Learn how to ride trials and street trials with TrashZen: this will also improve your general MTB riding skills.
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The decade


An old school flatland BMX trick, the decade consists in a full body rotation over the steering tube, only holding onto the handlebars.

Hold onto the bars

learning street trials on a 24-inch bike Regroup over the bars and hold tight.

The decade is fairly simple to launch, but you'll need enough strength and commitment to hold yourself over the handlebars for the entire duration of the move.
Here again, make sure your brake hoses can take a full bar spin without blocking the move or being teared apart.
You should launch it rotating to your back-foot side, turning away from your front foot to get the longest reach on your front pedal.
To begin with, it is easier to learn the decade on a very smooth surface where a rock-hard inflated front tyre will spin more easily.

Too much grip from a heavily textured ground or low pressure in your front tyre would definitely kill your momentum as you try to spin around the steering tube.


Step-by-step

learning street trials on a 24-inch bike Surge into a full upper-body swing.

Ride at a very low pace, merely moving forward. To prepare for the rotation, turn the bars to your front foot side, moving your hips away to the other side and leaning your torso to ready for a full upper-body swing.
Then lock the front brake and swing the handlebars to your back-foot side, keeping your shoulders and torso well over the bars to follow the rotation. You can give more momentum to this rotation by swinging your hips over to your front foot.

You'll reach a point where you can no longer twist your torso to follow the rotation, instead, jump off your front pedal to regroup over the handlebars. Don't get your feet stuck onto the frame, tuck your knees well high as if you wanted to leapfrog the handlebars and hold yourself over the bars with your arms locked.

The bars keep spinning but tyre friction will slow your rotation, it often feels like you'll never maintain yourself up for long enough.
As your feet reach the other side of the frame, make sure to clear your front foot over the top tube of the bike, and only then, push yourself away from the handlebars back over the bike, reaching for your front pedal.

Extra tips
Receptions on the pedals can be a bit tricky, especially if you were not quite able to hold yourself for long enough over the handlebars. The most common failure scenario is to hit the top tube with both feet before you get a chance to reach for the pedals. One thing that will make the rotation easier is to lock the front brake as you launch the decade from a walking pace. This helps the whole bike rock slightly on its front wheel, tilting the steering tube closer to the vertical.

You don't want to overdo this as the frame could swing to the side. If you surge too far, off-centred from the steering tube, then your rotation will likely fail at 180°.
After a few tries, you'll figure out where is the balance point you should reach over the handlebars, your hips right over your tyre's contact point with the ground.

Commitment, locking your arms and finding the right balance point are what will keep you long enough in the air for the whole rotation.
Tuck your knees as high and for as long as you can, you'll spin faster and further.




Click on any photo and use the scroll-wheel to animate the move.

The Decade

learning street trials on a 24-inch bike
1° Turn the bars to your front foot side, moving your hips away to the other side and leaning your torso to ready for a full upper-body swing.

learning street trials on a 24-inch bike
2° lock the front brake and swing the handlebars to your back-foot side, keeping your shoulders and torso well over the bars to follow the rotation.

learning street trials on a 24-inch bike
3° You'll reach a point where you can no longer twist your torso to follow the rotation. Jump off your front pedal to regroup over the handlebars.

learning street trials on a 24-inch bike
4° Regroup over the handlebars and tuck your knees well high as if you wanted to leapfrog the handlebars.


learning street trials on a 24-inch bike
5° Hold yourself over the bars with your arms locked, try to maintain your knees up against your chest for as long as you can.

learning street trials on a 24-inch bike
6° As your feet reach the other side of the frame, clear your front foot over the top tube before reaching for your pedals.


Biketrial video Watch this move in slow-motion Biketrial video




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