Riding with no hands

[Pimperial]

Despite having ridden mountain bikes for most of my young life and nowadays tackling the roads pretty frequently, I've never been able to ride with no hands. I always feel very unstable, possibly because I'm 6'5" and 15 stone perched on a saddle as high as the seatpost will allow.
Is this top-heaviness a factor or do I just need to try harder to keep balanced with no hands?

 

[ianrauk]

Why do you want to ride with no hands.. it's quite dangerous...

 

[Pimperial]

It'd be nice to rest the hands and the back for a few seconds by sitting upright during a long ride. Also, good for texting your mates, reading the paper, doing crossword puzzles etc...

Mostly, it's the overwhelming urge I get after climbing the hill to my house at the end of a ride to raise my arms victorious as if I just won a stage of the TdF.

 

[yenrod]

You've got lean right back - 'vertical': you arent getting back enough..if not able to do it - raise yourself back slowly then youve just got to go all the way back otherwise you'll 'stay in the middle' and it wont work !

You may also find by twisting your pelvis 'up' (on the saddle) may help ?

 

[fossyant]

Bugger, I can't do it.....23 years of 'proper' riding..booo........ Yenners tip is probably the answer !

 

[addictfreak]

Yep I could do it no problem as a young lad, just cant seem to get my balance these days.
Its handy for peeling bananas or opening energy bars on the move!

 

[Watt-O]

Do you really want an answer?

 

[cheadle hulme]

Like Yenners said, sit up, shoulders back.

helps if you're pedaling too and have good core strength as you're constantly twitching your core to keep the bike aligned.

 

[gaz]

Once you got it, it's not so hard, but i don't recommend doing it around traffic.

 

[marooncat]

Trying this would guarantee I would experience my first clipless moment

 

[jig-sore]

riding with no hands can have it's uses, like wiping your glasses or opening your food etc, anyone who disagrees is just trying to be whiter than white, as usual.

after nearly a year back on the bike it's surprising how good at it i am, couldn't do it at all when i first started.

BUT: yes it can be useful but it's also a bit stupid/dangerous, use it with care

 

[snorri]

Is this top-heaviness a factor or do I just need to try harder to keep balanced with no hands?

Do you have a bell or front light? If so, and these are not aerodynamically balanced, they could be pulling the steering to one side.

 

[chris667]

Cable setup can prevent a bike from being ridden no hands.
I can't do it now, but when I was a kid I used to be able to stand on the saddle of my bike like a tightrope walker. And I could steer it!

 

[Davidc]

Not a good idea on real roads in traffic, but if you must ...

If you can borrow a road bike, try that.

The information I've seen says mountain bikes are supposed to be less inherently stable, to make it easier to control them on low grip surfaces.

I recently saw a demo at an old airfield of different bikes being started off on a slope and left to roll on unaided. A Dawes Audax was the most spectacular, it rode itself so far and fast that the guy couldn't catch it!

 

[simon_brooke]

Despite having ridden mountain bikes for most of my young life and nowadays tackling the roads pretty frequently, I've never been able to ride with no hands. I always feel very unstable, possibly because I'm 6'5" and 15 stone perched on a saddle as high as the seatpost will allow.
Is this top-heaviness a factor or do I just need to try harder to keep balanced with no hands?

Top heaviness has absolutely nothing to do with it.

I'm 6'2" and used to be thirteen stone, and have never yet found a bike I couldn't ride no hands. I can take my jacket off, roll it up, and stick it in my pocket while riding. It's also quite handy to be able to stretch while riding.

Obviously the more directionally stable a bike is the easier it is to ride no hands (e.g. touring bikes); the more twitchy the steering, the harder (race bikes). But every ridable bike becomes more more stable as it gets faster, so all that really means is that the minimum speed at which it is comfortable to ride no hands gets higher.

As to safety, don't cross white lines no hands, and be wary of any other imperfection of the road surface which could twist the front wheel, and you'll be fine. Yes, it isn't a very safe thing to do and I wouldn't do it in traffic, but it isn't dangerous either. I think practising improves your balance on the bike generally.