Unfortunately, I haven't had any time to practice more and just when I have some it is raining. I still went out today and tried to do some "Pedal Ups". From what I figure comparing the video to all the tutorials on the internet the technique isn't all too bad especially after having practiced it for only a couple of hours. Still, there's something missing at the very last moment for I couldn't get all too high even though in the end I managed to get up the stairs from the beginning w/o hitting my rear wheel on the edge.

Too bad that I didn't have my camera with me today. I practiced pedal ups and was able to do some nice ones onto the curb I have been using for my pedal kicks. As I went home to get the camera I saw my wife's face and didn't want to risk my life asking her for yet some more time. Videos will have to wait...

Today I did two things. First, I went back to the 50cm drop and did it about 100 times, just to get the timing right. In the end it worked pretty well. On my way home I saw another drop with about the same height but with almost no space to move sideways (the first one I did off a very wide platform) which made it harder. The first 20 times or so I lost my balance and went down with the front wheel first (out of a backhop) realizing that you couldn't do this off a higher platform or at least not w/o hurting yourself. I guess I will have to get my balance right before taking on higher drops. One thing I noticed though is that I was able to aim where to land and that I could jump at least 1 meter far.

The other move I tried to do was the "pedal up" which is way harder than it looks on trashzen. I managed to get the front wheel up with the "bad" foot and also got my backwheel up to a certain extend but it just felt wrong or at least weird. One time I went down on the first pedal stroke because I did it too hard. Sitting down on concrete this way is something I don't like to do.

Finally, I had time (and the shin guards) to go out and ride again. The cuts have healed alright and don't hurt anymore. It was pretty cold today but after only half an hour I was sweating a lot.

I don't know if you can see it but the pedal kicks were easier and cleaner than the last time I did them. I guess it's the "more trialish" stem I put on the bike. It's pretty ugly but who cares...

Due to the cold weather (2°C) the battery of my camera went out and I couldn't record all the things I wanted to. For example, I managed to do 3 pedal kicks down the stairs in the end. I know it's not much but for me it's yet another achievement. The same goes for my highest drop so far. I dropped 50cm today and it felt very good and easy. I would've tried more but couldn't find anything that wasn't too high.

It's bleeding through the bandage, which is kinda annoying. I hope it'll stop over night for I have to work tomorrow (bike messenger).

Due to the 'incident' I asked the guys over at the mtb-news and trials-forum for help on some shin guards and have ordered SixSixOne Riot Shin Guards. It'll take over a week for them to arrive in Germany but I won't be on my bike w/o them. I've hit my shin before but never that hard so now I'm afraid of not using some protection. I also ordered some JT Racing Evo Protek Fader Gloves to avoid any more blisters.

Today I wanted to try something new and see my improvements on the pedal kick. I have improved a lot since last week. The first pedal kick looks much better than the ones I did only a couple days ago. Unfortunately, the second try sent me straight into hospital as I crashed the pedal into my shin, which opened up right away. They cleaned the wound, put some Betaisodona on it and sent me home telling me that I should buy some shin guards for this kind of activity. Will do that tomorrow...

https://videos.mtb-news.de/embed/player/32446

There are two rather big cuts, the lower one went right to the bone. Now, back from the hospital it doesn't hurt anymore.

Tomorrow is gonna be a good day. I will mount the new HS33R with TNN LGM green pads and go out riding. I'm not gonna take my video camera with me because I won't be doing anything new, I guess. I will just try out the new brakes... I'm so exited.

I also ordered new grips (see the blisters post) and a 100x25° stem to see whether it will be more comfortable than the one I'm using now. Quite frankly, I don't know nuttin' about trial bike geometry. That's why I asked in a forum and got this tip.