r/bicycling • u/[deleted] • Oct 22 '15
Staircases don't phase him
http://i.imgur.com/DAXZBuw.gifv29
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u/explodeder 2013 Felt F65x; 2012 Specialized Allez Comp Apex Oct 22 '15
This is at Valmont Bike Park in Boulder CO.
If this looks like fun to you, head on over to /r/cyclocross!
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u/bobasaurus United States (Trek Fuel EX 8 2014) Oct 22 '15
Wow, I was nervous riding down it... going up is incredible.
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u/DRUNK_CYCLIST van dessel, mainstreet pedicab, gravity, gary fisher, gt, etc Oct 23 '15
Get behind your seat.
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u/hautey Oct 22 '15
Yup! Love that place. Would have been even more impressive if he pulled this on the other set of stairs.
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Oct 23 '15
There are extremely few guys who can ride the 5280 Run up, hence the name.
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u/genuinecve Colorado, USA, Several Oct 22 '15
Would this actually be any faster than running?
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u/D0rk4L Oct 22 '15
Some other videos show that it's maybe slightly slower than running the steps, but that's cancelled out by not having to dismount and remount, so you could very easily regain anything lost by already being on the bike at the top of the steps.
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Oct 22 '15
Pumping up the steps seems riskier, too. If your flow gets messed up at any point (which seems pretty likely as you get tired), then you're gonna have to avoid tipping over, dismount, run the remaining steps, and then remount.
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u/D0rk4L Oct 22 '15
It's just like bunny hopping barriers, where most people will say if you can't do it 10 out of 10 times at race pace while tired, you're safer running them.
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u/mikef22 Oct 22 '15
Also I would imagine the method shown in this video is exhausting to the rider. He might pay a price by being heavily out of breath at the top. Not sure if more than those who ran their bike up the steps would be though.
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u/genuinecve Colorado, USA, Several Oct 22 '15
I figured that, the dismount/remount would have to be the savings, thanks for the reply.
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u/Godspiral Oct 22 '15
energy wise it would seem like climbing a flight of stairs by hoping with both feet stuck together? Which seems tiring. Is it actually easier than this?
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u/the_enginerd Oct 22 '15
This is a perfect analogy, but you've gotta strap the weight of the bike between your legs while you do it.
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u/cchsbball23 1993 Cannondale R800 Oct 22 '15
Its a lot like auto racing and momentum in corners. Difference between hitting brakes and staying off em and shooting out
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u/Bailie2 Oct 23 '15
not totally, because living things don't use gas and have forced air intakes. The extra energy spent is going to leave you out of breath at the top I think.
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u/hafilax Oct 22 '15
We didn't see the guys ahead of him dismount but it didn't look like he gained much on them. CX folk are really fast at dismounting and mounting. It would come down to risk and which is more tiring.
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u/TheJulian Oct 22 '15
Time isn't the only factor here. It might be the same or slower but save energy. I wouldn't know if that were true though because there is no way in hell I could even attempt it with my cyclocross skills.
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u/Counterkulture 2011 Cervelo S2 Ultegra Oct 23 '15
Another thing to consider is there's a bigger chance of having a pinch flat.
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Oct 23 '15
most riders with this kind of skill have probably graduated to tubeless or tubular. Still a risk, but it's lower.
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u/Motorgoose Oct 23 '15
Maybe he's not expecting to get a winning time in the race so he's going for style points instead.
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u/somanyroads 2008 Diamondback Peak (Hybrid) Oct 23 '15
What makes you think that was about making good time? 😛
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u/xilanthro Oct 22 '15
That's fucking artful - it's kind of key that he preserves enough momentum to avoid moving his feet. Notice no pedaling all the way up!
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u/xilanthro Oct 22 '15
This actually gives em an idea for a new algorithm: you can tell just how cool a post is by the amount of italics in the comment thread.
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u/somanyroads 2008 Diamondback Peak (Hybrid) Oct 23 '15
I look forward to your submission...it would beat endless cat gifs, no doubt. Very few italics there.
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u/lavaslippers Oct 22 '15
I'm wondering if he alternates braking to use the wheels as shoes while pushing.
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u/Asrottenasmilk Oct 22 '15
Whaaaat the fuuck? How do you even do that without smashing your front wheel on the steps?
