Back Yards Skills
 

My wife and I are about to have a baby (okay well she has all of the hard work I just stand there and try to stay conscious). Anyway I am not planning on riding that often as we will be spending most of the time at home enjoying our new addition to the family. I would like to use this as an opportunity to improve my riding balance and technical skills in my back yard. I have 1/2 an acre to use for this and it is along a riverbank that is somewhat cleaned up. I am thinking of setting up some sort of technical very mini endurocross course. Any cheap advice on how to go about it? I am also interested in hearing some of the drills you guys do to improve balance. I have done a search and read some really good stuff such as full lock turns and using cones. The main area of riding I would like to improve is I need to stand up and stop putting my feet down. A drill that would help improve this would be great.

Thanks

I would build a skiny. First start with a railroad tie or something like it and ride up on to it and the ride across it. After you have finished your skills on that try building a skinyer one that sits higher up. Also, a rock garden builds great skills.

I've only got 1/3 of an acre at home and without going the unsightly way of skids, tires, old fuel tanks etc, you only need a fairly large twisted branch (as big as you are able to move) and a few rocks/boulders on either side to keep it from moving and to have several different lines over/along it.
I'm just rebuilding my home trials practice sections and this one is proving to be more useful than just an a-frame or logs that you keep going over the same way.

One practice item that I find very helpful for everyone from beginner to expert is to layout a circle on the ground (maybe 15 foot across) and try to ride around inside it without using your clutch or brakes or putting your foot down. If you can do it easily make the circle smaller. After you've tried it a few times and are still running out of your circle or having to grab your clutch, try it again not looking forward but up and off to the side in the direction you are turning. This helps more than you could ever believe until you try it. We've all heard that we need to keep looking farther ahead when we're riding and this is an easy way to prove it to ourselves and practice doing so. - Ken

get a trials bike
you can play for hours on a 1/2 acre and never get bored. nothing beats a trials bike for small acreage w/limited riding time. If you don't want to spend $$$ on another bike put trials tires on the front and back of your bike, drop a tooth up front and put the biggest rear sprocket on the back you can get. Then you'll have a poor mans trials bike.

Thanks for all of the advice - I am going to print this out and keep it in the garage. I would love a trials bike but I currently have 4 motorcycles and another bike would mean that I would end up sleeping in the garage. I like the trials tires and gearing change idea. I went out yesterday and played around with weaving in an out of trees and a couple log crossings. I am going to draw something out in a couple of weeks - when I am done I will post it for scrutiny

Dude they're motorcycles not wives, your not married to them for life!! Sell one or more and replace it with a trials bike!! I'm in the process of getting rid of my 01 drz e back up bike and an 07 HD electra glide. I'll replace those two with either a drz sm or maybe a bonnie. I've gone from the you can never own too many bikes philosophy to if you ain't riding it, all it's doing is taking up space and freezing up capital. Free up the capital and free up the garage space for something that gets ridden!! Besides your wife won't mind the trials bike as they are very benign looking and it will keep you in the back yard where she can keep an eye on you.

This is true and I am in the prosses of selling a few, however I am selling them with the understanding that the money is going for something other than more bikes so unless I can find a trials bike on the cheap I think I will go another route for now. I am planning on buying a trials bike at some point in the distant future

Nice and quiet as well which is really nice.


Skidad in MA

It is better to ask for forgiveness than permission. You can explain it away pointing out that addictions aren't easy to over come and it is best to slowly ween yourself from them. You sold two bikes and only bought one, thats real progress!! You can point out how small and quiet it is unlike the other bikes, and even she can ride it.