First the bad news: motor learning only works well at a young age. More precisely, between the ages of 8 and 12, because this is when the brain's plasticity is high and, according to science, people learn new movement patterns more quickly. What's more, the neuronal connections are also made more quickly, the muscles are more flexible and the motivation to practise tirelessly is higher. Prominent examples include Jackson Goldstone, Brandon Semenuk and Peter Henke. They learnt to jump on a mountain bike right after they learnt to walk upright - and spent every free minute on the jump hills - another factor: time to practice.
And the good news? The good news is that you can still learn new movements in old age. Voilà! So if you've long since passed the magic learning age, you still don't have to give up jumping. Airtime is possible, albeit with a little more effort, and that brings us to the first sticking point: expectations.
The topics in this article:
Jumping with the MTB: comparison makes you unhappy
Kade Edwards is crashing over 20 metre jumps, Adolf Silva is doing backflips over motocross distances, Clemens Kaudela is jumping into the sky - we are bombarded with superlatives. Insta, Facebook, websites, magazines (including FREERIDE) constantly show the ultimate airtime and make it unmistakably clear to the hobby freerider: They can do it, you can't! The pictures arouse desire, but the reality is frustrating. For example, in the bike park, when other bikers casually sail over jumps, but you can't even make it to the landing yourself.
"Complete rubbish," says riding technique trainer Stefan Herrmann. "Not only do these comparisons make you unhappy, they're also far-fetched. Because whether it's professionals or other park bikers - they have nothing to do with you! Remember: you don't know how talented the other person is and how hard they have trained." Herrmann's tip: "Concentrate exclusively on yourself, your learning requirements, your previous knowledge and your possibilities."
MTB riding technique jumps: practise, practise, practise!
Learning to jump takes time. FMB world champion Emil Johansson spent his entire childhood and youth exclusively dirt jumping, as did super biker Brandon Semenuk - and Semenuk had the ideal training conditions as a Whistler local. "A very decisive factor: 'You can't practise where there's nothing'," says Stefan Herrmann.
Bike pro Peter Henke also started dirt jumping as a child. "A good riding technique needs routine, and you only get routine through consistent practice - there's no shortcut. You have to practise the right jump until it works, just like we all do," says Peter.
But that's exactly what many of us don't want to accept. We live in the age of "instant gratification". In other words, we want to be able to do it immediately and preferably as well as Erik Fedko - even if we only ride in the bike park three times a year. Riding technique coach Herrmann confirms: "People want too much in too short a time. I experience this time and again in my riding technique courses. But it doesn't work that way, especially not with complex movements like jumping in mountain biking."
No airtime without a jump
There are many ways to jump - even without a jump. You can be carried over a jump by speed alone. But if you want to experience airtime, you have to jump dynamically. This involves bending your arms and legs, actively pushing into the bike's suspension and then dynamically stretching out as soon as the bike reaches the edge of the jump. All of these movements must be well-balanced and precisely timed. This is the crux of the matter: these actions happen in a matter of seconds, and the more dynamic the movement, the greater the risk of losing control.
Record high jumper Timo Pritzel appeals for patience: "Try not to force anything, otherwise the risk of falling increases. Find a small jump and practise there until you get the movement right". Jumping ace Peter Henke advises a table jump with a flat take-off. "This makes it easier for you to do a bunny hop. Only when you've got that down should you try steeper jumps."
The coarse form of the movement becomes the fine form with increasing routine. This becomes clear when you watch professionals jumping. At first glance, their movements are no different from those of an amateur biker. But appearances are deceptive. This is because the impulse of the professionals comes at exactly the right moment and is barely recognisable to the naked eye. This can only be achieved through constant practice. Riding technique expert Herrmann knows this too: "It takes repetition. I must have done 15,000 jumps in the last three years to automatise my technique and, above all, to clear my head."