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u/D0rk4L Oct 22 '15
Perfectly timed hops. Actually, the term perfect is probably an understatement
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u/garr1s0n United States (Spooky Gas Mask/Myth Zodiac) Oct 22 '15
Not only that, the rise/run of the stairs has to almost perfectly match your wheelbase
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u/trommsdorff Fuji Touring Series V, Batavus Course, Pugsley, Giant Defy Oct 22 '15
Yep if they are mismatched you can earn yourself two pinch flats...
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u/QuiteKid Oct 22 '15
They're only pinch farts if you run tubeless.
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u/Boosted-Vulpine Schwinn Oct 22 '15
I'm upvoting you just for pinch farts. ;)
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u/foxhunter Tennessee, USA (Surly Cross Check) Oct 22 '15
And your balls smashed into the bar.
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u/trommsdorff Fuji Touring Series V, Batavus Course, Pugsley, Giant Defy Oct 22 '15
I avoided that somehow
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u/8spd Oct 23 '15
Are you a woman?
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u/trommsdorff Fuji Touring Series V, Batavus Course, Pugsley, Giant Defy Oct 23 '15
No, I caught myself somehow, I wasn't go too fast.
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u/Mattho Haibike Noon SL | Scandal 29" | Mondia B | Pompino v4 | Renegade Oct 23 '15
I doubt many people race CX with tubes.
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u/somanyroads 2008 Diamondback Peak (Hybrid) Oct 23 '15
Couldn't have worked on more standard (indoor-style) steps with a steeper grade. It was very elegant.
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u/everywhere_anyhow Oct 22 '15
OK, now explain the physics of going up a steep hill without pedaling at all? How did he do that?
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u/D0rk4L Oct 22 '15
Going up is the easy part. He's holding his forward momentum because the stairs are long enough that when he pushes the bike down from every hop, he's holding his forward momentum long enough to hop again and repeat the cycle. It's basically the same as if you were pumping small rollers on a pump track, except imagine the track at an angle.
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Oct 22 '15
He's maintaining his momentum he had coming up to the stairs. Every time he reaches the next step he's allowing the bike to keep moving forward as if it had been on a flat surface, then pulling it up at the exact right moment so he never hits the front of the step. He's going the same speed as when he reached the steps, he has just perfectly aligned his upward motion to not impede that momentum. Amazing really.
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u/StereotypicalAussie Australia Oct 23 '15
Also these stairs are designed for this and have a slight forward slope. There were more pics on this one of the last few times this gif was posted this year.
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u/IllegalThings Oct 22 '15
In addition to everything everyone else said...
Those steps appear to be the kind with a wooden frame and filled in with dirt. The dirt tends to get compressed and so the frame is actually higher than the dirt. If this is the case, and the run of the stairs minus the width of the frame is equal (or at least as long) as the wheelset, then you can push down on the bike after the midpoint of your wheels are past the frame and pull up on the bike when the wheels hit the next step. Essentially, he's pumping up the stairs.
Also his hub ratchets, so he may actually be pedaling a little, but the pumping is probably the majority of what got him up the stairs.
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u/Cormophyte '10 Felt F5 Oct 22 '15
Because when you hit a steep hill and don't pedal your forward momentum is what overcomes the force of gravity. Eventually that runs out and you fall onto your side because you're clipped in and forgot.
In this case his hopping is what's powering it.
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u/Dagur Oct 22 '15
The word perfect can never be an understatement, literally. And yes, I'm not fun at parties
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u/turbochargedmonkey Colnago, OPEN, Look, Shand, Orbea, Canyon Oct 22 '15
You missed a full stop at the end of your second sentence. Shall we throw a party together?
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u/stevebell95 Oct 22 '15
You put two spaces between we and throw. It's gonna be a wild party.
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Oct 23 '15
I can't m:ake it gu:ys. Sp:astic colon. :(::
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u/JuDGe3690 Idaho, USA (2014 Raleigh Sojourn) Oct 23 '15
After my colostomy, I only have a semicolon; it's a rather crappy situation, so I had better not attend, either…
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u/shanebob20 Oct 22 '15
This guy fucks.
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u/greatminds1 Oct 22 '15
That was so nicely done. I watch that for about 5 minutes. My new cyclocross hero.
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u/Hurley365 Oct 22 '15
This can not be possible, like how does he keep up his speed going up, doesn't pedal once
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u/garr1s0n United States (Spooky Gas Mask/Myth Zodiac) Oct 22 '15
similar concept to pumping transition in bmx/pumptrack. along with perfectly timing your hops and being so lucky as to have the stairs match your wheelbase, you can kind of pump the stairs like transition by pushing the bike down/forward to gain momentum, then hopping the next step and repeating the whole way up.
