From: Leslie and Roy Richards Subject: Vmax Wheelie 101 Ok here goes. Although I am hardly the wheelstand king around here (that might go to Rusty) I will try to give you some clues on how to get it up and keep it up. (Yea I know that sounds funny) 1. Its easier to learn and easier to get it up on a lighter, shorter wheelbase bike than max. Preferably a 200 lb dirt bike. 2. Its easier going uphill. But for the max. Put the bike in first. Slide all the way back on the seat. From about 3000 RPM shut down the throttle letting the forks collapse. Wack it open as the forks hit bottom and are rebounding. Let the forks help you with the weight transfer. Keep the weight of your arms off of the forks as the front is coming up. It will also help keep your arms from getting stretched out tight and causing you to inadvertanty pin the throttle at the worst possible moment. You can even tug it towards you to help it along. Let the front end rise up about a foot or 2 and then shut down till you get the feel of how quick it is gonna come up. Use the back brake if it gets too high and you get Skeret. As you get the feel of getting it higher you will discover there is a balance point (It feels way up there BTW) where blipping the throttle you can keep the bike on the rear tire even as you shift to 2nd. Sometimes it helps to rise off of the seat to get the correct feel.(Maybe thats just an old dirt bike thing for me) Sometimes stabbing the clutch will help get the front end up if you are having trouble. Max is not the easiest bike to wheelie. It is big, Heavy, has a long wheelbase and is quite a dangerous projectile. My stock max wouldnt wheelie well at all until I put the pipe on. Since I lowered my front end it is also more difficult. I can yank the front end way up and ride it thru first and sometimes into second though. I cant do those 70MPH Tourmaster Wheelies though. Rusty maybe you can add to this. Roy I had much rather do the high speed wheelies than the 1st gear ones. The 1st gear ones can get outta hand way to quick. When I was taking the Max down the track last year (it was a 1200 then), the first pass was a "lazy" launch. So, the next pass I tried to leave harder, just a little too hard! About the time I thought I could get the clutch all the way out with full throttle, the front end jumped straight up. Had to shut the throttle off to "pull" the bike down. My buddy said everyone in the stands jumped to their feet because they (and me) thought Mr.Max was going over backwards! SO BE CAREFULL!!! Roll-on wheelies (for me) are easier to control in 1st & 2nd. The 3rd gear wheelies did'nt start happening for me until the 1500cc TourMaster was put in, and those wheelies are smoother & easier to control. I try not to do very many wheelies, it just 'aint good for the bike, or me if something goes wrong. Rusty Morgan (Roy, your right about using a dirt bike to learn on, especially a 2-stroke, what a blast!) ----------- From: "Beaumont, Paul" Subject: RE: Vmax Wheelie 101 Yes. Dead stop wheelies are a little harder to become proficient at. I prefer 3-5 mph in first @ about 3-3500 & dump most of the clutch....... used this on most bikes.. it's easy.. it's fun and you can consistently get it going straight & hold for longer distances..... but what do I know.... I don't even have a bike. Paul B.