it somewhere...

I unclip since whenever I try to trackstand, I do it for 5 seconds and then fall over.

trackstanding is super cool. so i usually do unless its an uber long light

Hey! I think i know that guy!

Man i loved those unicycles...

It's not an overnight skill for everyone. Some people need a lot of practice. Start with uphills only since that is easiest. Angle your bike slightly to the hill and point the front wheel up hill, and use your forward foot to regulate the pressure. Keep practicing and be ready to unclip quickly when needed. Once you get better, you will be able to try harder things like flat and downhill ground.

On my FG, I can do it any time, any place, but with the geared bike, it's a little trickier. If you use the crown of the road (turn your front wheel towards the center of the street) you can use it to rock back and forth. Takes practice.

^ I can't use the crown of the road. Since I learned on the velodrome, it feels too foreign for me to point the wheel left, and I just can't seem to get used to it. I've been working on it, but I revert to pointing right when I feel unstable.

Yeah I learned on my fixed gear and it took a day to master and another day to be confident to do it at every light. On my road bike I only do it on inclines because I don't want to fall and be laughed at. I can trackstand on flat, but just not confident enough to do it on the road yet.

What could possibly go wrong here?

As long as the road allows for it, I track stand on my geared bike.

I miss my fixed gear where I can trackstand when the road goes down hill. Pretty much impossible on a geared bike

I don't normally see many people trackstanding on geared bikes when I ride in groups- doesn't seem to be a common skill.

And yes, riding a unicycle does help with stuff like that.

Harder but not even close to impossible.

Most people can't do it

Okay...back to my parking garage to practice on the uphill.

Of course

Some guys stand up when they track stand, I always sit down... works for me.

I'm an ex-skeg, balance is natural.

A full trackstand on my commuter is not for me, but at the red lights I don,t unclip. I balance the bike by turning the bars and letting it move forward very, very slowly.

its imperative to furiously pedal backwards while track standing at a light

I can do it on my FG but struggle on gears. Also I'm wary of falling over and breaking my carbon brake levers off.

Some of the MTB guys who train on the road with me have really impressive trackstanding skills - they look incredibly relaxed and at ease doing it.

By the way, I can only do it with my wheel pointing right - the other way feels so unnatural.

Were you also trained on a velodrome?

Nah, I just suck.

It's only recently that I can skid both ways on my fixed, that feels weird too. Maybe it's something to do with having different length legs...

I can't track stand yet, but I've pretty much mastered slow balancing manoeuvres.
that means going at about 0.1km/h forwards at the red light and waiting for it to turn green while unclipped.

I've got pretty good at trackstanding just from practicing on the commute. Also I was really bored one day and practiced for a while and that helped a lot. Some techniques tell you to stand up, but it's a lot easier for me to sit.

It may look a little silly but putting your right foot (if your wheel is turned left) on your front tire and rolling back and forth allows you to 'trackstand' anywhere almost. Trackstanding is a good skill to have. I feel like it helps when you're doing really technical mountain biking stuff at slow speeds. Also helps at red lights because you can just stomp and go instead of having to find your pedal and clip in.