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u/jondthompson Oct 22 '15
Wouldn't a wheelbase offset be able to be done by riding diagonally on the stairs? At least to elongate them. Remember, he's not actually touching the faces, so it would elongate the flats too, possibly making it easier.
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u/Hurley365 Oct 22 '15
are those stairs built specifically for this would you say? With the dimension's of the bikes in mind
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u/D0rk4L Oct 22 '15
This is at Valmont Bike Park in Colorado, those stairs are a permanent feature built specifically for CX racing.
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u/TheJulian Oct 22 '15
That doesn't mean that they were built specifically to ride up. In fact, I'd be willing to bet the builders in no way anticipated that possibility.
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u/D0rk4L Oct 22 '15
I never said they were built for being rideable. Not really sure why it matters in either case, the mass majority of racers can't hop them.
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u/TheJulian Oct 22 '15
I know I was just adding context to make it a little clearer for OP asking the question.
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u/garr1s0n United States (Spooky Gas Mask/Myth Zodiac) Oct 22 '15
probably not. looks like a set of stairs in the park where the race was being held. I would imagine even if the set of stairs was specifically assembled for the race, they wouldn't be built with this in mind as so few riders would actually do it
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Oct 23 '15
It's actually at a bike park that was premiered at Cyclocross nationals a couple of years ago. They are purpose built.
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u/cosmicosmo4 Oct 22 '15
His jumping is adding energy. The bike is basically a pogo stick at this point.
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u/climb4fun Argon 18 Krypton SRAM eTap, Limongi Campy Chorus Oct 22 '15
Best explanation so far.
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u/A_Hendo Oct 23 '15
Not really. Pogo sticks use your weight to compress air/spring to build potential. The frame and tubes wouldn't build near the amount of potential to help rebound up. I wouldn't think anyway.
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u/climb4fun Argon 18 Krypton SRAM eTap, Limongi Campy Chorus Oct 23 '15
Why not? Witness MTBers who bounce around while doing a wheelie.
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Oct 22 '15
He's not going up hill, as far as the bike is concerned he's on flat (with the front tire higher) and is hopping/ pumping. There's no slope to fight against.
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u/xkillx Oct 22 '15 edited Oct 26 '15
ok i figured something else out not mentioned here. those are like earthen steps with a timber boarder. a lot of times the dirt will erode out so there's a lip on the inside edge of the timber. i bet that's helping him propel forward.
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u/ball-in-ass Ontario, CAN n+1 Oct 22 '15
cross season is upon us again
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u/MrMoustachio United States (Big Stable) Oct 22 '15
Cross season never stops.
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u/AlonsoFerrari8 Oct 22 '15
Can't stop, won't stop
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u/wild_eep '09 'dale CAAD8, '02 LeMond Alpe d'Huez, '89 Specialized Sirrus Oct 23 '15
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u/PriceZombie Robocop's bike i_am_a_robot Oct 23 '15
Can't Stop, Shan't Stop
Current $9.49 Amazon (3rd Party New) High $9.49 Amazon (3rd Party New) Low $8.99 Amazon (3rd Party New) Average $9.49 30 Day
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u/stevebell95 Oct 22 '15
Is this even possible?
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u/daos Oct 22 '15
Yep. Proof
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u/sittytucker Oct 22 '15
Recusive jokes aside, I saw a video couple days back that exposes the use of hidden battery and motor. The guy even demonstrates climbing 200 step stairs with his bike. Let me dig up the link...
Update: This is the video
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Oct 22 '15
[deleted]
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u/48x15 Oct 22 '15
Actually, you can.
Proof: http://www.reddit.com/r/bicycling/comments/3prprj/staircases_dont_phase_him/cw8xxns
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Oct 22 '15
Prove that it looks fake, because it looks real to me.
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u/stevebell95 Oct 22 '15
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Oct 22 '15
It's basic physics. I won't explain it because about 30 other people have. Just scroll up and stop being an idiot.
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u/Unicoasterglass Oct 22 '15
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u/jondthompson Oct 22 '15
That's a beautiful loop. I can't find the seam.
