How to Do a Wheelie on a Bike in 4 Easy Steps

When you’re looking to pull impressive tricks on your bike, the wheelie is one of the most easily accessible. It is simple enough that even kids can pull it off, and it’s not too dangerous. But knowing how to do a wheelie on a bike before trying it out helps.

Take a look at the proper way of pulling off this simple and fun maneuver, along with essential details to be aware of. Keep reading to learn more.

Table of Contents

Step-by-Step to Do a Wheelie on a Bike

What You Need

• Your Bicycle
• A helmet
• Comfortable elbow and knee pads

Before you start practicing a bicycle wheelie, there are a few important safety considerations to take. First, wear the standard safety equipment such as a helmet and pads. This is necessary whether you’re practicing tricks or just making a regular trip.

Another important detail for your bike before popping a wheelie is that it should be in good condition. Performing stunts on a bicycle will cause stress to its parts. This may result in malfunction, which, in turn, leads to accidents. In particular, tricks can be especially harsh on your chain and drivetrain, so pay extra attention.

The third point is that your seat needs to be higher. This is to enable your feet to produce more pedaling power, which is a requisite for being able to ride a wheely.

Step 1: Starting speed

While you’re just starting to learn how to perform the stunt, it helps to ensure favorable conditions for pulling it off. One such thing is to make use of a slightly inclined road. This will make it easier to raise the front wheel.

To begin, start biking, then bring your speed to a slower pace, which is ideal for beginners. Going too fast will make crashing more likely.

Try to find a slow or moderate pace where you are comfortable, and check to see if you can exert power into your legs.

Step 2: Pedal with force

While raising the handlebars is important to pull off the wheelie, it is the sudden burst of force that starts it off.

As you turn your bicycle pedals, bring one side up to the top-most position. Apply greater force when bringing this pedal down with your foot. The sudden increase in momentum will cause the bike’s front wheel to move up.

Once the front wheel is raised, keep your grip on the rear brake lever as you try to maintain balance on the bike.

Step 3: Lean back

Keep yourself seated; this is important to maintain the bike in the wheely position. Plus, lean back to allow the front wheel to go up further.

It is also important to balance the height of the front wheel and the direction of the bike.

Leaning too far back will lead the bike to raise too high and you to crash, while not leaning enough will prevent the front wheel from going high enough to properly perform the move.

Step 4: Keep your balance

The last piece of the puzzle in pulling off this stunt is to use your rear brakes.

You will find that pulling on the lever slightly will give you the necessary control to maintain the wheelie. You will have to pull on the brakes several times as needed for as long as you would like to keep the wheelie going.

Fixed Gear Wheelie

A fixed-gear bicycle is one with no shifters, but another notable point is that it usually does not have brakes.

This means that there will be some difference in how the stunt is performed on this type of bicycle compared to a wheelie on a mountain bike. However, it’s not entirely different.

The same considerations apply, so follow steps 1 through 3 even on a bicycle without gears. The difference comes in at step 4 because you don’t have brakes to control your balance. You will make use of your feet instead.

Fixie Alternative

• On this bike, you’ll need to find your balance point, which is the position where it will be easiest to maintain a wheelie.

An effective method is to do the trick while holding on to a wall with one hand. This will allow you to experiment with different positions.

• After getting a feel for your balance point, it’s time to practice keeping yourself steady.

When you feel that you are losing control of the bike, use your foot to apply pressure on the back pedal. This will allow you to resist the wheel’s turn and keep you from falling off the back of the bike.

Strike a balance between pedaling and resisting the wheel to maintain it.

Additional Information

1. The easiest bike to wheelie

Some bikes are better suited for specific things such as performing tricks or stunts.

When it comes to a wheelie bicycle, doing it on a BMX bike is the easiest due to some features such as a lightweight frame and strong rear braking. As a specialized bicycle intended for performing tricks, BMX is the best type you could go.

Read more: What size BMX bike do you need?

Mountain bike wheelies are also considered easier to do compared to road bike wheelie. It is believed that this is due to the road bike’s thinner tires, and using thicker tires can help.

Being able to maintain your balance is also important, which means that this is an additional advantage that mountain bikes have.

However, whether you’re trying stunts on a dirt bike or pulling off an MTB wheelie; the most important thing is to practice the trick well. It all boils down to your skill and hard work, regardless of the type of bicycle you use.

2. The best place to practice

As mentioned earlier, a road with a slight incline will make it easier to pull off a wheelie, but there are other considerations as well.

Another point to consider is that you should be able to have a softer landing. One example is practicing on a lawn, since the grass will soften your crash.

If you don’t have access to a grassy area, it is best to keep in mind that a road with regular traffic is not a good choice because it can be dangerous with other vehicles passing by. Try to find an empty lot instead.

Conclusion

Now that you know how to do a wheelie on a bike, it’s just a matter of putting in the effort needed. The wheelie is a stunt that is simple but fulfilling and fun.

Whether you’re looking to impress your friends or just trying to learn something new, it will be a worthwhile trick.

What do you think about the wheelie? If you have any comments or suggestions, please drop us a message in the space below. Always ride safely.

“I ride my bike to work for years, but is that enough? Our carelessness towards our surroundings has taken a toll on the environment. And now, everyone is responsible for changes; even the most minor contribution is counted. With this hope and spirit, I started with my partner to establish Biketoworkday to help more individuals commute to their work sites on their bikes.”