Effortless trackstanding
 

Just curious. Is anyone here so incredibly good at trackstanding that they pretty much always trackstand instead of circling or putting a foot down, just because it seems easiest?

I can trackstand till the cows come home when I'm just dicking around in a park, but usually while I'm riding, in traffic, a little tired, bumpy roads, etc., I can only hold a stand for maybe 10-15 seconds, then I give up and circle or put a foot down.

Do any of you just never circle or put a foot down at stoplights, because trackstanding is that easy for you? What about the real test: is there anyone out here who might notice an aquaintance on the side of the road, ride over to say hi how you doin', but just trackstand instead of getting off the bike without even thinking twice about it?

I know plenty of people could do all of these things if they really tried. What I want to know is if anyone finds trackstanding to be the easiest way of standing still for a < 1 minute amount of time.

I have passed the proficiency test for trackstanding and talking to people. Most of the time I don't put a foot down. I attribute it to a lifetime of "balance" sports like skiing, snowboarding, skateboarding, walking and balancing my head on my hand while sleeping in school (and now work). I've been geared most of the time lately and standing on a coaster is a lot more difficult, but I can sometimes do it when on a slight uphill and in a small gear.

funny, i have the same background and can't trackstand for ****.... I am really good at falling over while trying. at this point, i don't even think pulling the bike off to the side and pretending there's something wrong works anymore. I feel like motorists a pedestrians just say "theres that kid that likes the smell of pavement again... see you again tomorrow"

I almost never put a foot down between stops. My commute is 3.5 miles each way, and the gf lives 5 miles across town. I do both without unclipping (unstrapping?).

Anyway, this is mostly because I'm lazy and don't like to retighten my straps while getting started or in traffic. Also, it looks badass, which counts for a lot, especially if you get a really nice piece of pavement and do a no-hander while waiting for the light.

i pretty much just balance if i get a red light. but mostly, i time my approach to signals so the light will be green by the time i get there.

i learned how to balance on my BMX bike well before i ever learned it on a track bike, and i do it all the time on my trials/MTB. i'm much more still on a freewheeled bike vs. my fixed gears, which isn't really saying a whole lot, because i'm pretty damn motionless while balancing on those too, but i think it's easier for me to stand on my freewheeled bike.

to answer your question, yes, i do it 99% of the time, and yes, i find it easier.

you should ask the guy that won the cmwc trackstand comp, he can't be half bad at it. I still unclip when i trackstand but I'm pretty good at it now and don't usually have to put a foot down during my short a$$ commute. Just have to keep practicing and you'd be surprised how quickly you get used to it.

people actually loosen and tighten their straps when they take their feet out and put them back in? i can see that for actual track racing, but on the street? i just have really narrow shoes and leave my straps snugged all the time and never have an issue with pulling out, or getting my feet in.

I'd say that I can make it through 75% of lights without getting bored or falling off balance, and I've only been riding fixed for 6 weeks or so.

I have a ten mile commute each way through city and suburban roads and rarely put a foot down. Observed trials background here, fixed trackstands are no problem.

-brad

While I can trackstand, I don't in traffic as it causes driver anxiety and sometimes confusion. A foot down send a strong message you are not planning to suddenly go. Plus a road is not a track. ;)
Al

Stand it out dude. My straps are too tight to get in or out of without loosening first, and who wants that?

Ok, well I have a question for you out there with tight geometry...

I recently bought an older Rossin track bike and i'm having difficulty trackstanding since a nice portion of my toeclips hit my front tire. It completely throws my off balance.

I'm starting to be able to trackstand while pointing my toes down (this eliminates the hittitng the tire problem) but it's still a lot more difficult than on my last track bike.


Any suggestions???

put the other foot forward - the one that won't hit the wheel.

tilt the wheel the other way so it doesn't hit the toe.

IF your toe overlap is getting in the way of a trackstand, you're either doing them weird or have SERIOUSSSSSSSS toe overlap.

