HITCHHIKERS

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Hitchhikers suck… Maybe that is a little harsh to say but it is true that they are one of the most difficult tricks to learn how to do. There are some methods to help you learn them that can be helpful though.

First is to use what people are calling 'hitchhiker rings'. These are bearings (usually sealed bearings like the ones in the bottom bracket of good 3-piece cranks) that let the bars keep moving even if they are pressed flat against the pavement. If you are wondering why you would use such a thing look at the Jason Brown video on this site and see what happens at the very end when he goes into the hitchhiker… Bars end up flat against the pavement and he is forced to step down out of the trick.

With 'hitchhiker rings' on your bike you can find a small hill and push yourself along and learn to actually balance and roll hitchhikers. This is a good thing to know how to do since then you will just need to learn riding in and riding out of the trick.

About 5 or 6 years ago there were not a bunch of combinations that could be done into or out of hitchhikers. That is NOT the case anymore. Boomerangs, fire-hydrants, hang-5's, whiplashes, and other tricks can all be combined into and out of the hitchhiker. Chad Degroot hit the first darkside (hitchhiker to bike flip to backpacker) a few years ago and things have REALLY gotten out of control with this trick.

Spend the time to learn this trick- it is one of the ones that the pros are using at every contest within their runs!

 

This is one of those tricks that just takes time to learn. At first it will seem that there is no way to actually roll one of these forever let alone ride in OR ride out. Then you will be able to roll them along with no problem. You will learn to ride in after bashing your bars against the ground a million times but it WILL happen eventually. Finally you will drive yourself nuts when learning to ride out because as you bring the back wheel to the ground and pull your foot off of the peg you will constantly tap your foot to the ground. Eventually it will all stop happening that way and you will actually ride all the way in and out of the trick- be patient this one takes a LONG time!

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

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