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does it matter which foot you use???

1K views 21 replies 20 participants last post by  HTFR 
#1 ·
ok i ride right foot in fron left foot in rear. and i learned how to hip jump. but right now i've only tried a right hip. and i wanna know if i tried a left hip would my foot position matter?
 
#5 ·
For myself and friends we have come to our own conclusion there is a way that feels more natural to us. I ride right foot forward naturally(working on left forward) and hipping to the left feels more natural to me and most of my friends. I can go both ways fine but I feel more comfortable left. I also have quite a few friends who will switch the foot forward with hips, tables, 360's, turndowns and whips.

I think it is more less a matter of comfort though, if you can get it done then all is well?
 
#6 ·
Hmmm... I've never heard of or scene any one switch their feet up while jumping (not to say that no one does). It sounds like your just making something thats already a challenge for you even more challenging. Unless your ambidextrous, simply riding down a trail with your opposite foot forward is going to be challenging, none the less a jump that you aren't comfortable with. Stick with your natural stance and keep working on the hip/ table whatever, it will come to you.
 
#8 ·
do what feels more natural for you.

I personally switch my stance so that I'm always turning in the direction of my back foot. Been doing it since my days as a youngin on a bmx.

for tables I table in the direction of my front foot. I rarely do them in the unnatural direction but when I do I switch.
 
#9 ·
I traditionally ride left foot forward, but I also find situations where right foot foward is a good idea. it's really all about how you want to weight your rear tire and where you want the pressure coming from. Use both, seriously. I'll make you a much better rider to get familiar with the side that isn't natural for you.
 
#10 ·
I'm interested in hearing what others have to say about this. How many riders out there switch their stance while riding? I've never seen anyone switch their stance while jumping... kind of sounds a little dangerous to me. As for cornering, I have heard this discussed before, and in theory it makes sence, but I think something is lost in the application. This topic peaked my curiousity, so I checked out a couple videos of some pro racers and didn't find any foot switching going on.
 
#11 ·
i practice both on easier trails and on two occasions it saved my butt

1. coming up a fairly high ladder for the first time and was pedaling up and before i could get my right foot forward again it dropped almost vertical to a nice rounded out catcher then back up another steep up and down (dragons back or roller coaster). it all happened so fast i just had to leave my left foot forward.

2. A big step up on amosa back here in utah. i kept barely casing it so the last time i said i was going to pedal as fast as i could, well that lead to having the wrong foot forward when it was time to jump. i barely made it but i didn't fall into the pit of rocky death below. here is a pic of the step up you can see my left foot forward and even how tense i am. definately a scary situation.

i think its best to learn both just in case of the oh crap sitiuations that come up. at first do easy trails then work your way up to the harder ones. it feels pretty natural after a while.
 

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#14 ·
I ride left foot forwards for pretty much everything I spin and ride quarters(much better) to the right. I have always been able to hip both ways. I think hips are often to subtle of turns to really matter much.

I like swithcing my feet up in corners on trails that have back to back left to right to left, feels kind of cool. but I think if anything it slows me down, like the idea of trying to switch your feet up in DJ's (often time too tight to be thinkin about pedaling) that would totally throw me off.
 
#16 ·
OK... third question here

Jettj45 said:
I ride Left foot in the rear b/c it's my dominate leg.
Wow. I ride with my left foot in the FRONT because it's my dominant leg. So how many people ride dominant foot front vs. dominant foot rear?

BTW, I do like to switch feet in turns, esp. switchbacks. I have tried switching for jumping, but now just use my dominant stance for either hip direction.

Edit: also wanted to mention that I surf/skate/snowboard goofy, so my left leg is in the back, opposite of my riding stance.
 
#20 ·
Learn to ride both if you do any north shore bridge stuff. I learned how to do it and it feels a lot better when you get stuck with the wrong foot forward. It has saved me a couple times. I found it a lot less distracting when I dont have to worry about what foot if forward and it can keep more consentrated on the riding.
 
#22 ·
I ride a skate board regular (left foot forward) and ride my bike right foot forward. I strted practicing switching up my feet for cornering and found myself riding more and more with my left foot forward. weird. Also, if you ride rythym secitons, switch your feet in between jumps. Good practice for getting a half crank in.
 
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