Wheelie virgin - is the bike easy to control?

[hobo]

Nah, it ain't that bad. Or at least it wasn't when I first did it (by accident @ Cadwell).

[DamienCBR]

No problem at all on the Fazer mate. You might get it go light on the front if you give it some beans other than that it will be fine. If it does go up to much your immediate reactions will be to let off the accelerator and or pull the clutch in allowing the front wheel to come back down to earth.

Have fun!!

D

[DamienCBR]

No problem at all on the Fazer mate. You might get it go light on the front if you give it some beans other than that it will be fine. If it does go up to much your immediate reactions will be to let off the accelerator and or pull the clutch in allowing the front wheel to come back down to earth.

Have fun!!

D

[bennyboysvuk]

If it's only a little way off the ground during a power wheelie through 1st or 2nd gear for maybe 30 yards it'll be fine and shouldn't slap at all on touching down. If it's a longer, faster wheelie where the speed has increased a lot whilst the wheel's been in the air, things can sometimes get slappy if it lands heavily or on an uneven surface.

[Pistolvip]

If you have any worries at all get a steering damper.
The are a very handy piece of kit.

I fitted one to my 98 R1 and it transformed the bike.
It will really stabalise the front end.

[F.M]

The key is to land the front wheel under power ... which will give a nice soft landing..a shut throttle will slam it back to earth , shortening the life of the fork seals ...and pitching you off the front or busting your balls off the tank...Find somwhere nice and quiet and practise...step by step..don`t try to get it all in one go...Give your brain a chance to acclimatise to the front being up in the air and experiment with different body/seat and handle bar grip positions...Have fun ...and know when to give up try later when it`s just not happening..you get tired and stressed when in the first few wheelies..

[Pistolvip]

F.M said:

The key is to land the front wheel under power ... which will give a nice soft landing..a shut throttle will slam it back to earth , shortening the life of the fork seals ...and pitching you off the front or busting your balls off the tank...Find somwhere nice and quiet and practise...step by step..don`t try to get it all in one go...Give your brain a chance to acclimatise to the front being up in the air and experiment with different body/seat and handle bar grip positions...Have fun ...and know when to give up try later when it`s just not happening..you get tired and stressed when in the first few wheelies..

Could not have out it better myself.

[ding dong]

Good tips - thanks guys. I may get myself along to some form of advanced training day where I could practise getting used to this kind of thing with professional instruction. Hmm.

[Y4MER]

Find a nice quiet road, one that's straight to start with, Wheelie'n round corners comes later, then practice. Like the other guy's say try and lift the front by using the power of your machine, rev'n and dumping the clutch is not a good idea as the front comes up too quick and you risk browning your pants and smashing ure bits on the fuel tank.

Keep trying

Y4MER

[fergus]

Y4MER said:

....you risk browning your pants and smashing ure bits on the fuel tank.....

[julianb]

Everyone's forgotten to mention the bit about using the rear brake. Once you've found the balance point, it's a pre-requisite. A gentle dab of the brake if you over do it will stop you ending up on your back in the middle of the road! Once you master this, you can wheelie ad infinitum, without picking up speed.

Edited by julianb on Thursday 3rd August 14:15

[DamienCBR]

julianb said:

Everyone's forgotten to mention the bit about using the rear brake. Once you've found the balance point, it's a pre-requisite. A gentle dab of the brake if you over do it will stop you ending up on your back in the middle of the road! Once you master this, you can wheelie ad infinitum, without picking up speed.

Edited by julianb on Thursday 3rd August 14:15

True true....

[julianb]

Yeah, go easy with the brake though, we're talking about massaging the pedal, not stamping on it in blind panic. You're basically using throttle and brake to manage the balance point. If you really want to master the technique, try it on a mountainbike, a lot less expensive if you get it wrong - and plod are less likely to take notice!!!