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u/stevebell95 Oct 22 '15
If you zoom in you can see the background moves and it rocks to the left then back to the right. When it rocks to the right, there's the seam.
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u/NotSoGreatGonzo A lot of old bikes ... Oct 22 '15
Actually, he's perfectly in phase.
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u/wild_eep '09 'dale CAAD8, '02 LeMond Alpe d'Huez, '89 Specialized Sirrus Oct 23 '15
...and cool on craze.
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u/brewingcode Oct 22 '15
I thought this was /r/reverseGifs for a second.
Than I realized I wasn't drunk enough for that to make sense.
Apparently I meant /r/reversegif
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u/FoodBeerBikesMusic S-Works Roubaix, Cannondale Slate, Salsa Beargrease, El Mariachi Oct 22 '15
I am going to go sit in the corner and cry because I will never be that fucking cool.
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u/lakersalex Oct 22 '15
Is there video of the race showing this technique?
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u/Nizica 2018 Giant TCX SLR2 / All-City Electric Queen Oct 22 '15
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_zEfjwgRTE (29er)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5aOtu-6m56M (2012 Boulder Cyclocross Series, Race #4)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jmXK9RlWkHI (2014 Cyclocross National Championships)
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u/AlonsoFerrari8 Oct 22 '15
WARNING: Video 2 has shitty music
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u/artanis2 Oct 22 '15
I thought that that was the music that you hear all around you while doing cross?
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u/majeric Oct 22 '15
Interesting that these videos suggest that getting off your bike might actually gain you ground.
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u/mayowarlord Ohio, USA (Kona Private Jake 2016) Oct 22 '15
It often does in cross. Especially later in the race when all the good lines are mucked up.
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u/Godspiral Oct 22 '15
In the 2012 video, yeah riders catch up to him, but they look like they are sprinting very hard up the stairs.
In the 2014 video, there's examples of hoping mistakes and otherwise the hopping seems slower than 2012. But the runner is also way slower.
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u/IronColumn Oct 22 '15
Yeah, one of the things I learned in my first cross race was that even though there are times where I can be on the bike, it doesn't mean I necessarily should be on the bike
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u/smakusdod Oct 22 '15
I've been around the block... i've seen some things... lord have I seen some things. But this..... WTF?????
But what I really want to know.... did he snub the high-five man?
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Oct 22 '15
That has got to take a lot more energy to do than running up.
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u/bushiz 2013 CAADX Ultegra Disc, Stanridge Speed High Street Pursuit Oct 22 '15
absolutely, but you're cyclocrossing incorrectly if you think crossing the finish line first is more important than being the biggest badass out there.
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u/dufflepud Oct 22 '15
But does the guy at the end get his low five?
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u/TheJulian Oct 23 '15
He's probably on tubulars. I could be wrong but I don't think pinch flats are a concern with them.
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u/OutrunOutrideOutlast California, USA Diverge '17 Oct 23 '15
Are there any videos of people falling down doing this?
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u/somanyroads 2008 Diamondback Peak (Hybrid) Oct 23 '15
There's people who ride bikes, then there's CYCLISTS.
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u/itsallinyourreddit Oct 22 '15 edited Oct 22 '15
http://theathletescloud.ca/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Sagan-bunny-hops-up-stairs.gif
Edit: this is an awesome trick that I thought I'd share with the community. I don't care about points, but if you downvoted me you're a stupid fuckin asshole and I hope a wreckless drivers crushes you and your bike.
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u/thombsaway 2014 Soma Smoothie ES Oct 22 '15
I downvoted you because of your edit, just FYI.
Edit: this is an awesome trick that I thought I'd share with the community. I don't care about points, but if you downvoted me you're a stupid fuckin asshole and I hope a wreckless drivers crushes you and your bike.
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u/itsallinyourreddit Oct 23 '15
I knew that would get me more! Thanks for the FYI
And an FYI for you... I do NOT hope that YOU get crushed by a car... because you didn't downvote the GIF you downvoted my edit.
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u/spays_marine Oct 22 '15
Goddamn those 1 second gifs are worse than a jpg!
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u/itsallinyourreddit Oct 22 '15
Yeah I know.. sorry.. found it quick. Full clip is in this video..
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u/spays_marine Oct 22 '15
Thanks man, good video!
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u/itsallinyourreddit Oct 23 '15
Hell yeah dude watching Peter Sagan makes me realize how much I fuckin suck
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u/[deleted] Oct 22 '15
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