THRYLLZ
Thrills we thrive on
Thrills we thrive on
Let’s get straight to the point: we don’t do it enough either. Pit biking. Racing around on tiny motorbikes. A kind of mini supermoto bike. It’s fantastic. It’s fun. And above all, it’s very educational. We’ll tell you why every motorcyclist should ride pit bikes regularly.
It’s a shame that there are few places in the UK where you can ride a pit bike. However, there are plenty of places where you can, if you have your own pit bike. Don’t have one? Want to give it a try? Then it gets a bit trickier.
We sometimes head to Racelandkart in Belgium. And we turn it into a mini road trip, since we’re going on a mini tour anyway. Here you can use a rental motorbike for pit biking.
When we introduce friends to the phenomenon of “pit biking”, we always say: ‘Just a day of having lots of fun and falling on your face a lot’. And actually, everyone spontaneously gets excited about it. You might think, ‘Falling on your face? Fun?!’ We assure you, yes, it is fun (disclaimer: most of the time). Let’s tackle some general questions first.
Pit biking is riding on a kind of small supermoto. This is often done on a karting track, but can also be done outside on a small circuit or on the street. Please note: most pit bikes are sold without a registration number, so this would officially have to be on closed private property.
The art of pit biking – and therefore riding laps as fast as possible on such a mini motorbike – is maintaining momentum and ridiculous cornering speed. This is something you are often not used to with your large “thousand” sports bike, naked bike, all-road motorbike or cruiser.
If you google “pit bike”, you will mainly find small motocross bikes in your search results. A pit bike is actually a mini motocross bike, designed to introduce children to motocross.
These mini motorcycles have an engine capacity ranging from 50 to 190 cc. The top speed of a pit bike is usually between 45 km/h and even 120 to 130 km/h. Not bad, right?
The motorcycles come with a manual or semi-automatic engine. Most have four gears. A few have five.
Now, someone once came up with the brilliant idea of putting street tyres on them. This basically turns them into mini supermotards. So you can ride them on the street, on the track or on a karting track. Whoever came up with this idea, hats off to you. We are still eternally grateful.
And now for the proposition…
We dare to say it out loud. A motorcyclist who regularly rides a pit bike becomes a better motorcyclist.
Why? There are several reasons and arguments behind this. But one of the main reasons is that on a pit bike, you learn to sense when the front or rear wheel is about to slip.
Thanks to the small size of the engines, you can play around with the boundary between grip and loss of grip. Are you riding on a kart track? Then the surface is much smoother than you are used to on the street or on the circuit. This causes loss of grip more quickly. Now the pit bike is fitted with small motorbike tyres that are suitable for the kart track, but you will still slide away quickly if you don’t ride carefully.
Because a pit bike is so agile, and you are low to the ground, you still have quite a few options for correction. If you are too late with your correction or recovery, a crash is not a disaster. After all, you’re only falling from less than a metre high. Especially if you’re already leaning into a corner. Then your “free fall” is probably only 20 cm. So falling is not scary at all.
Because a pit bike is so small and low to the ground, the threshold for playing with that balance between grip and loss of grip is also a lot lower. The more often you go pit biking with a group of friends, the more feel you get for it. And so you also get a quicker sense of when the pit bike starts to slide due to loss of grip.
You can transfer this skill to your own motorbike. Of course, the overall feeling will be different, especially if you ride a completely different type of motorbike than a supermotard. But that first feeling, the moment your motorbike loses grip… that first split second. You will recognise it. And at that moment, you may still be able to do something about it.
Then you’ll be grateful for all those hours on that little motorbike. It could prevent a crash with your own precious machine.
When you first get on a pit bike, it feels strange. You sit like a monkey on a mini motorbike. Especially if you are a taller motorcyclist, it feels cramped. As a result, you often spend the first few minutes riding around like a wooden doll. But to really ride fast on a pit bike, you have to move smoothly.
You might think that you can just throw such a small motorbike from one side to the other. And you can. But if you think you can stay sitting on the saddle with your bum in the middle… forget it. Shift your weight! Lean in! Throttle!
Once you get used to the small size, you can start playing with the next balance: the balance between that engine and your own body weight. You’ll notice that riding becomes a lot easier when you actively move your body. And not just sit there like a sack of potatoes.
So move those legs! And your bum! And your upper body! Oh, and don’t forget to look far ahead.
You’ll see that if you regularly go pit biking with friends, you’ll become more flexible on your own motorbike. And therefore also when riding. Which can only benefit your motorcycling in general.
We always say, ‘If you regularly go pit biking with a group of friends…’, but of course you don’t have to go with a group. You can also go on your own. However, we always find it very enjoyable to go out with “the foundation” and spend a day “falling on your face”. Because they make the latter less painful.
Be prepared for this if you’re going pit biking for the first time. You’re bound to fall off. Don’t worry about it right away. Falling while pit biking is not a big deal at all.
As we said, you are low to the ground and most falls will consist of sliding. You can handle that, believe us. Nine out of ten falls during pit biking are harmless incidents. It is therefore almost always a matter of trial and error. And that is precisely one of the reasons why every motorcyclist should go pit biking regularly.
It reduces the fear of falling, whether consciously or unconsciously. Of course, we understand that it’s not quite the same thing whether you fall off a small pit bike or your own beloved motorbike. But the whole principle of “making contact with the asphalt” remains the same. And you’ll see that it takes away some of the “edge”, especially if you regularly ride one of these mini motorbikes.
Although pit bikes are very small motorcycles, there is obviously a risk involved. As with anything involving an engine and speed. A real unlucky person could suffer a bruised or broken wrist. But in practice, this rarely happens. You can assume that you will fall at some point. And that you will probably end up with a bruise.
Here are a few tips for pit biking before you go:
Tip #1: Do you have a new and old motorcycle suit hanging in your wardrobe? Don’t show off in your new suit. Put on the old one, as long as it’s still somewhat intact and closes properly. A few slips here and there will leave their mark. It would be a shame to ruin your new motorcycle suit.
Tip #2: The same goes for your motorcycle helmet. Do you have an old motorcycle helmet lying around? Or perhaps a motocross helmet? Put that on. Do you have a half-worn helmet lying around? Maybe the visor is broken? That one is still usable. You don’t need a visor for indoor pit biking.
Tip #3: Do you have a pair of motorcycle boots and gloves that cover your wrists? Then put them on. Actually, the same “rules” or advice apply to pit biking as to motorcycle clothing for circuit riding. Leather is the best choice and don’t leave any skin uncovered.
As we said, a day of pit biking often means a day of falling flat on your face. But in the most fun way possible. And actually, the most friendly way. We take it for granted that we’ll come away with a few bruises. Afterwards, we ended up with a few bruises, but also a few laugh lines. And above all, we had a great time. We also worked on our agility on the motorbike. What more could you want?
