How To Ride Jumps Better On Your Mountain Bike | MTB Jumping Mistakes

Riding jumps is one of the most fun things you can do on your bike and when you get it right the feeling is second to none. But, things can go wrong, and it’s easy to make mistakes. Here are some of the most common mistakes that we have seen out on the trails, and how to fix them.
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Have you made any of these mistakes?
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Leave us a comment below!

[@thomasbenito274]

0:38 I love the unintentional detail when Blake said "Don't just head to the biggest jumps in the park" and then the lad at the back literally stopped before jumping into oblivion. 😅

[@The_RC_Dude]

Ya, I thought that was on purpose, can't blame him though, that jump is GNARLY, makes me scared just looking at it!

[@oleksandrrol793]

Well, now I want to learn that "dead sailor" technique. It looked amazing with Blake

[@aslief9808]

well i did that without learning first.. and its not a good feeling when you flying like that 😂

[@night1ish]

How did he make it look so stylish?? 😂

[@toddgoff2961]

It was the magic Pirate hat. That’s was epic….Arrrrggghhh matey! Best ye start believing in jumps, your hittin them!

[@dirtsurfernz]

Only thing missing was a salute as the captain went down with his ship 😆

[@tobyodonnell9353]

Would look mental if you gave a salute mid air

[@robertkelly108]

Blake: Jumping is the best feeling... Collarbone: Was that a challenge?

[@paqcyn5812]

thats exactly what my arm said last weekend, won't be riding for the rest of the season.

[@daro1092]

I love your speech. So easily understandable by non english people. Thanks

[@rideronetwoninenine7883]

Well im always a dead sailor, just a few seconds into the air and im like “Why am i alive”

[@victorrios9468]

Videos are great, but nothing beats practice.. And finally clearing a jump doesn't mean you're ready to go bigger. Progress is gradual.. always warm up and ride at your own limits. Have fun Mtb fam, 👍😄

[@achow179]

Thanks Blake, I didn’t even know I needed these tips but now I realise I do. I do a dead sailor and I have to much speed, so I over clear pretty much every jump.

[@BexFletcher]

This is definitely the video I needed to watch!

[@ve1d0rin]

GMBN vids look like everyone is just having so much fun, legendary!

[@superawesomefuntimego]

I think the trick for me getting more comfortable at jumps was learning to be heavy through the feet on the transition and light (relaxed) with the arms/hands. If my arms were tense, I would sometimes end up off balance on the take off or potentially going dead sailor.

[@GaedeRafael]

Struggling to learn this and not just "letting the bike go" through the transition

[@Victor_v68]

That’s what happens to me

[@BADBILLY]

Im right there with you. The process for me feels closer to how you would jump with rollerblades or a scooter. I dont get this bunnyhop on the take-off stuff, I always get spat funny and dead sailor doing it that way.

[@seandent7976]

I've just brought a trek ex7 and I'm trying to learn how to jump. I ride in spds and have always been a XC rider and avoided jumps. So trying to learn at 50 a whole new riding style is tough .

[@Laharl42]

but that "dead sailor" lit though!

[@livingon2wheels]

Great video Blake and WOW what an amazing location! Those jumps are amazing. You make it look so easy. Love GMBN!

[@ritzoreos8009]

25 ft table “I’ll send this now” 15 ft gap “I’ll wait maybe later”

[@goingbonzo5923]

The dead sailor can be bad but adding a bit of style to it makes it look really cool.

[@DrMichaelCote]

I am terrified of jumps. I always chicken out last second. But have no problems with giant drops. Go figure.

[@craigweightman799]

Another very helpful video thanks guys👍

[@johncole3010]

Im recovering from hitting a downhill jump to fast and landing with packed forks and flying past the handlebars to compress my radius and damage the knee joint. valuable lesson learned and some great tips in this video.

[@shreddlas7892]

Made them all, at the same time after 16 years of riding I did a lot of stupid things that I could go without, but failure is also learning and now I know what I should try and what not

[@floris-5030]

Man I would love a day of learning to jump with Blake. Makes it look so easy...

[@flynnmoloney3390]

Thanks alot for the tips

[@HarryAdee]

Thanks Blake..learned a lot.

[@arthurgolubev]

My god YES I needed EXACTLY this tutorial

[@davidmiller2050]

All I've seen since a crash I had two weeks ago, is jumping videos! It's great, so hopefully I will learn something!

[@markking8274]

Always get a kick out of watching Blake. Thanks mate.

[@akosideepee]

Absolutely my favorite presenter!

