If you are looking to have more fun on your bike, or if you want to be able to show off some new tricks and impress your friends, then learning to do a wheelie is a great place to start.
A wheelie involves pushing the front of the bike up from the ground while keeping one foot firmly planted on the ground and holding onto the handlebars with both hands. It might seem intimidating at first, but it’s actually easier than it looks.
In this article, we will show you how to do a wheelie on a bike safely even if you don’t have any previous knowledge and experience.
Table of Contents
How to Do A Wheelie on A Bike
Step 1: Make Sure Your Bike Is in Right Condition for Wheelie
If you are going to wheelie, your bike needs to be in good working order.
You should have the right gearing for hills and make sure that there is nothing wrong with the chain or brakes. It’s also worth asking a friend who knows how to do a wheelie if everything is ok from their perspective.
Step 2: Find A Suitable Place for Wheelie
The place where you practice your wheelie should be safe and free of obstacles. A perfect place is an empty parking lot or a wide-open space with soft grass on the ground, such as a park.
Avoid places that have rocks or other obstacles in case you lose control when doing the trick.
Step 3: Put on Safety Gear
This is really important, especially if you’re just starting out. You want to have some fun, not become the next meme material.
You’ll be wearing a helmet and gloves, as well as protective clothing like jeans or pants that are made of thick leather.
Step 4: Make Sure the Bike Seat is in Middle Position
The next thing you want to do is be sure the bike seat is in the middle position. This will make it much easier to keep your balance during a wheelie, and also offers more foot room for when you are gripping onto the handlebars with both hands.
A lower seat may not be comfortable for you in the long run, but it will be easier to start doing a wheelie. Once you have learned to do a wheelie, you can then adjust the seat as per your comfort.
Step 5: If Your Bike Has Multiple Gear, Set it into Lower Gear
Another important thing to do is set the bike into a lower gear. If you’re in too high of a gear, it will be difficult for you to get enough momentum going without pushing hard on your pedals.
Just like the seat height, you can set your gear to the desired one once you have learned how to do a wheelie.
Step 6: Achieve A Low to Medium Speed
It may seem like you should be going fast to do a wheelie, but speed is not necessary. When you’re in the right gear and have high enough momentum, all that’s left is pushing down on your backpedal.
The important thing about getting your bike into the air for this stunt isn’t how much speed it has; it’s how long you’re going to be able to keep your bike up there.
Step 7: Put Your Strongest Foot on the Top Peddle at 2’O Clock Position
Since you’re going to be using the backpedal, your strongest foot needs to be on top. Make sure the peddle is at a 2’O clock position. This will help you accelerate the bike easily once the front of the bike is up.
Step 8: Push the Peddle and Lean Backward
Once you’ve got the bike positioned, push down on the peddle and lean backward. This will cause the back wheel to lift off of the ground and take off into midair with a lot of excitement.
Be careful here because, if you go too fast, you can lose control of the bike and it will fall on your head.
Step 9: Use Your Weight to Shift the Center of Gravity
This is an important step to keep the bike up in midair.
You need to use your weight by shifting your body from side to side so that you adjust the center of gravity and keep the wheelie going.
Step 10: Shift Your Weight Around to Find A Stability Point
The most difficult part about doing a wheelie on a bike is to find a balance and keep it.
If you lean too far back, the bike will fall on your head, if you don’t use enough weight to shift from side to side and create a center of gravity for balance, then the same thing will happen as well.
Finding a stability point may be challenging but the need to do it is not. You just have to be patient and keep trying until you find your stability point for a wheelie on a bike.
Step 11: Keep Your Bike Straight
The key to not crashing while doing a wheelie on your bike is keeping the balance straight.
Remember that as soon as either end of your bike starts to turn or pull off course, this move becomes exponentially more difficult.
Step 12: Land the Wheelie
Once you are done with the wheelie and start to lose balance, bring your bike back down to the ground by pushing up against the front tire.
Pushing with your feet can make you lose track of where the center of gravity is, so keep that in mind as well.
How to Be Safe While Doing A Wheelie
When you are doing a wheelie on your bike, it is crucial that you keep the balance straight. Remember that as soon as either end of your bike starts to turn or pull off course, this move becomes exponentially more difficult and can lead to injury.
It is also important for beginners to start with a small wheelie so they do not get discouraged if they cannot manage the larger ones right away.
If you find yourself losing control and struggling with maintaining speed, bring down the front tire first before bringing down any other part. This will help minimize how far backward scoots when coming back down from an unstable position.
And most importantly, when you are practicing wheelie, always wear protective gear. You do not want to be wearing anything that could get caught on the bike if you fall, such as jewelry or a loose tank top.