Dream Big

Even after a week away from the standard wheelie sessions, I was able to pick right back up where I left off. Big wheelies ensued. As did big slides. And big smiles.

Good. All very good.

Counter: 280

Short But Good

It was a semi-wet summer session today. The rains were drying. There were clouds to the south and blue sky to the north, where the sun was. It was a perfect looking-under-the-handlebar session until an official looking dark blue car rolled in. I split. It was still a good session though. +10 for the books.

Counter: 265

Freedom

Slip slidin' away in the rain. Amazing session, as always. So lucky, so fun. Jumping all obstacles well: hill, mound, curb. Sliding into position, squealing to the launch zone. 

At some point I'm going to have to let go of the fear of crashing -- just like I did with the bicycle years ago. It is called Total Confidence. 

Counter: 255

Off the Beaten Path

With a popo cruiser strategically parked in the middle of my usual designated wheelie (undisclosed) location, I was forced to pull tonight's session in an alternative parking lot. While I had cramped space to work in, it was a good test of my skill development -- and I have decidedly progressed!

It's all a good reminder that going off the beaten path usually results in a better experience than going where the territory is well worn.

Counter: 240

Flywheel

What a great session tonight. The displayed level of control surpassed all previous sessions.

I ran this session slightly differently. The first thing different was a consistent clutch up using a modified yut ughh. Tonight, rather than a short yut with a longer ughh up to near the balance point, I held the clutch in fractionally longer. That made more of a YYUUTT and a brief ughh. Much better. That gets the front end up closer to balance point every time (which is one of the secrets I learned a long time ago with bicycles; doing that on a motorcycle takes bigger balls).

The second insight I put to use was to not rush around the compound, wearing myself out in the process. Instead of racing up the hill and racing down it, tearing around at speeds approaching 60 mph at times, I took my time... much like the early 1000 Wheelies Project sessions. I'd pull a wheelie, then just roll, jump, and slide around to the launch zone again. That works well in order to conserve energy.

Counter: 225

Mondays

No epiphanies. Just keeping up my practice. It's what I do.

Counter: 205

Keeping It Live

Fantastical balance-in-motion performances always require a subtle kind of jiggling in order to feel what's going on with the machinery. I call that jiggling "keeping it live." It's just a matter of subtle left, right, up, and down movements used in order to maintain control of the seemingly uncontrollable.

Counter: 190

It's Friday I'm in Love

Sunset: 21:01 in Seattle. Weather: dry & hot. And I still love pulling motorcycle wheelies.

Counter: 175

Post-bicycle

With only a short break between, tonight I went for a bicycle wheelie ride, then a standard motorcycle wheelie session.

My thoughts? Same as always; no changes. The bicycle, when set up correctly, is so, so easy to wheelie well. And the WR250R, even as light as it is for a streetbike, just feels like a heavy non-responsive-to-my-inputs slug in comparison to a bicycle. Sure that moto will do 0-60mph in 6.7 seconds and the bicy will only go that fast if taken on a base jump, but the level of control available on a mountain bike is second to none.

And I circle back to one of my earlier discoveries... bicycles and motorcycle are apples and oranges.

Counter: 160

Back to Winning

There we go. My wheelstand mojo is back.

Counter: 145

Craptastica

Occasionally, when things aren't going well in life, nothing works. This session was the worst performance in recent history. You can't win them all. I'll go back to winning tomorrow.

Counter: 130

17lbs

17lbs more weight in the fuel tank makes a big difference, especially when The Bog can be felt due to warm ambient temperatures. But tonight wasn't a total write-off. I did learn something -- how to ride wheelies better with a full fuel tank when it's hot out.

Counter: 115

Underbar

The problem with big motorcycle wheelies is that one cannot see ahead. The fender, front tire, instruments, and the whatever else consists of the front end of the bike just gets in the way. What to do? Look around.

I've taken to looking off to the side, under the handle bar. Under the handle bar!

Wunderbar.

Counter: 100

7/7

With a slight gray overcast sky and non-blazing temperatures, it was a pleasant wheelie session today. 

Counter: 80

The Howl

It's safe to say that backing-it-in has become an essential element to my wheelie session regimine. And one nice thing about that, beyond the amazing feeling and quick return to the clutch-up zone, is the noise the tire makes when the weather is warm and the tire is fighting for traction.

It is The Howl. 

Counter: 70

Speed

Sometimes the summer heat and the frustrations of life lead to an aggressive ride. Today was one of those days. And that is a good thing for focused wheelies and big, speedy, long back-in-in slides.

I cannot wait to get back in the saddle to repeat!

Counter: 55

Freedom

With the Captain America helmet donned, and fireworks exploding and smoking in the field below, tonight was one of the greatest wheelie sessions to date. The riding wasn't particularly spectacular. There was something in the air -- a feeling of freedom... the feeling that I was doing exactly what I should have been doing. And I was. Big Wheelies.

Counter: 35