The jump, the head, the fear
Rampage veteran Andrew Shandro answered the question about his ultimate airtime tip: "Relax!" That sounds banal, but it contains a basic requirement: you have to be relaxed in your head. Because only those who roll confidently towards the jump can jump with determination. We all experience this when we ride jump tracks in the bike park for the first time. On the first run, you don't even manage to land and "cast" the jumps that you normally do. A few runs later, however, it works - even though you didn't consciously do anything differently. "Yes," disagrees jumping expert Clemens Kaudela, "you didn't have full commitment on the first run. But you can't take out any momentum, you can't even hesitate one per cent - otherwise you'll lose the airtime - and that decides whether you make it to the landing or not." Kaudela is referring to this: Those who are afraid hesitate at the crucial moment - often unconsciously! Or worse still: tense up. "Dead Sailor" is the name given to the dreaded freezing in the air when the biker stiffens up so much that he is no longer able to react. The "dead sailor" usually ends with a fall. And there are many reasons why this should be avoided.
Movement killer: Fall
Nothing slows down the learning process like a fall - and every impact hurts: physically and mentally. You don't even have to have injured yourself. The mental trauma alone blocks the mind and, in the worst case scenario, means the learning process is back to square one. Coach Herrmann knows: "It takes ages to regain your self-confidence and be able to jump off with full determination." His tip is therefore: improve slowly and pay attention to your form on the day.
We all know that there are those magical days when everything seems to go right. But there are also those bad days when you get stuck on the pedals after the first few metres and nothing seems to work out. It is therefore wise to listen to yourself and recognise such "bad days". Then it's better to skip a jump and say no if you're not feeling it. Even for jumps that you have already mastered on other days. And you should know your own skills - apart from your form on the day. Where does skill end and recklessness begin? There's often a fine line and it's easy to overlook in the heat of the moment. "Being able to say no is part of freeriding. This has nothing to do with cowardice, on the contrary: good self-assessment is the key for anyone who wants to practise this sport for a long time," says riding technique expert Herrmann.
MTB jump riding technique: More airtime in 5 steps
As soon as you have mastered the basic version of jumping, you can venture into active jumping. The techniques are similar - but when jumping with a pop, you concentrate fully on an active, powerful take-off. It gives you the extra airtime you need for tricks later on.
1 & 2: Popping-off
As with normal jumping, you pretension your suspension by going low and pushing your weight into the suspension. This also gives you enough room to manoeuvre to stretch out powerfully. As soon as the front wheel rolls over the edge of the jump, pull the handlebars strongly towards your chest and push off dynamically over the rear wheel with your legs. These actions cause you to stretch upwards and take the bike with you. The ideal pre-exercise for this movement sequence is the so-called pig hop (see also the complete Interview with Stefan Herrmann here).
3 & 4: Good air position
In the air, you push your body over the bike so that the bike aligns itself and the wheels fly at roughly the same height. The bike describes the classic parabolic flight and you experience the relaxed feeling of weightlessness at the apex. Airtime! This phase is important for tricks and feels damn cool.
5: Landing
To land, push the front down and align it with the landing slope to land on both wheels at the same time. Once again, your arms and legs cushion the impact.
Tip: The active jump is learnt through constant practice. It is a feat of strength. Therefore, slowly feel your way towards an increasingly dynamic jump. If you immediately pull on the handlebars with all your strength, you run the risk of twisting the bike and getting into a dangerous lean angle.
Interview with Dr Stefan Siebert, sports scientist: Fear inhibits!
FREERIDE: Stefan, you're a mountain biker yourself. Why do some get airtime and others don't?
Stefan Siebert: It has to do with fear. I'm the best example. I've already been torn apart snowboarding, I've been torn apart biking. And the more air under the tyres, the more likely it is to happen again. This fear inhibits and disrupts the movement sequence in order to jump off properly for airtime.
Is it possible to overcome fear?
