how do you wheelie?

[Yangsta]

I'm a newb, but wheelies look so cool!!
anyone...anyone at all? tell me how? i got somewhere to practise, but someone tell me practise what??

[onearmedbandit]

How much riding experience do you have?

[Yangsta]

almost 2000km's ?? still newb

[nudemetalz]

My opinion is there are probably a lot better bikes to learn how to wheelie than a ZXR-250 (no offence intended).
Also, learning to wheelie off road on a dirt-bike is a lot safer than the road.
Hands-up here who has flipped a bike doing a mono....... (I have).

Wheelies put a lot of stress on your forkseals and steering-head bearings when the front end comes down hard.

Plus they are illegal on the road anyway......

But to answer your question, the way to do it vearies immensely between different bikes.
eg I can get the NZ250 up on the back wheel by popping the clutch at about 7000rpm and giving a tug on the bars but that won't work on the VT. (it needs more like 9-10000rpm)

[Yangsta]

na, not doing them on the road, theres this big parking lot, not far. no cars either at night. so just going forward? than clutch in, rev, and clutch out again?

[onearmedbandit]

almost 2000km's ?? still newb

Honestly man, get some more time in the saddle before you worry about wheelies etc. Don't get me wrong, not much more that I love than hoisting it off the deck and riding it through the box just floating, spent a long time last night discussing with a friend who rides a ZX6R the sensation you get when on the back wheel, but words don't do it justice.

Learn about bike control, throttle control, brake control etc. Learn how your bike reacts in different situations, learn how to corner properly. Spend time learning, perfecting and polishing these basics and then when you do start getting it up, no matter what bike you're on or method you use to get it up, you'll have a far better chance of being in control.

Put it this way, wheelie now (probably badly), possibly crash and get put off bikes, or get some more saddle time and spend the rest of your life getting the most out of you and your bike.

My 2 cents.

[Yangsta]

"sensation you get when on the back wheel, but words don't do it justice."
exactly why i wanna learn...

[Kornholio]

Honestly man, get some more time in the saddle before you worry about wheelies etc. Don't get me wrong, not much more that I love than hoisting it off the deck and riding it through the box just floating, spent a long time last night discussing with a friend who rides a ZX6R the sensation you get when on the back wheel, but words don't do it justice.

Learn about bike control, throttle control, brake control etc. Learn how your bike reacts in different situations, learn how to corner properly. Spend time learning, perfecting and polishing these basics and then when you do start getting it up, no matter what bike you're on or method you use to get it up, you'll have a far better chance of being in control.

Put it this way, wheelie now (probably badly), possibly crash and get put off bikes, or get some more saddle time and spend the rest of your life getting the most out of you and your bike.

My 2 cents.

True dat

[onearmedbandit]

"sensation you get when on the back wheel, but words don't do it justice."
exactly why i wanna learn...

The reason I can feel and appreciate that sensation is because I know what my bike is doing, I can read to a degree how it will react, and I'm composed enough to ride a wheelie out when it's up, not get paranoid and chop the throttle and come crashing down.

Baby steps brother, got to learn to crawl before you run. Just with motorcycles it's not scuffed knees you're playing with, it's your life.

[nudemetalz]

Great advice, Onearmedbandit !!!

There's nothing that can describe the feeling of pulling the perfect mono (in this case on my old VF-500F) and seeing a cop going the other way "admiring" your wheelie !!

Pity he had to turn around and pull me over.....

[loosebruce]

No offence mate, but buy something other than a ZXR250 if you want to learn, it's a shit bike to even try and learn.
It's takes a real fine art to get the front wheel up (lots of abuse on the clutch) and you basiclly have to click it straight into 2nd gear, and be right on the balance point to keep it going any distance, really only someone skilled at wheeling can bounce a bike up straight into another gear and right on the balance point. Not as easy as it sounds.
I'll say it again the ZXR is not the bike to learn on, you'll find yourself in a world of hurt and broken bike if you try, believe me. Get yourself an old trail bike if you want to dick around practicing, otherwise wait until you can get an older 600 or the likes.

[shadow]

dont try to fix a bad wheelstand put it down and have another go, youll know when it feels right. sorry i cant help to much as i cheat with having the power to do them with no clutch. i like the ones where you come out of a corner with the engine right in the fat of the power and just feed it (mybe a little cluch and a yank on bars for smaller bikes) without using the clutch (lots of riders use clutch just not for thats all, so dont rule out using it) i try and compress front forks buy powering off then feed it then hit 3rd 4th and 5th if all going well yeah ha. i miss 1st as bigger chance of flipping and not as easy to pass through neutral. i prefer high speed wheelstands.
I agree with others though maybe a bit more time in the saddle but hey if you are going to do them go for it they are addictive. there are other aspects of riding that are just as satisfying though(like front stoppies,power slides lol) hope this helps

[kro]

I'd seriously listen to the others who say get some more riding experience, 2000k aint much, I did 800 in the first weekend I had a bike, so 2000 aint alot.

My first wheelie came out of the blue when I test rode a GPX750 after having ridden an impulse for a year. It scared the gonads off me. There are better bikes than a 250 4cyl 4 stroke to learn to wheelie on, and I'd seriously suggest some time off road on a single pot 4 stroke to understand the principles of how clutch, revs, and "hoisting" works. I had a KLR250 that I learnt to wheelie on, and that was like my 7th bike.

[loosebruce]

Stoppies on the other hand, the ZXR is mint for, get a good front tyre and make sure your brakes are sweet and go practice these.

I dont care what people say, i love wheelies for sure, but getting a stoppie high enough that when you let off the brakes it still coasts with the wheel up, man that feeling is one of a kind, scary as fuck but cool. But yeah if a stoppie goes wrong there is little you can do to save your bacon.

[zadok]

Honestly man, get some more time in the saddle before you worry about wheelies etc. Don't get me wrong, not much more that I love than hoisting it off the deck and riding it through the box just floating, spent a long time last night discussing with a friend who rides a ZX6R the sensation you get when on the back wheel, but words don't do it justice.

Learn about bike control, throttle control, brake control etc. Learn how your bike reacts in different situations, learn how to corner properly. Spend time learning, perfecting and polishing these basics and then when you do start getting it up, no matter what bike you're on or method you use to get it up, you'll have a far better chance of being in control.

Put it this way, wheelie now (probably badly), possibly crash and get put off bikes, or get some more saddle time and spend the rest of your life getting the most out of you and your bike.

My 2 cents.

What OAB said.