If you’ve been reading this site, you’ve heard me talking about rowing and anti-rowing and how, when you do a good job, your handlebars follow an elliptical path.
Basically, the taller the shape and the more leg action there is, the taller the ellipse. The flatter the shape and the less leg action there is, the flatter the ellipse.
Check this out:
Our friend Liam made some cool tools to help him make his pump track parfect.
Check ’em out …
Hi Lee
I thought I would get in touch and I hope you are doing ok in these difficult times.
I have been dreaming of a backyard pumptrack for a few years and with the coronavirus lockdown here in the UK I am trying to find the silver lining and so am planning a build!
I bought your great book Welcome to Pump Track Nation v2 and have taken to design package inkscape to try to plan out a track. I have a long but relatively narrow space which is on flat land and currently simple turf. I plan to bring in a mini digger but don’t have access to bring dirt in easily so will dig down to get the dirt and then put in drainage from the low points.
The design is attached and includes a simple oval with an s-bend berm in the middle and a mixture of simple rollers and a couple of bigger ones to try to give the chance for jumps – including in and out of the s-berm. The track will be used by myself (38 and a bmx/mtb rider since a teenager) and my two kids (11 and 5 yr olds).
It would be amazing to get any thoughts you have.
Thanks
Joel
Lee, I’ve been focused on legs strength and stamina. My legs are good now. My core feels like a bowl of jelly. What are some of the best exercises for building my core?
Good video. Good teaching style. Great rider. Some dangerous advice.
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Hey Lee,
Have you ever flown with a trust fork? Looking at it, it doesn’t look like it would fit into my bike bag so would complicate things for my trips to the mountains. Any experience/ideas for plane travel with them?
Paul
Hey Lee,
I am thinking about building one of those giant slip n slides that uses a bungee cord to get people up to speed and sends them off a ramp at the end. I was thinking about doing a ramp somewhere between 45 and 60 degrees because I feel like going for more height than distance would be fun but I also don’t want to lose too much distance. Just wanted your opinion on that. Also I don’t have a clue how to do the curve of the ramp so any advice on that would help. At the moment I don’t know how fast we would be hitting the ramp because I can’t find a big enough bungee cord with a spring constant to do some calculations.
Thank you for your time,
Nolan
Hi Lee,
I bought the v2 of the pump track nation book. Gotta say super well written. I’m planning on building one in the back yard to keep my kids busy. They are 3 1/2 (good at strider) and almost 6 (he’s got a nice 20” bike and can ride mellow mtb trails)
My space in the yard is 35 feet wide and 32 feet deep but the SW corner has a shed so need to keep entrance clear so will likely do a trapezoid shape. That includes room for the back of berms.
My main question has to do with the 10 foot peak to peak number you mention as ideal for rollers. How tight can I make rollers. I assume since the kids are on small bikes they can handle tighter spacing. What’s a smaller spacing that would still be manageable for me. I’m advanced rider on a dj bike. I can pump my way around a pump track without pedaling but by no means an expert. Though I’d like to practice now that I have time. We are working from home for the next foreseeable future and we have the kids home too. All schools and daycares are shut down here for the next 2 months at least. Our local pump track will also be shut down for the foreseeable future.
Thanks
Bogdan
The higher you want to hop (relative to your ability), the more you need to unhinge and drive with your hips.
Nose bonks are an easy, efficient way to ride your mountain bike over obstacles.
They’re also a stepping stone to a proper bunny hop.
