How to take really steep hills?

[acdc555]

lean on tank,let go clutch fast and keep throttle up and u should get enough acceleration to get up it

[brockster]

With a towstrap... ?

[spy]

Hmm, all I get is audio with that clip, no video.

I encoded the video with xVid codec. So you have 2 options:

1. Download the xVid codec from http://www.koepi.org/XviD-1.0.3-20122004.exe

2. Download vlc player that plays almost any video from http://www.videolan.org ?

[Ron_Meidlinger]

just remember the only thing you need for the next 30 seconds of your life is to get up the hill

[swab400]

My personal technique for steep hills is to get as much momentum as possible at the bottom look as far up the hill as possible so not to lose your line and then while in a forward over the bars position,feet on the pegs and use the clutch to keep the bike in the meat of the power and give it hell ?

[Dan_from_HB]

Really wicked steep hills require the whole package. Experience will teach you how to use the following:

Proper body position = proper weight on the rear wheel for enough traction without raising the front wheel.

Enough power = big enough engine to power you and the bike over the top (a 200 lb guy won't climb much of a hill on a xr100, for instance). You likely have plenty of bike. Horsepower is probably not your problem, just technique.

Small steering corrections, not big ones.

Lots of throttle and SKILLED CLUTCH HAND (extremely important when obstacles are involved like rocks and turns).

Suspension setup is surprisingly important. Light compression damping may not help much in the whoops or jumps, but it keeps you going straight up the hill, especially when there are rocks or bumps.

I know some really great hillclimbers, and the main thing they have on the rest of us is experience.

[berkeman]

I second that, i would say the best bet would be keeping the momentum and traction with steady throttle control.

Here's a short clip of a hill climb that probably fits your description:

http://s3.youshareit.com/download.php?6df1ebec3c214c1b0bf24b961a84bef1

LOL. No helmets, gentle hillclimb, feet off the pegs. I hope you're kidding with that video! ?

[R_Little]

I'm just a novice trail rider, but I always try to keep my weight forward when climbing hills, standing bent at the waist with my head over the front headlight. I find the worst thing I can do is start sliding off the back of the bike which causes me to pull aganst the bars and start to wheelie from too much traction which then causes me to shut off and then stop and fall over.

But then I ride a 400 which never seems to run out of power.

Also leaning forward is just a more agressive stance for me. I can hit the gas hard and not exhaust my old and weak arms.

When I ride I allways try to "project myself forward" except when I'm riding in Mudd or sand snow and ice.

I don't know if this is right or wrong, but seems to work for me.

[spy]

LOL. No helmets, gentle hillclimb, feet off the pegs. I hope you're kidding with that video! ?

Who said anything about a video on techniques or killer hills? ?

Anyway, that hill ain't steep, nor is it gentle . The obstacle though, is all the loose rocks, so if you like pinning it...you'll probably dissappear like that first rider. ?

[2PLY]

I'm just a novice trail rider, but I always try to keep my weight forward when climbing hills, standing bent at the waist with my head over the front headlight. ...........

A bad habit to develop and difficult to break.. Yes, your weight will be forward relative to the bike, but always balanced with the combined forces of gravity AND acceleration / deceleration. DO NOT do it by bending at the waist. Study what is called "the basic athletic stance".

In the case of standing on your pegs, you should take a stance similar to snow skiing: bent at the ankles and knees with your hips over your boots. Upper body should NOT "lean" over the head light though in extreme cases, it may end up over it even without the bending at the waist.

Press your shins forward into your boot.. this will lower your knees and move your entire body closer to the steering head. Do it in such a way that you can almost let go of the handle bars and stay on the bike WITHOUT squeezing your legs into the tank. This position will keep your head up and will assure that your legs are ready to act with your suspension.

There's more to it, but that is the heart of the matter.

?

[beezer]

I ride with some guys who are really good at climbing steep hills with little run up. I couldn't make the hills for schit.

I watched them carefully and they all kept their wieght farther back than I was doing.

I stayed farther back and walla, beezer up the hill.

With my weight forward my back tire would spin and I would lose all momentum.

Monkey see, monkey do works for me.

[2PLY]

Along with "the basic athletic stance" mentioned above, many of us have a habit of relying on our hands to keep us attached. We also have the habit of wanting our hands to be out in front of us at all times with our head centered between.

