- A hardtail can be nearly as capable
as a full suspension bike in the right hands,
but if you haven't got the skills to match that
it can be a pretty rough ride.
Today's video, we're taking a look at getting
the most out of your e-hardtail on the trails.
(upbeat music)
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When it comes to pumping the ground
there simply is no better bike than the hardtail.
Thing is, with a full suspension bike,
a lot of that energy is lost in the rear suspension system.
With the hairtail, if you've got a good pump technique,
you're simply gonna be flyin' down the trails.
In front of me I've got a set of three roller doubles,
so pumpin' is a really good skill to have over these.
The way that we're gonna do it is we approach
the up face of the roller, we're gonna get our weight back,
making the front end of the bike nice and light.
Basically you've got a mid-point of the roller,
which is where you wanna be goin' over
with as least weight on the bike as possible.
And then when you get to the down side,
the back side of the roller, this is where
you really need to make yourself heavy
and push into the ground, driving that bike
forward down the down slope and then look to repeat that
throughout the section of up and down,
making that weight count on the down slope
to go in light up the up faces.
You may have noticed that a lot of dirt jump bikes
are actually hardtails.
The reason for that is, if you're riding
a full suspension bike when jumpin',
a lot of that energy can be lost from the take off,
simply in that rear suspension system.
With a hardtail it gives a really direct feel.
It also gives a lot of energy to the bike,
firin' it up into the air with ease.
Let's break down jumping this table top into
four different steps.
First, the approach.
This is where you need to come in with good speed,
pedals level, lookin' and focusing on the take off.
As you approach take off, you need to squash down,
get your weight loaded into the bike,
squashin' from your head right the way down
through your body to your toes, loading that bike up
like a big spring.
And as the front wheel approaches the top
of the take off, this is where you need to release
all that energy and let that bike pop up into the air.
You also need to be lookin' ahead.
Don't look down 'cause if you look down
you'll be goin' down, so look ahead and look forward.
Imagine the trajectory of the bike you like
out the take off, and float it in the mid-point,
get your weight towards the centre of the bike,
this'll level the bike out, with a slight
weight shift forward, that should see you nosedive
into the landing nice and smooth.
(bike whirring)
The hardtail is a great bike for learning how to manual.
The thing is, on a full suspension bike you can lose
a lot of that feedback from the rear suspension.
Also the manual is an invaluable skill to have
out on the trail, meaning you can hop rocks,
roots and open up a load more lines.
If you try and manual a full suspension bike
you're constantly battling the rear suspension
to stay in the right position.
The hardtail has a very direct feel
and any body movement is instantly transferred to the bike.
To get your bike in the manual position,
all you do is get your weight forward,
pre-load the fork, give the fork a slight squish
by swiftly transferring your weight
towards the rear axle of the bike.
Keep your weight over the back of the bike
whilst driving the bike forward with your feet,
whilst pulling back with the arms,
modulating the rear brake to make sure
that the bike stays in that manual position.
The best way to tackle really gnarly and technical
terrain on your hardtail is simply by using
your body as suspension.
You've got a really sophisticated unit, it's got a lot
of travel in your legs and your arms
and your elbows and your wrists.
You really need to start activating that stuff
when the trail gets nasty.
Simply get your weight back, get behind the saddle,
and use your arms and your legs to absorb that shock.
If you're riding on top of the bike,
every inch of that trail's gonna be shootin' back
through the handlebars and firing you out of control.
(bike whirring)
You may think that the hardtail is in fact
the wrong tool for the job to be hitting drops such as this.
Thing is, if you're precise and use your body
as suspension, you can get away with some big,
big drops on a hardtail.
On a full suspension bike, the bike would probably
be bottomed out on such a big hit anyway,
so why not use a hardtail?
The key to hittin' a drop on your hardtail
is all about comin' in with good forward speed.
You want your pedals level and your weight
in the middle of the bike.
You wanna focus on the edge of the drop.
As you come in, just get the weight forward,
squash the fork a little bit and perform
a mini-manual as you leave the edge of the drop,
keepin' your weight central on the bike,
transferring it towards the rear to keep
the front wheel up as you go off the edge
and then literally tip forward, a little push
on the handlebars should nose it into the landing,
if there's a down slope.
If it's a flat you need to pull the handlebars up
and try and land back wheel first.
(bike whirring)
Woo!
So there you go, I really hope you've enjoyed
today's videos on essential hardtail skills.
If you wanna stay with us we've got a video we did
recently where I rode a hardtail and went
as big as I could, so check that one out up here.
Don't forget, if you've enjoyed today's video
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