BACKPACKERS

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Talk about a trick that is tough to do...  This one takes the cake for one of the most difficult single tricks available. What is scary is not how hard this trick is-  But how many people are doing crazy links INTO this trick!  If you look at someone like Day Smith who can do a hang-5 straight to a backpacker you would be impressed.  But Andrew Farris takes it even further by doing a FULL barflip (spins the bars a full 360 degrees) while doing a barhop and lands in a backpacker-  INSANE!

To do this trick you really need to have elephant glides dialed- the ride in AND the ride out of elephant glides is KEY to getting this trick down.  For that matter we aren't even going to discuss the details of riding into or out of the trick in that great of detail.

• Begin by riding into a normal elephant glide.  (see!  told you!)

• Give the front wheel one hard scuff and put your right foot on the front right peg and take your left hand off the left grip for balance.

• Balance is achieved by leaning slightly forward and backward.  Your left hand should be WAY out to help control your balance.

• Your RIGHT hand (the one holding the seat) ALSO plays a critical role in keeping you balanced. If you push the seat away from you so it is at about a 45 degree angle to where you are facing then you should be at a nice comfy balance point.  Too far forward and the bike will want to shoot out from under you.  To far to the side and you will fall forward....  SOOOooooo..... you can pull the seat toward and away from you to help with your balance.

• You are now doing a HALFPACKER!

• Once you are comfortably rolling halfpakers you will want to drop the bike.

• To do this pull the seat towards you with your right hand.

• As the seat approaches your right side RELEASE it and throw the seat down behind you!

• Reach out with your right hand and catch the rear tire (or peg).

• This needs to be done in one fluid motion or it will TOTALLY throw off your balance.

• While holding the rear tire continue to balance as you did before.  Because the bike is SO close to you it is VERY intolerant of any errors in balance you may make.  ESPECIALLY if the handlebars touch the ground.

• To ride out push the back wheel forward.

• Push hard (but smooth) and reach down and back and grab the seat of the bike so you are back in a halfpacker.

• Now, in one motion, put your left hand back on the left grip and pull your foot off the peg (as soon as your hand touches!) and begin to scuff the front tire in an elephant glide again.

• Ride out of the elephant glide!

EASY!

Okay-  This isn't easy-  It is REALLY, REALLY, REALLY hard to get dialed.  Some people spend years working on this trick and can only do them about half the time they try.  Others just give up on it all together and stick with tricks where they can flip the bars around and scuff a lot.  It is recommended that you do whatever you want.  This is just one of those tricks that can lead to some INCREDIBLE combinations if you get it really dialed.

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