[@willh3339]

that first jumped Blake did was epic!

[@_TheDeanMachine]

I ride flat pedals but I always seem to do the spud hop, thanks for the tip

[@JacksonMailloux-xb6br]

Thx I’m really new to this 😄

[@mkim64]

Perfect bunnyhop - so you have to counter the front wheel rising with your hips moving forward to get that pop!

[@FluffyAmyNL]

thanks for this video just started getting into mtb :P

[@magu6998]

Entertaining video 😅🤘🏻 thx

[@joellewis759]

Blake makes everything fun! Although jumping is already fun! 😂

[@JGeddes2]

This weekend is going to be my first time on an mtb trail

[@Kurz_Weber]

3:37 was an amazing sequence

[@chrisgoescross9252]

Blake is such a legend!

[@christianmascari3007]

So fun

[@scottyB5950]

Nice size. Easy to use and lightweight.

[@acekoolio819]

great video as usual blake. are you on 27.5? for jumping this video or the big wagon wheels 29er?.

[@NJtrailflow]

Growing up all I did was bmx, just got into mountain biking this year. Haven’t rode a bike in the woods for almost 10 years so I’m kinda fine tuning myself on the bike again I can jump but im not as clean as I can remember. But oh yes I have gotten to much speed before over cleared jumps and definitely cased some jumps with not enough speed. The dead sailor you can use to your advantage if you can launch and pull that back end of the bike back up mid air you can really air the hell outta some jumps that way but definitely need some practice to pull that off.

[@davidavester]

@gmbn Hi guys, Love your vids! Just got out of hospital cause of a failed jump. I would be interested in a video concerning not to nosedive (or the opposite) while jumping. Smaller flat jumps were no problem so far, but this steep lip got me for good (3 surgeries and 1 month of hospital ...)

[@Dewsta26]

I get nose heavy if I tense up personally.

[@sapinva]

Maybe you are letting your front wheel drop before your back wheel leaves the lip.

[@KK-up3pq]

Get well soon!

[@JubeProductions]

I love that you were in the hospital for crashing while jumping, and as soon as you get out you're looking up jumping videos, lol......I'm sure your Dr would love that. I hope you're OK and get back out soon.

[@7ackoatl476]

Terima kasih mr.top 👍💪😁

[@14MaddMaxx]

Blake always makes me laugh…. 4:06 …..such a great guy

[@jrc0004]

Last Saturday at Northstar downhill park, went OTB on table top. Drove my wrist into my radius. Surgery was yesterday now I have plate and pins. I'm 51, raced XC x9 years, 2nd season new to ENDURO. Never broke a bone in all my years and spills. Well, it happened on my first run, got to confident used poor technique on table top (I cleared several before this one) and paid dearly. GOPRO on handlebar showed I was squatting when I took off, and there went front end, straight into ground. I am 6'4" 205 pounds, drooped from ~10 feet. FF bell MIPS saved my head and face, took several injuries besides the big break. I will be back, better and wiser. I guess after all these years, I finally got bit.

[@speechless9223]

funnest

[@40cent.gameplay]

yes i have made lots of those mistakes i went for this huge road gap did not practice before ,went way to fast and leand way to far back .now i dont want to do it again 🤣but i should and will 👍

[@jimmybean6090]

Line choice into big jumps ! Those trees just don’t move outta the way ….😉

[@spuddo123]

Ayyy I got a mistake named after me!

[@in_10z]

I know a guy who does the Spud Hop EVERY single time he jumps. Seems like a hard habit to break. Man I'm glad I ride flats haha.

[@ianfurqueron5850]

I disagree a little about the dead sailor. In my experience it is more freezing upon take-off and not doing anything at all, thus arcing over the jump, landing front wheel first, and likely going OTB - worst feeling ever... Sometimes I've dead-sailored after pulling up too much, which often results in landing off-kilter and crashing off to the side of the trail. That's not fun either.

[@andywright1634]

Or pulling uneven on take-off. Done that - then you're a bit of a passenger.

[@trailallday9136]

@@andywright1634 Hi, do you have any tips how to avoid uneven pulling? In my opinion this is the main reason of my dead sailor 😕

[@pipledo5615]

@@trailallday9136 for me it helped to focus on balancing my weight equally on my legs

[@dragaknee]

Good advice but what about leaning/ tipping sideways when your in mid-air? Everytime I start feeling confident jumping this happens and i crash.

[@guitargiza2551]

If you want height on a jump a good piece of advice is when you are compressing and you lift of make sure that you lift off as your back wheel is leaving the lip.