Now, when the bike needs to tip left and right, our upper body goes left and right with the bike with our head centered between the grips. When the bike climbs or drops, the handle bars will push us back or pull us forward.

It is absolutely important to identify this habit and break it as soon as you can! Stay centered over the COMBINED forces of gravity AND changes in inertia (power and braking) while ALLOWING the handle bars to move around without moving you. When you can do this consistantly, you will be ready to use the bars as tools for advanced riding. (like how to add more rear wheel traction) And you will be able to get on the gas later and stay on it longer ?

[LABBIT]

Usually when riding a hill, I look at the apex/valley, pick a line then go. Going up hills I grip the tank with my knees and sit on the tank. Going down hill I always stand.

Referring to the clip

Not wearing a helmet is not sensible, but it is my head and that was the 5th bike I ride up becasue the new riders cannot make it and I need some air conditioning before I die from heat stroke.

The clip is shot in Malaysia somewhere near Lima Kedai

Next time I ride it and someone is filming, both feet will be on the pegs. ?

The terrain for that hill is loose rubble/stones and the possibility for washout when accending is high.

The guy who disappeared was OK, just a few ant bites.

BTW, did I win any oscars ?

[2PLY]

......

The guy who disappeared was OK, just a few ant bites.

BTW, did I win any oscars ?

Ant bites?!? ?? Some REALLY Fast Ants there!!

Oscars? No, not this time... Maybe next time. But it was interesting to note that by sitting hard on the seat, I could see that you were about to do the same thing the other guy did and need to shut the throttle, but you compensated by dropping your legs and holding them forward a little. This helped move your balance forward and allowed you to get back on the throttle in time to get your speed up.

Next time, you can start with at least 3/4 of your weight on your feet and then you can slide your body up the seat faster when you need to instead of needing to pull yourself up with the bars.. Doing it with the bars is the start of the classic hill-climb loop!

To be honest, I didn't even notice the no helmet until someone else mentioned it.

[99wr400]

The hill in the picture is nothing compared to the one i tried. Okay, its almost as steep, but the hill I was talking about is atleast 10-15 degree's steeper than the one in the pic. But the terrain was similar, only the pic. had less rocks and way smaller ruts, and no huge boulder at the top.

[berkeman]

Who said anything about a video on techniques or killer hills? ?

Anyway, that hill ain't steep, nor is it gentle . The obstacle though, is all the loose rocks, so if you like pinning it...you'll probably dissappear like that first rider. ?

When I see a thread titled "Really Steep Hills", I was just surprised by how gentle the hill in the video appeared. Maybe it was just the camera angle or something.

If you're serious about climbing steep hills, learn to steer with your legs and throttle. -Mike-

Edit -- I removed some unnecessarily harsh words from this post. Sorry guys.

[barton]

I've found that a camera makes a hill appear a lot less steep than it really is. Or maybe the camera is accurate, and a hill appears much steeper than it really is when I'm sitting on my bike looking at it or climbing it. I've learned to multiply by a "steepness factor" of 2 whenever I see a still or video of any hill.

I'm sure you've noticed that those hills in the hill climb videos out west don't look that steep. "Hey, that doesn't look that bad," you'll say to your self, "I could probably make that." Then you see everybody's got 1200cc rocket motors and 60" swing arms. Yeah right, I'll bet they're terrifying in person. ?

[Dan_from_HB]

When you need to control power, learn to control clutch slippage instead of chopping the throttle. Often the engine can't rev quickly enough under heavy loads when you've shut off the throttle. You lose momentum, which is the single most important factor in climbing steep hills.

This becomes even more critical as traction decreases and roughness increases.

[250fproof]

When I see a thread titled "Really Steep Hills", I was just surprised by how gentle the hill in the video appeared. Maybe it was just the camera angle or something.

If you're serious about climbing steep hills, learn to steer with your legs and throttle. -Mike-

Edit -- I removed some unnecessarily harsh words from this post. Sorry guys.

what do you mean by steering with your legs and throttle? ?

[Shinyboat]

Use a combination of leaning over the bars/ rear wheel to get traction yet keep the front somewhat on the ground. Make sure your in your power band when you need it. There are only two hill climbs I have never been able to make up. One had a giant rock face with loose stuff going into it at about 60 degrees. The rear wheel spin going into the rock kinda screwed me over. The other one was so soft I kinda sank in it. I needed more power and a better tire.