November 7, 201510 yr I watched this over and over but can't really figure out how Albert launches his bike... it doesn't appear that he is flexing his knees to compress the rear shock before lift off there is no bounce before the take off... I am pretty sure if I rode a wheelie like that then hit the gas I wouldn't end up where I wanted to.
November 7, 201510 yr It's all down to the compression of the front fork against the obstacle and good timing. He's not just riding a wheelie then magically getting airborne. You'll see right before he launches he hit the top of the cement block with the front wheel, compressing both front and rear suspension. That's where all the lift comes from.
November 7, 201510 yr Author Even in slow motion it seems like such a small impact hard to believe it creates enough energy to lift the bike... but video doesn't lie... I don't think I will try to prove it for myself just yet - LOL! Edited November 7, 201510 yr by michael_t
November 7, 201510 yr Author I guess if you look closely the rear fender is almost hitting the back tire... it may have been the way it switched to slo mo right at the point of impact that made it hard to pickup. Edited November 7, 201510 yr by michael_t
November 7, 201510 yr That's the zap. Heffergm is quite correct that hitting the front wheel compresses and stores energy in the suspension. The other critical part is getting off the gas to let the suspension release that energy. Most people fail to zap properly because they stay on the gas too long, the suspension never decompresses and the rear wheel never leaves the ground. When done properly the rear wheel hits the obstacle close to the impact point of the front wheel. It's a violent maneuver and the first few times you do it you'll scare yourself as everything happens so fast you are on top of the obstacle before you know it. It's also unnerving to purposely ram your front wheel into an obstacle but that's how it's done. Approach at slow speed. Weight slightly back Blip the throttle to lift the front wheel to an impact point on the face of the obstacle. On impact with the front wheel blip the throttle again and jump forward and up snapping the throttle off. Bend your knees to let the bike come up while pushing forward on the bars. If done properly the bars will whack you in the chest. Don't aim for too high a spot to hit the front wheel on the face of the obstacle. Optimum seems to be with the frame at about a 45 degree angle to the ground.
November 7, 201510 yr Author I guess seeing it done from a wheelie really illustrates the point as the front wheel is already at the desired height so you don't see the typical bounce to get the front wheel up as part of the Zap. The video makes it look effortless for such a "violent" maneuver.
November 10, 201510 yr I would also assume his suspension is tuned for that style of riding. Most likely a lot more bouncy/hopping for trick riding and big hits so he's getting a lot more rebound than a normal punters bike would get.
November 11, 201510 yr No, JML I bet he could do it with a bone stock bike. It`s all about timing. I would expect this to be 100% true. I went to a Ryan Young training where a stock Sherco 300 was sent out for the event. I saw him do an almost 4' hop of this same type off of a single rock and it looked just as effortless. The only difference was he didn't ride a wheelie into it... If Ryan can do it on a stock bike I am sure Cabestany can.
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