[@synthbent715]

20 years ago I could jump my BMX bike like nobody's business. These days I can get my hardtail pretty high into the air, but it seems like I just have no control once I'm there, usually my landings are pure luck or I land squirrelly and barely stop myself from wiping out.

[@JubeProductions]

I've been riding some sort of bike for the better part of 40 years and I've been riding and racing mountain bikes since 1988. If it's one thing I've learned it's jumping is easy, it's the landing that is hard, but when done correctly, jumping is one of the best feelings on a mountain bike. I like jumping and I can jump when I have to, but I'm not considered a "jumper". I don't like riding my DH bike down the huge jump line, I'd rather blast down a steep rock garden on a tight line. But I do enjoy the wooden kicker, a table top or a gap jump here and there. One of the hardest parts of jumping for me is getting the take-off right, because if that doesn't go well, the rest of the jump is doomed. When it goes wrong for me, it's when I am not balanced over the lip and I lean to one side, or I am too far back or forwards. Jumping is like any other skill in riding, the more you do it, the better you get. There is no amount of instructional videos you can watch that will replace experience. Videos like this are great for getting an understanding on what to expect and what the mechanics of jumping are, but you really just need to take what you learn here and practice it over and over until it becomes natural. Thankfully there are people like this that make videos so that you can learn the basics.

[@clubdevoiture1618]

I love Blake x ❤

[@ero3112]

Canyon strive can do that jumps also? Or better the torque?

[@core-i7413]

I don't agree that it's the most fun thing to do, I prefer other stuff but it's your opinion. But yeah, jumping is definitely top five, especially when I clear some pretty cool ones!

[@thejumbohotdawg6121]

Hey I'm a newbie I can't do a jump but I really want to learn how to... Do you need to know how to bhop in order to learn how to jump? (Sorry my english is bad)

[@austinnoll2869]

BLAAAAKE!!!.. Please answere, lol how do I prevent mainly my back foot from coming off the pedal?. Pretty scary. Worried to try n go bigger. Doesn't happen all the time just here n there so idk

[@tomsadventures1001]

I wish you mentioned what causes my body and bike to go to the left off the face of the jump.

[@Losovox]

Leaning left I'd guess. Make a conscious effort to lean slightly right

[@MariusTheDude]

or pulling with your hands unevenly

[@Dewsta26]

Pulling left too much.

[@Dewsta26]

Still trying to perfect the 'not jumping until the rear wheel has reached the lip' bit personally lol

[@Porumbmtb]

I always do thedead sailor and my fruends say: nice whip bro

[@randommountainbiker9305]

One of the best feelings when hitting up a jump is realising that you are going to case it, but then you manuever the bike around so that you don't

[@pyrobeats5355]

yeeeee the spud i do that all the time otherwise my back does not leave the ground idk why on a bmx i dont spud prob coz its smaller n lighter

[@jeembomb]

Dear Blake, Love you mate. That's all.

[@tomgier8548]

I don't jump. I don't even ride MTB. Why the heck am I watching this?! Why the heck am I watching everything on this channel??!! Someone help me, please...

[@mrinferno4876]

Mmmmm red calipers 😎 Mr style

[@yaface120]

Love a spud jump i do

[@khairulnizam4177]

Where is the pink helmet!?!? 😃

[@MTB_FPV]

Here's me with a cast on the left foot because jumping a 20ft gap on a warm up was a good idea 🤣 don't do it people, take Blakes advice.. wish I had 😐

[@jrc0004]

Last Saturday at Northstar downhill park, went OTB on table top. Drove my wrist into my radius. Surgery was yesterday now I have plate and pins. I'm 51, raced XC x9 years, 2nd season new to ENDURO. Never broke a bone in all my years and spills. Well, it happened on my first run, got to confident used poor technique on table top (I cleared several before this one) and paid dearly. GOPRO on handlebar showed I was squatting when I took off, and their went front end, straight into ground. I am 6'4" 205 pounds, drooped from ~10 feet. FF bell MIPS saved my head and face, took several injuries besides the big break. I will be back, better and wiser. I guess after all these years, I finally got bit. Get better MBT!

[@josmulder3060]

@@jrc0004 Speedy recovery mate!

[@jrc0004]

@@josmulder3060 thanks!

[@Synysterjmz]

I struggle with landing technique, or rather, deciding how to land on a per-jump basis. I favour touching down on the rear wheel more often because it's easier to control, but I keep buckling wheels and can't get as much air this way. How do I practice landing on both wheels, or on the front wheel, without going OTB?

