Wheelies are not just a super cool trick, they offer skills that can be useful in everyday riding for all kinds of cyclists. Being able to lift your front wheel can help riders in avoiding potholes, going up and down curbs, riding over logs, and navigating less than ideal road surfaces. The video above lays out the basic steps for learning how to wheelie.
Whether you're trying to learn to wheelie for the first time or are attempting to again, the best tip we can offer is, commit to practicing. Like with so many other skills, don't expect to get it on your first try. Instead, embrace the process and keep coming back to it to try again.
Now, get out there and let us know how it goes!
Celebrate Bike to Play Week with Bicycling! Between Monday, June 27, and Sunday, July 3, we are encouraging you to break out of your usual routes and make your rides more fun this week. Whether it is a big adventure, or a day of small pleasures. Solo, with family, with friends, a dog, just you and your social media friends ... the possibilities are endless and completely up to you.
Just don't forget to document your ride, and share it with us using the hashtag #BIBiketoPlay.
Test Editor Dan Chabanov got his start in cycling as a New York City bike messenger but quickly found his way into road and cyclocross racing, competing in professional cyclocross races from 2009 to 2019 and winning a Master’s National Championship title in 2018. Prior to joining Bicycling in 2021, Dan worked as part of the race organization for the Red Hook Crit, as a coach with EnduranceWERX, as well as a freelance writer and photographer.
