Bicycle Shimmy or Speed Wobble

[donziiwww]

Lol thats awsome

[mantronick2]

I have some wobble on my bike at high speed. The amplitude of the wobble is larger but the frequency lower. I think that in my case it's due to the aerodynamic. CG position vs drag centre of pressure. When my bike was new the wobble was starting around 85kph (really scary! It want to kick you out of the saddle) Over the year, with my wheelset getting "looser" the same think started around 70kph.

[erikshroom]

That happened to me this weekend on a 10% downhill on my road bike at 66kph I thought I was gonna die

[McWaters12]

Does this not wear down your headset bearings fast?

[drinard]

@McWaters12 No, headset bearings are fine, never noticed any reduced lifetime. Shimmy is rare, it doesn't happen for any significant fraction of the bearing life (seconds compared to years), so most wear comes from normal riding.

[drinard]

No screaming headset here - there're ball bearings in there that make spinning nearly effortless!

[GoodLookinDudes]

I could practically hear the headset screaming in agony in this one...

[drinard]

Falling down during a speed wobble is a possibiity. You can avoid it by either clamping the knees on the bike frame, or standing up off the saddle 1cm or so. These two solutions work by changing the stiffness and damping of the bike+rider system so the natural frequency is different from the current road speed.

[risteilyvalas]

I was waiting falling down. So disappointed.

[howardb02]

Its also called a suicide wobble probably for a good reason. Wubbawubbawubba

[drinard]

@howardb02 Yes, wobble can be scary! But no need to commit suicide. Anyone can learn to control it: Either pinch the top tube with your knees or lift your butt off the saddle.

[thehiddenhitman]

Now do it on a motorcyle

[themaniusedtob]

for some reason it doesnt look real.... is this a camera trick?

[drinard]

@themaniusedtob Yes, it's real, not a camera trick. Just guessing here: Maybe the frame rate makes it look fake?

[Markese92Megagamer]

That looks funny!!

i like it i want to try that one

[mondorescue]

I've seen my friend's bike shimmy like that. I haven't found my bike to shimmy, yet. It is either my riding style never allows it to happen or (bad case) the bike isn't properly built.

[7Ns]

Of the bikes I've owned, it's only the big ones, larger than say 64 cm, that starts to wobble by their own when I release the handlebars. It's a bit irritating, but not dangerous as I'm aware of this behavior. One thing for sure is that wobbling doesn't automatically means there's something wrong with the bike.

[SmokeRastaGoFasta]

thats happened on my DH bike, is sooo fun. i can controll it too. but it took a few tries. lol i ate shit soo hard once it was EPIC.

[kozas0]

omg you 're totally nuts

[rybigbass]

That can't be good for the bearings in the head set

[fluffiestspoon]

HA! like smackin a fat chicks butt... *smack* wubwubwubwubwub =P

[3ur0trash]

damn!

[FastKart27]

lmao get a metal bike, not rubber. Thats your problem

[arctictiger69]

What bicycle is that?

[drinard]

My aluminum race bike, size 58cm. All 25 or so bikes I've owned can be made to wobble like this under the right conditions.

[ridebikesfast]

Wow that sketches me out! Maybe its your position, or fork rake?

[TheNebbyDiaries]

A horrible experience to have on the bike!

[drinard]

Yep. Then I realized 1. I won't crash, 2. I can stop it (knees on top tube or stand up 1 cm out of the saddle) and it's fun again.

[dyg2001]

That's nice but I want to see some race footage shot with your helmet cam.

[drinard]

Working on it. This is my first video camera of any kind! :-O