Who is Drake Hacker?
- Pro rider who races the WORCS circuit.
- Dirt Bike Instructor for AZ Dirt Bike Training.
- All around great guy
What are Drake’s goals?
Drake had back pain whenever he rode. He sought medical help, had x-rays but no one could figure out why his back was painful when he rode. Drake started to think it was ‘normal’
When Drake hit the brakes on his bike, it would skid or ‘dance’. If Drake was braking hard and hit a root, rock, or rut his bike would ‘launch’ him forcing him to hang on or wreck
Biomechanical Analysis, Learning New Movement Patterns
First I performed a biomechanical analysis of Drake on a stationary dirt bike and compared it to Pro Ryan Wells.
Analysis Findings
From this I learned that during braking: 1. Drake’s left knee was hyper-extended 2. His butt was ~2” to the right of the bike’s center causing his center of gravity to be off center when breaking.
With Drake’s knee straight it directed all the forces from the bike straight to his low back causing pain, and interfering with his ability to absorb the motion of the bike. With his center of gravity 2” off center it would un-weight the bike causing it to skid to the left making his braking inefficient.
Training/Intervention
Using video and hands on training I was able to show Drake what his body was doing, and re-train his body to move correctly
Next we had Drake go through a ‘recalibration’ process which involved practicing the new braking position and allowing him to see how it affected the bike.
Results
- Drake no longer had back pain because his knees were both bent which absorbed the impact instead of the forces being directed to his back.
- Drake was able to improve his lap times because he was able to hold his throttle open longer knowing he was able to come into a corner and stop faster.
- Now that Drake was centered directly over the bike, it no longer ‘danced’ when braking hard, which allowed him to pick the fastest line and stay in the line coming into, and through the turns
- When Drake hit obstacles his bike remained straight because his knees were able to absorb the motion of the bike then quickly redirect it back to where he wanted it to go which allowed Drake to ride faster, more in control and without back pain.