Bicycle riders... Motorcycle rider has question
Bicycle riders... Motorcycle rider has question
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CBR JGWRR

Original Poster:

6,583 posts

178 months

Tuesday 14th February 2012
quotequote all
Question - Kneedown on bycycle.

Apart from a dubious origin "haters gonna hate" image, I've never seen a bicycle rider get their knee down. Is it possible?



(Note: this is not trying to wind fellow two wheel users up, but a genuine question.)

P-Jay

11,403 posts

220 months

Tuesday 14th February 2012
quotequote all
Seem to recall it has been done, very briefly, but it's not something that's remotely as easy to do on a sports bike (I know it's not actually easy, but it's all relative).

sjg

7,675 posts

294 months

Tuesday 14th February 2012
quotequote all
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3tD4lxC3Fw

There's a few factors as to why they don't happen on pushbikes:

- the rider tends to be further away from the ground, so you'd have an even more extreme angle to reach (or will have lowsided long before then)

- for the outside leg to be high (to get your weight over) the inside pedal has to be low, and would catch on the ground - normal cycling style is to keep outside foot low, inside high for clearance.

- there's just far less weight to push about. Getting your body weight on the inside of a corner on a motorbike is necessary to make it turn properly - and the bike usually weighs two to three times what the rider does. A pushbike is as little as 1/10th of the rider's weight so it can be made to turn in, get weight inside the corner relative to the tyres, and leaned over with very little effort.

Gizmo!

18,150 posts

238 months

Tuesday 14th February 2012
quotequote all
I've done it before on a mountain bike.

I crashed, obviously. hehe

Rocksteadyeddie

7,971 posts

256 months

Tuesday 14th February 2012
quotequote all
As a rider of both:

Relatively easy on a motorbike

Nigh on impossible on a road bike. Extremely difficult on a mountain bike. The difference being the width of contact patch.

deadtom

2,769 posts

194 months

Tuesday 14th February 2012
quotequote all
all this ^^

also, on a push bike your legs are the source of power, so you want your feet on the pedals and legs in the right position to put the power down out of the corners as much as you can.
This issue is further compounded when using SPDs (you possibly know this, but SPDs are a type of pedal that secure your feet with a spring loaded clamp mechanism that engages a cleat on the bottom of the special SPD shoes) as almost all roadies and a lot of mountain bike riders do.

P-Jay

11,403 posts

220 months

Tuesday 14th February 2012
quotequote all
Gizmo! said:
I've done it before on a mountain bike.

I crashed, obviously. hehe
Oh well if 'whilst heading towards the scene of the crash' counts I've had most parts of my body down. biggrin

CBR JGWRR

Original Poster:

6,583 posts

178 months

Wednesday 15th February 2012
quotequote all
Sorry for late reply, I had a lecture to go to.
Thanks for replying.


So its doable, but not as easy or useful as doing it on a motorcycle.


Thanks.

s3fella

10,524 posts

216 months

Thursday 16th February 2012
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I used to do it on my box back in about 1983!
I used to gaffer tape blocks of wood onto my jeans! It was about the time that knee sliders came big into road racing and in the bike mags etc, and it was just copying them guys.

Secret is having the seat very low and used to drop some air out of the tyres too, just to make the rear contact patch a bit bigger.

Always used to lose the front first!!!

offendi

244 posts

176 months

Friday 17th February 2012
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..... and of course there is the shorts thing , i doubt kneecaps count as, whatever those things power rangers have

Sliders ?

But in reply - yes but never on purpopse and always just before a crash

mk1fan

10,906 posts

254 months

Friday 17th February 2012
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I've done it. But it was more the ground rising to meet the knee rather than getting the knee down. Does that half count?

pobs

103 posts

178 months

Saturday 18th February 2012
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dunno about knees but bar drags are possible:

Doofus

34,332 posts

202 months

Saturday 18th February 2012
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I've had my knee down once. Almost immediately followed by the pedal digging into the road and spinning me and the bike through 180deg, at which point i think I high-sided because I ended up in a stream facing back the way I'd been travelling.

Bent the pedal and the crank. Snapped the chain and broke off the rear mech. Hurt my arse and squashed a fish.

RichB

56,247 posts

313 months

Saturday 18th February 2012
quotequote all
pobs said:
dunno about knees but bar drags are possible:
Snapped moments before the crash biggrin

Mr E

23,039 posts

288 months

Saturday 18th February 2012
quotequote all
pobs said:
dunno about knees but bar drags are possible:
Bloody hell that's impressive.

I'd be wobbling down at about 1/4 pace I suspect.

ratbane

1,395 posts

245 months

Monday 20th February 2012
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pobs said:
dunno about knees but bar drags are possible:
That involves a berm too mind!!

deadtom

2,769 posts

194 months

Monday 20th February 2012
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pobs said:
dunno about knees but bar drags are possible:
that is awesome. Did the rider style it out or eat it shortly after that shot?

pobs

103 posts

178 months

Monday 20th February 2012
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I'm not sure. I like to think they powered through and got away with it but who knows!

Janosh

1,783 posts

196 months

Monday 20th February 2012
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^^^ the above photo is taken from a sequence and he does in fact ride away from that corner! bow