Idling

I started to practice idling on wed just gone, 30 min each night , till now sat night. I’ve managed 7 rocks max. God this kills your leg muscles. Am I doing OK, with this amount of rocks after 4 days?
It’s a slow process, but felt fab when I did the 7.
Cheers for any replies.

I am terrible at idling, and have been practicing for a long time. So hang in there- you are doing better than me!

Keep it up, eventually it will be natural. I practiced riding a full rotation back and a full rotation forward (1 1/4 or something). That transition from back to forwards will get better.

I can idle both feet indefinitely now after learning to juggle and pass while idling, but it took a while. I still to this day think one foot idling is easier. It’s just pumping your foot down and letting it come back up on the other side of the pedal rotation.

You really have to re-focus on not using so much force on the pedals. I find it really helps to try practicing in different ways, focusing on different things. For instance, try keeping your upper body still for a few minutes, then change that to exaggerate your leaning back and forth. Then focus on putting most of the weight on your bottom foot, then try evening out that pressure. Eventually you’ll find a happy medium between all these, and start to solidify things.

Rocky1966,

You are doing fine, just stick with it. I found learning to idle harder than learning to ride, but I finally got it. It took me a very long time.

Juggleaddict gave good advice. I might add that once you can idle for a good bit of time, strive to do it with minimal effort. That forces you to refine the technique. Once you experience the difference between beginner style idling and minimal effort idling, you will be on your way to conquering it.

Keep your weight in the saddle.

cheers mate

Cheers !!

Cheers mate!!

What size uni do most folks use to learn how to idle? Is it possible on a muni 29 inch?

Anyone who learns to idle can idle on a 29, but learning this skill (or any other, as far as I know) is far easier on a 20.

I think it really doesn’t matter what size wheel you are on. Just takes practice. I grew up riding a 24 inch. Struggled switching to a 36 inch, but after a month the 36 felt pretty normal. I often hear people say a larger wheel is harder, but I think it is just different. I got a new 24 inch and after riding a 36 for a few years, that 24 inch felt squirrely to ride, it took a few tries just to get on it. My first attempt on the 24 inch sent it flying half way across the yard(so much more responsive than the 36 inch). I can manage my idling better if I watch the ground and gauge the amount of tilt as I rock back and forth. It is also good practice to roll ahead a few rotations, and then back to the same spot.

I first started practicing idling on a 26" muni. That gave me a sore lower back. I agree with song. Easier on a 20". The point of no return is a lot further on a 20". You have the luxury of being more out of control without falling off. If you’re serious about idling and other skills then get a 20". Later on you can transfer that skill to a larger wheel without so much struggle.

Idling on a 36" is pretty impressive!
I’ve never seen it done with 125 or shorter cranks though.

As someone who rides a 36er, that’s pretty damn impressive! I can idle on anything else 'til the cows come home, but for me, it’s all but impossible on a 36". Maybe I could try it with some 150mm cranks just for fun.

it’s pretty easy to idle a 36er with 150s. I can even do it on the 110s if I’m in an odd mood. I could get it better so that it was practical to use at lights, but right now it just takes too much effort and focus. My 36er mount is really near 100%, so I haven’t felt the need to learn it.

Plenty of people idle a 36er on 125s. : P just not relaxed.