180 ROLLBACK

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The 180 rollback is not one of the easier tricks to learn how to do.  First of all you have to know how to roll backwards on your bike (different from riding backwards).   Second you have to know how to do a 180 on your front tire with a fair amount of control.

Definitely learn rock-walks first...  Also infinity rolls are a good idea to know how to do.

• Travel at a medium pace with both feet on the pedals.  Do a 180 in whichever direction that you feel comfortable with.  This is done by grabbing your front brakes and twisting the bike 180 degrees.  If you want to keep ALL of your speed it is possible to do 180's without using the brakes at all (this is how I learned them).
• As soon as the bike is facing backwards release the front brakes (if necessary) and SIT DOWN on the bike seat.  If you are running a freewheel instead of a freecoaster you will also need to start pedaling backwards as soon as the bike starts rolling backwards.   Don't let people tell you that a freecoaster is required for this trick.  This trick predates freecoasters by about five or six years!
• The hardest part of the trick is just what you are trying now-  Rolling backwards.   This is a skill that is not easily explained and usually takes days if not weeks or months to learn how to do.  It is possible to do rollbacks forever.  You can learn them with one hand or no feet.  They are MUCH more difficult to do while standing UP on the pedals.
• To ride out twist the bars slightly in one direction and as soon as you are leaning in, grab the back brakes and twist 180 degrees back around.  If you are going slow enough you can just grab both brakes so the bike stops, release them, and start pedalling forwards.

OTHER WAYS TO RIDE INTO ROLLBACKS-  The way described above is for your run of the mill 180 rollback.  It is possible to do 180 bunnyhops into rollbacks, as well as squeakers into rollbacks.  You can do rollbacks standing on the pegs.  You can even do endos to rollbacks on a hill if it can give you some speed.   The 180 into it is the guaranteed way to have some speed when the bike comes around and starts rolling backwards.

If you have a question about this trick please feel free to e-mail it in...