You "should" have the wheel pointed to the same side as your forward foot, or at least thats what I think most people find easiest.

I find it easier to keep my feet at the 2 and 8 o'clock position. That will rectify any overlap issue.

Talk to Erich Zann. He's forming a gang to stop toe overlap once and for all.

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...70#post1359470

Oh yeah, also, to answer the question:

I can trackstand through any light I've ever encountered, but anything longer than 10-15 seconds and I find myself constantly wondering why I'm bothering, as I feel like I'm wasting my energy keeping the bike up, when I could put my foot down.

I've found that the better I get at trackstanding, the less effort it takes. Getting tired isn't really an issue, since the longest I have to do it is one cycle of the traffic lights, its not like I'm hanging out reading Reader's Digest.

Don't a lot of people have toe overlap? Heck, my track bike is so badass that my toeclips hit my front fork, it sucks it bad.

a good trackstand requires no excessive effort to maintain... even on a slope, you should be able to relax and keep only slight but constant pressure on 1 pedal to keep standing.

i prefer that to fumble to kick my shoes in the cage or clip in.. (some shoes i wear are more difficult [larger and more complex toebox] to get in the cage) .. especially since the pedal's always turning

Yeah, maybe I'm just bad at trackstands. I usually can pull it off without a problem, staying seated, with very little back/forth, but it still seems like a lot of effort.

When they're nice and tight, there's better power transfer, ergo better training, ergo more muscles, ergo more beer without getting fat. :beer:

Also, it makes skipping/skidding much easier...

No problems getting my feet out if necessary, as there's not much tread on my shoes, but you can't get them back in without loosening and then tightening the straps again.

I combo timing my lights with trackstanding. If I miss a light completely I'll trackstand to the point where I feel the need to turn the front wheel, then I put a foot down beforehand. It's fun and all, trackstanding but turning back and forth, moving an inch or two back and forth or changing my body position at all would be putting too much into it for a traffic light. The smoothest looking trackstands (at lights) involve not changing your position one iota. You smooth up to the light, smooth to a stop, relax...completely, think of nothing and smooth on again when it's green.

When it's an attempt to hold one for awhile, all bets are off, crazy balancing madness is totally allowed but for traffic...better to look smooth. You look smoother casually putting that foot down if it isn't going to be perfect. Best not to think about it.

Course now that i'm freewheeling again I do pretty much the same thing but with the front brake. Still put a foot down if it don't feel perfect. Most folk can beat me in a trackstand comp but if i'm feeling balanced in the morning I won't put a foot down from point A to point B all day.

i've never had a problem with skidding or skipping, or power transfer. pushing through top-dead-center, pulling through bottom-dead-center, pulling up and pushing down, i get plenty. i also have very narrow shoes (adidas race car driving shoes) that slip in and out of snugged straps no problem. most of the other people who i've let ride my bike always comment on how tight my straps are for their feet...of course, most of the other people i've let ride my bike are much bigger than i am, or are wearing stupidly oversized skate shoes.

eh, to each his own, i prefer to set 'em and forget 'em. i've pulled out maybe twice in the last maybe five years, and it was a result of pushing too high a gear, not leaning far enough forward, and also not having a full appreciation of the toes up in front, toes down in back technique for skidding and skipping, and pedalling in general.

That's my partner (business, not social) Mike. He also technically set a new world record for backwards circles during the practice, but his flight back was before the actual competition. Funny thing is that he and I are both into the fixie thing and race and compete on them, but our company is mostly heavy cargobiking...go figure.

Incidently, I'm not bad at the ol' trackstands myself...it helps to have a company policy of stopping for red lights and spending 6-10 hours per day on my bike; but the best lesson I got was when I was riding with old, worn out spd cleats, and I had a lot of difficulty unclipping. I was magical on the trackstands that day (sure beat falling over in traffic,) and from then on I've been pretty automatic with them...now I can go no-hands pretty casually.