[@rick4677]

just practice leaning forward a little bit more bit by bit in the air until you find a balance that will allow you to land with both wheels also make sure you have the right speed as often to clear it landing back wheel heavy you need to go faster so when you’re landing with both wheels you may have so slow it down a bit. also remember that you can land with you front wheel first without going over the bars so you don’t really have to stress about it and you should be alright

[@mastafu80]

Finally, thx Blake for spotting SPD riders problem with jumping. I have seen plenty of tutorials, and yet this is first showing spd jumping mistake ;) And this is my problem. I've been riding my bike for decades in psd, can't go to platforms now. Maybe You could do a full episode dedicated to spd jumping and other enduro tricks.

[@gripplepete]

I felt the same until I started riding a dirt jumper with flats and then went out and bought a set of flats for my trail bike.. Love to mix it up now, flats for the new, steep, loose, gnarly tracks and then back to the clipless after I've got them dialled and need that bit extra to keep it all together when I'm trying to go flat out..

[@rabc5959]

Can we please get a comparison video of waterproof gear for riding in like dirtlej vs endura500 so called waterproof suits, or other waterproof clothing that is actually waterproof for mtbing. Seems alot if very expensive gear with no waterproof ratings listed anywhere

[@angusblair860]

How much travel does Blake's bike have?

[@aaronjames9386]

Video Idea: do bmx bike vs xc mtb

[@Bjjmtb]

You might have just hit upon a cool new style of jumping: start with a Friday Fail contender and turn it into a Saturday send!

[@Bjjmtb]

Sorry, wrong channel but the point stands.

[@Dlink8]

No cause my bike isn't really that good and I don't have trials with jumps or anything that I have access to. But I'd love to have the chance to see

[@NoahR-di1nu]

what park is this?

[@Ikreisrond]

You guys could make a whole series/playlist on progressing in jumping! EDIT Oops, of course they already have a Jumping Skills playlist! kzbin.info/www/bejne/p6HdZZt_qr2NhZY

[@SENDuro]

Well I got a huge problem with the dead sailor every time I Hit a bigger jump then normal for me. I Always get such a strong fear of crashing in the Air then when I'm Higher/longer Up then used to it 😅 anyone got a Tip for that?

[@johncole3010]

Spinach

[@jhenjhenjhenonlineshop654]

🚴🏻🔥

[@darylhunter3468]

Come back daylight ! I need to ride after work!

[@HakinZ]

Hey Blake, you forgot the most common jumping mistake….. getting bucked on take off!!

[@randomscene3219]

DEATH GRIP? or game of bike or trike or tandem using mr ashton's custom built bike. pls...

[@cortexamv]

my locals trails have only 1 gap and its a 26ft gap loool

[@natanaellorenzi5]

I converted my SC Nomad into Mullet, but now i can't send even little jumps... The nose dive all the time, no matter how force or technic to pull the bars... It'll aways dive...

[@dave_xc]

I want to jump but I'm scared of gaps and drops

[@TheNikegolfer10]

So whag always confuses me is people saying don't pull off the lip, then watch another vid and people say bunny hop off it. But effectively they are the same thin???

[@bauke-LV426]

I’m struggling to bunnyhop off a takeoff. I can do bunnyhops, so I guess I’m just scared. I think.

[@anotheraccount28]

I haven't made these mistakes but I'm about too someday. I don't even know how to jump with my bike

[@lukesherwell7658]

🙋‍♂️ Spud

[@jamol_bames5982]

Blake is the best

[@WhiteBoyMikey21]

that dud can shred damn

[@earthwormsim8068]

I'm definitely the too fast 😂. Nearly hit a tree the other day because of it 😱

[@tagzedawg]

I miss your pink helmet.

[@bobothericefarmer1878]

Sheeesh

[@hihihihihiihih]

AWESOME tutorial! First

[@kylervanmatre6509]

I think tech is prolly the “funnest”

[@cornishcactus]

I was clearing jumps but only with lots of effort and a big push forwards to make the landing. Then one jump session something clicked, I was looking up, feeling relaxed and it just happened easily. Sadly that was my last day at the jumps as the following weekend I broke my wrist/hand, it'll be a few more months and more surgery before I can ride at all and maybe not ever to the same level through lack of mobility and pain. Until then 2021 had been a brilliant year of progression.

[@mkphotography3873]

If you don't like Blake you have no personality 🤣🤣🤣... BLAKE YOU THE MAN🙋🏾‍♂️🙋🏾‍♂️🙋🏾‍♂️🙋🏾‍♂️