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As my lad is getting more jumpy and more techy, him and the others would like to find somewhere they can learn to backflip.. I'm not sure i agree, but hey, i've not held him back yet, why would i start now.
So, we need a foam pit type place that allows bikes..
The ones i find seem to be skate/scooter.
Any thoughts or ideas appreciated.
Local lake? Get the saw going!
Serious answer, there's a few places that do these for events, I'd imagine their fairly quiet ATM, see if the like sof a bike club could do a days hire?.
Adrenaline Alley or Dirt Factory?
Make them one in the garden. Or a wood chip landing
Most skateparks allow BMX's and jump bikes. Ramp 1 in Warrington and Rampworx in Liverpool are 2 off the top of my head.
There's Dirt Factory in Manchester if you want to take in a big bike, although the air bag is the only thing worth riding there on such a bike.
I'd recommend making sure they have backflips wired on a trampoline first (without bike). This is valuable for having the awareness of where you are in the air and teaches how to get the rotation with the hips.
I’d recommend making sure they have backflips wired on a trampoline first (without bike). This is valuable for having the awareness of where you are in the air and teaches how to get the rotation with the hips.
That's a good point actually yeah.
Maybe helmet and neck protector as well.
We went to the Dirt Factory and my lovely, daft mate nailed them in one evening on an Orange Alpine. It took him about an hour of landing on his head, then his side and eventually his wheels but he had it nailed before we left. He is fearless though. There is a photo of him upside down and he is still above the ramp rather than the airbag and it looks scary as ....
Wish we had something like that nearer home, its an amazing feeling 🙂
we learnt by tieing our shoelaces to the pedals so we had to commit. this was 1994 though. it's the same as 360s, there are no baby steps really. perhaps dad could demonstrate first
trampoline idea is great for awareness or yeah just a massive mulch step up landing. Good luck weeksy jr!
Most skateparks have foam pits. I seem to remember your Surrey way? The base in Bognor and Prevail in Poole both have foam pits.
I'd recommend a BMX or dirt jump bike to learn though. If you're son is getting into jumping it will be worthwhile any wa as learning trick on them will be a lot easier and less things the break like mechs etc.
You don't need to be able to backflip on a trampoline to flip a bike.
I've done it in foam pits at Radical bikes and Adrenaline alley as well as to both the resi ramps at adrenaline alley.
I recommend its only done on a single speed as you are highly likely to damage the mech if you flip to foam.
Shin pads are a very good idea as you tend to shin yourself a bit.
So much fun though! I wanna go flip again now!
Here I am at the age of 38 flipping the resi at AA.
I can't see insta due to VPN, but i'll look later.
Thanks to all for the input.
You don’t need to be able to backflip on a trampoline to flip a bike.
I’ve done it in foam pits at Radical bikes and Adrenaline alley as well as to both the resi ramps at adrenaline alley.
You don't need to but it's very helpful. I learnt both flips and flairs to wood, before foam pits were common place. I got flips round on the first attempt and landed them clean within a few more attempts as I knew what it should feel like. With flairs I didn't have a clue where I was in the air and crashed hard. I then did 100's of them on a trampoline to get the rotation wired and landed it on a bmx next time out.
Additionally, once you've pulled your first flip, that doesn't mean you will land every single one going forwards. Different jumps require you to flip fast or slow, push through with your hips, or pull back to avoid travelling too far. Flip too fast off the lip and there's not a great deal you can do to slow it down, so you need to bail at the right moment. Flip too slowly and with the right awareness this is usually correctable by tucking up, if not then underrotating is reasonably easy to escape from, but again, only if you are really aware of where you are. Better developing that awareness on a trampoline right?