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whoops...we all love them right? necessary part of any one's bag of riding skills. first, there's no replacement for practice. you have to do a ton of whoops to get faster. practicing good technique is as important as practice. if you can, tape a pro race and watch a whoops section over and over again to see how the pros do it...this will give you a mental image of the body position you should be working towards. simply said you have to keep the front light. the balls of your feet are over the pegs, your backside as far back as possible without locking your knees, your arms extended but certainly not locked at the elbows. all this while maintaining throttle control and staying loose enough over the bike so you don't get tossed around at the suspension does its thing.

think about what happens while going through the whoops. the front hits the next whoop while the rear is hitting the previous whoop. this doesn't always happend simultaneously. the front can be compressing while the rear is unloading and versa vice. the arms act as pivot points and the last set of shock absorbers before the impact hits your body. the feet, ankles, knees and hips are all pivot points and shock absorbers that also help maintain your body position over the bike. so, you have to maintain an calculated and changing mix of "give" and "resistance" during this whole process as well as throttle control and speed through the whoops. again, practice, practice, and more practice.

so how do you ride them?

ken

GREAT HELP, thanks alot, im in school now but i cant wait to get home n ride thx alot

well, ive learned the faster you go, the easies they seem to be. my dad watched me hit about a 25 yard line of whoops and he said it looked like i was barely touching them, although i was doing probly 45 mph! so i think that is the key: faster you go, easier they are.

went fast over one section of whoops and my front wheel went totally out of control. i think that is because i havent got my fork springs done yet.

ken, id bet that 450 handles whoops like a dream. next time you see a whoops section do about 40 over them! it really does seem easier!

try to get your bottom to the back of the bike as much as you can without bending your knees too much.

elbows out, steady (but enough to gain speed) RPM.

and i didnt wreck when my wheel swayed rapidly, i had to shut er down though.