That is difficult. Because bad experiences lead to you avoiding the airtime. Specifically, you swallow the jump rather than firing yourself out. This is the classic crouch position, you crouch in the air, virtually above the bike instead of stretching out or pulling away, as the saying goes.
Why not do it differently?
Because, on the one hand, the head doesn't want to and, on the other, a wrong movement pattern has often become ingrained over a long period of time. It is difficult to overcome this brain block and just as difficult to overwrite the wrong movement pattern with a correct one. You really have to reprogramme yourself, and this is proven to be more difficult than learning a movement from scratch.
What is the solution?
It is possible to reprogramme yourself to a new movement pattern. But only with great effort.
What could the effort look like in concrete terms?
Consistent training according to the training principles. In other words: start with small jumps that you know and feel comfortable with. Start easy, don't want too much. Soft airbag landings are also good. The aim is to gain security and self-confidence and to rehearse the movement.
Sounds feasible.
It's doable. You can see that in the kids who hang out at dirt spots all day and therefore learn in fast motion. Some MTB newbies make jumps that you can only dream of after a very short time, even though you've been mountain biking for much longer. The crux: Which hobby freerider is prepared to practise jumps for days or even weeks on end? Most people want to have fun, go to the bike park and try out all the trails there instead of specifically training jumps.
The jump kings of the freeride scene
Kade Edwards
Fabio Wibmer
Opinions of the professionals
Clemens Kaudela, freeride pro
You need 100 per cent determination. Only those who fully commit to the jump with their arms and legs will really take off. And usually nothing goes wrong. But if you hesitate at the last moment, even if it's just one per cent - a brief release of tension - you'll lose the airtime. Instead, it becomes an awkward air, as I call it. In other words, a jump with a strange air position that you somehow manage to land at best. My tip: full determination!
Timo Pritzel, record high jumper
As a teenager, I was impressed by the BMX racers who could jump particularly high. I wanted to learn that too and practised a lot. The fascination with high jumps remains unbroken to this day. My airtime secret is my BMX background. I learnt to really get down on my knees before the jump so that I could then push off hard. My tip: start slower and perform the bunny hop movement more intensively. And: patience! You don't learn to jump overnight!
Johannes Fischbach, Worldcupper
You only get the boost effect when jumping if you jump really dynamically. For this you need the right timing, but above all: the bunny-hop movement when jumping. Many people squat too far back, are too hesitant and don't execute the jump movement correctly. As a result, the jump simply doesn't go up. The jump decides whether you have airtime or no airtime. More speed doesn't really help.
The secrets of airtime
"Dead Sailor" is the name given to the dreaded freezing in mid-air when the biker becomes so
so stiff that he is no longer able to react. Five professionals reveal their secret:
Korbi Engstler, bike influencer
One word: bunny hop. If you can do a high bunny hop, you'll also have an easy time with the airtime. So: pull up nicely at the front and pull up the rear. If you transfer this sequence to the jump, you will inevitably go up. If you practise consistently, you'll get it right. Take a look at my boost video on YouTube, where I give tips for extra airtime!
Stefan Herrmann, driving technique coach
Comparisons make you unhappy. Even when jumping. Concentrate on yourself and your progress. People want far too much in far too short a time. They are driven by the media, FREERIDE, Insta and all that bullshit. But that's not how it works.
Steffi Marth, professional freerider
Many people think they can replace technology with speed. But that only works to a limited extent. Better: work on your active take-off, then the airtime will come naturally at some point. Imagine jumping up from a standing position. You have to transfer that to the bike.
Peter Henke, slopestyler
Practise, practise and practise again - that's my secret to airtime. There is no shortcut: you have to practise. Jumping really high is an art, and you don't get it for free.
Geoff Gulevich, slopestyler & freerider
Jumping with lots of airtime is awesome. You have to work hard on the skills for this until the jump becomes routine. My tip: don't go too fast, don't want too much, because every fall will set you back - far back!
Dimitri Lehner
Editor
