Video Guide to Wheelies, by MCN
MCN shows you the basics of ‘popping a wheelie’ in this video. Throttle and clutch control are the two most important things they stress. Lots of wheelie video but not much unique information; their goal for the day was simply to get the front wheel off the ground.
MCN: Welcome to MCN. Today, we’re going to learn how to wheelie. Now you might be wondering why I’m doing the push-bike but this really is the best way to learn how to wheelie. Your pedal is your throttle. You back away if you suddenly have gone over the edge and the balance point feels exactly the same.
Right, we’re done with this now. Good morning, chaps.
Participants: Good morning.
MCN: So we’re here with our three MCN leaders and we’re going to find out why they want to learn to wheelie. Let’s start with Simon.
Simon: Yes, I’ve done various track days but I never really had the courage to wheelie. So I’d like to build the courage and have a bit of experience performing wheelies and perhaps we can do that today.
MCN: Fingers crossed. [Kano] [ph 00:00:56]?
Kano: I think I’m going to speed-triple my next bike and that is having a reputation as a hooligan bike. I’m figuring out also how to learn to do wheelie on it and be able to be a bit more of a hooligan.
MCN: Good call. [Victor] [ph 00:01:06]?
Victor: Tried as hard as I might, I haven’t been able to pull a wheelie. I’d like to do it today.
MCN: Perfect. Let’s go for it.
Well, the aim of today is to get you started to wheelie. We’re not going to win that [inaudible 00:01:16]. But we’re going to get you going on the two most important areas of a wheelie. That’s throttle control which is paramount to stop you flipping the bike and clutch control which you need really to better perform control wheelies.
So we can wheelie off on power but by the time the front wheel comes up, then you’ve gotten far too fast. The clutch is like a little wheelie button. You can flick the clutch and apply the power at the same time in the right place you can wheelie a lot slower which is a lot safer.
So the first thing we’re going to do today is to just get you used to accelerating hard in first gear up and down the runway just to get you used to the speed and the balance and the acceleration. Then once we’ve done that, we come to the[boredom] [ph 01:56]. We can start to work on the clutch control. So let’s go and do it.
[Simon, Kano, and Victor are accelerating hard on first gear with their bikes to get used to the speed, balance, and acceleration]
MCN: Well, that’s great. Hopefully now, we got used to the acceleration of bike in first, the sound of the engine, the feel of what’s happening. So when you actually come to wheelie now, that’s the worst case scenario.
The bike is not going to be accelerating that hard. The engine is not going to be screaming that much. So you actually are going to have an easier time a bit when you actually start to wheelie.
So the next stage now is to start clutch control. What we need to do if you do the same thing is to go down this runway first gear, accelerate hard through first, but when you’re midway through the revs, I just want you to flick the clutch very lightly and just have it in your head that you’re going to get the front wheel just an inch off the floor. You don’t want to be pulling the wheelie. You just want to get that front wheel a little bit off the floor. So, let’s give that a go.
So, I’m just going to give you a quick demo of what I mean.
[MCN gives a demo on clutch control with the front wheel just popping off a few inches off the ground]
[Simon, Kano, and Victor are trying clutch control and lifting their front wheels a few inches off the ground]
MCN: It went okay.
Victor: Yes, I couldn’t believe I could pull a wheelie off today but I pulled it off. I’m very pleased with myself.
MCN: You said to me in your e-mail that the most exciting thing you’ve ever done is driving a little bit faster than you do in your car.
Victor: Absolutely. It’s a shameful thing to admit. But there you go. But, yes, i feel excited. I can put a few things to my biking CV.
MCN: Kano?
Kano: Not really. I’ve been riding for about three-and-a-half years and I only managed to get the front wheel off half an inch in my life. So I’m more than happy.
MCN: Well, the idea today on this video that we’re doing is to get you started on the road to being able to pull a wheelie. This clutch control and throttle control is a good start.
Now, you’re ready to go away and keep on practicing, not on Queen’s highway but stay on a nice [inaudible 00:05:03]. You’ve done really well. Have a good fun.
Another video tutorial by MCN
Explains how to power up and clutch up a wheelie. Explains that there are 3 stages to a wheelie and reminds you not slam on the brakes if you get scared.
“To pull a simple wheelie, select first gear and travelling around five to 10 miles an hour. You then close the throttle and then very swiftly bring it back on. [inaudible 00:00:12]
If you have a smaller capacity machine than this one, you may need to use a clutch. To use the clutch, you dip the clutch. This means bringing the clutch in, say, halfway and then letting it go again. But to do this, you also have to juggle with the throttle. You back the throttle off. Pull the clutch halfway in and then you throttle back on and a smooth [inaudible 00:00:36].
There are three stages to a wheelie. First of all, when you accelerate and the front wheel gets lifted from the ground. The bike finds it difficult to lift. It’s quite heavy. As the wheelie gets higher, it gets lighter. It’s a bit like lifting a [inaudible 00:00:50] in the wrong end. As you lift it from the ground, it is fairly heavy. As you get higher, it’s gets lighter and lighter.
Controlling the wheelie once it’s up is all about balance and throttle control. Once the bike starts to get a bit light, you just need to back off a bit. If it’s going to go a bit higher, you’re going to give it more throttle. If you’ve gone a bit far, then you need to bring the front end down. [Shutting the throttle shaft] [ph 00:01:16] is obviously the first reaction. But once it’s coming down, you could bring the throttle back on again or else [you find yourself] [ph 00:01:23] slamming to the ground. You could bring [inaudible 00:01:25] much more gentle landing.”
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