Bunny hop or not?

[Artisan]

On one of the routes I take with my road bike there is a bridge that has a few deep open gaps in the road. I bunny hop them because this is what they do on the club ride over the same route. I've always wondered if this is really bad for my bike. After reading li10up's post today about the cracking noise it really has me concerned.

[spokewench]

I'm Guessing Lilup (Whaterver her email address is) 's bike is fine. But, it could have a stress fracture from age, another bike crash, etc. so since I can't look at the bike myself and it seems she is unsure about how to look over her bike, I think it was best for her to go to the LBS.

I bunny hop all the time, riding steel, riding carbon and riding metal matrix mix. If the bike is in sound condition, it should be able to take it.

We should all check our bikes regularly tho for little cracks, they can come anywhere on the bike, usually at welds tho, forks, and also the rims can crack around the nipples where the spokes pull on the rims, etc. So, be safe, clean your bike up and check it regularly.

[DebW]

In the vast majority of cases, a bunny hop is better for your bike than hitting a big pothole or something else nasty on the road.

[mtbdarby]

Can someone give me instructions on how to bunny hop? Is the intent to simply jump up or forward or both?

[Eden]

I'm not terribly good at it, so take what I say with a grain of salt... but this is my understanding. You are already moving forward so the intent is to hop up to clear what ever it is on the road that you don't want to run over. You have to pull up with both your legs and arms. If you see some one good at it bunny hop they will look like they've popped straight up in the air with both wheels remaining parallel to the ground and forward momentum carrying them through. I have a much harder time getting my front wheel off of the ground than my rear (darn weak upper body) and I'm a bit afraid of face planting myself so I usually only practice bunny hopping when I feel safe and choose to not try to clear obstacles (even potholes) until I know I'll get my front wheel over them .

[7rider]

This is for mtb's but you can apply it to road bikes as well:
http://www.ehow.com/how_14106_bunny-hop-mountain.html

[velogirl]

Road, mtn, cross -- you name it! I have terrible timing though and half the time I land right on what I was hopping. But I'm getting better.

There are two ways to approach bunny hopping. One is to hop up with the whole bike at the same time. The second is to first lift the front wheel (like a wheelie) and then lift the rear wheel (manual). The second method is more stable if you're trying to clear something pretty high.

The most important thing to remember is that you need to keep looking forward where you want the bike to go.

We'll start with the simpler -- hop the whole bike.

First, try standing up straight and tall (without your bike). Now, jump up. You probably didn't jump up very high. That's because you didn't create a "spring" to give you any momentum. Now, I want you to squat down a bit -- crouch with your knees bent and your upper body lowered, too. Now jump! Wow! Amazing what a little spring action will do, right? So, you need to do the same thing on the bike.

I teach this on a road bike in the drops. I find it's easier for most folks to coil their spring by being lower on the bike. You could also do it from the hoods or the tops -- whatever's most comfortable for you. You can also do this standing or sitting. I recommend learning it seated first, however it's actually easier to do if you stand.

• Coil your body down (to create that spring action).
  
• Think of "hopping" from your belly. This will keep the bike level and will be very stable.
  
• Uncoil and let the bike lift into the air. Look forward (not down at the bike).
  
• If you're getting good at it, try hopping to the left or to the right.

To learn the front wheel then rear wheel method, break it down into the two components. From a standing position with your hands on the tops, try doing a wheelie. Yup, a wheelie. Don't worry, it takes a ton of strength just to get the front wheel up into the air -- you won't tip over backwards.

Once you can do that, try doing a manual -- this means you do the same thing but try to pull the rear wheel up. I find this second part much more difficult than a wheelie.

Once you can do both, combine them into one action. As you roll along, wheelie, then manual and you're doing a serious bunny hop (the kind you see folks doing to clear logs or barriers in cyclocross races).