How To Ghostride a Bike

This month I'll teach you a simple skill that is very handy for car-free living. I know everyone out there loves their bicycle, and generally it is inseparable from the self. But now and then you or a friend has somehow left a bike locked up somewhere else and needs to get it. No need to trek out there on foot to retrieve it! Just borrow another bike, go ride out to the lost bike and bring back both at once using the technique of GHOSTRIDING.

It takes a bit of practice but the skills needed will make you overall a more skilled and confident bike rider. Once you get used to it, Ghostriding several miles across town is not much trouble.  With the riding skills you learn, soon you'll be talking on your cell and drinking your morning coffee on your ride to work too, just like your friends in Berlin, Amsterdam or Tokyo.

This article is brought to you by Momentum magazine and MonkeyLectric. 

Step 1: One Hand Riding

practice riding your bike with just one hand. this is the most important skill needed for ghostriding. make sure you can brake while riding this way.  practice until you can comfortably ride a mile in city traffic with just one hand. if this is a challenge for you, start on a cruiser bike or city bike where you have an upright posture.

As you can see from the photos, there are lots of good reasons to learn to ride one handed besides ghostriding!

Comments

[Luziviech]

This a howto for upcoming road-kissers? Anyways, i would start all over with step four and no bike beneath you, say while walking aside the bike to get a feeling for equilibrium.

[Ludwig Von Mech]

I have found that ghostriding is very risky, so I developed a technique for towing, and built a small fixture to do it with.

[xenobiologista]

You should make an Instructable of your towing rig then ;)

[rikardom]

This is very easy to do.
Harder thing will be to actually do it without both hands.

[tobune]

Like in Ghost Rider!

[torina2]

This is very hard. I have tried and fell badly.

[mattle]

I agree. Hard to do it.

[sandra-1]

I can do this without both hands.

[teniva]

Yes, me too,.

[begunia]

I thought ghost riding is ability to stand on the bike while riding it.

[tokin]

I tried today, but could'nt do it. I'll keep practicing.

[OttawaRider]

I find it easier to hold the second bike by the seat. Once both bikes are moving, shift your hand from the stem to the seat. Steer it gently by leaning it slightly as required.

[lepar]

This is a challenge for me now.

[merkuri2]

Not that hard to learn.

[kokina2]

This is very easy to do.

[finnster]

Erm, last time I checked ghost riding was when you jump off a bike while its moving and it keeps going, like there's a ghost riding it :P

[Advar]

Huh.

Been doing things like that for years, Ghost Riding. But my head never turned into a flamming skull. Haha.

Really though, it's a nice, useful skill. Recommended.

[TheMadTinker]

Props, dude. I had to get a friend's bike to the park most of a mile from my house, but didn't want to walk back, so I tried your method. When I got to the park, everyone was asking how I rode both bikes there, to which I replied, "Ghost riding." They were suitably impressed.

[Alecw35]

Ive done this a couple of times recently. to get bikes home from town, about 10 miles on a tarmac bike path. I called it quad biking. I found I could stop still. then start pedaling again.
I have also tried taking off the second bikes front wheel. then putting washers on the left side of my 3 speed folder bikes rear axle. so the fork would sit away from the frame. rear bike was off to the side. but tracked ok. was an older bike with thin fork legs. I tried it with suspension forked bike. couldnt attach it. me a sturdy bit of metal to bolt on to both the rear axle and the second bikes forks.

[pauli2]

This is great. I think I can do it.

[antonio23]

It is hard for me! I have tried and fell.

[frenzy]

For those unfamiliar with the ghost riding phenomena:

[snotty]

HAAAaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

[dan]

the term 'ghostriding' means something very different for cars and for bikes.

ghostriding a car: hopping out of the driver seat while its rolling and walking next to it.

ghostriding a bike: taking a 2nd bike with you while you ride the 1st bike (like my article above).

because of the two meanings, you see a video like this where the car-use of the term is applied to bikes. but it is not the general meaning for bikes.

[finnrambo]

life's too short to argue about ghostriding...... stick to methods of cleaning white handlebar tape :D

[vincent7520]

then what about ghost riding a sail boat ?… ;))

[frenzy]

If my bicycle is my "Whip" can i consider this more conservative and functional style as "Ghostriding My Whip"?

[melisa2]

This is not very hard to do.

[tonyta2]

I did not know it is called ghostriding the riding with one hand. Anyway, I can do it without both hands.

[bobbyderf123]

where i come from, ghostriding a bike is when someone peddles a bike(usually a really crappy/slightly broken bmx bike) up to speed and jumps off and lets the bike keep going; usually off curbs, off ramps, into walls, or just to see how far they'll go. just for laughs

[VagsmaCutter]

Back in the day ghostriding was when you bailed off the bike and let it keep riding with nobody on it (like when you see a ghost riding a bike down the street). Usually, the bike belonged to someone else so it was a time/ energy saving tactic. What they call ghostriding now is what we used to call stealing a bike...ahah not really, but that's often what the police thought. Anyway, I always held the grip on the closest side to me. It seemed like it was easier to keep the two bikes separate, you could make steering corrections with either bike so you could go faster. But, this wasn't in the city so you didn't have to worry about being hit by a careless driver (as much). I would probably ride whichever bike is heavier. If the lighter bike is extremely light just grab the frame in front of the seat post (boys bike) and carry it shoulder height, kind of resting on your shoulder. (watch the front wheel when lifting it the first time). Have fun.

[dwesely]

Be careful doing this! I did this about 20 years ago to get my 2nd bike home from the bike repair shop. On the way, I picked up a bit of speed going down a slope, the front wheel of the ghost bike twitched, and WHAM! All of a sudden the ghost bike was down with the front tire rim potato chipped (folded over sideways). Fortunately the bike frame was OK, but the rim was totaled.

[VagsmaCutter]

Holy taco! < that's what we used to call it when you did that to a rim. That was years ago and I can see how it could look more like a potato chip. But, that would be a sign that you didn't wipe out hard enough to do it properly. Aribba!

[sabladask]

lol, i used the same technique goustriding a bike 20 mils this summer. :):)

[One.]

next up, how to ghost ride a MOTORCYCLE!

[eshneto]

I would like to see an instructable on how to carry a ton of bread in your head while riding. Take a look at the guy in the last picture!

[Hallmar]

Damn now that's awesome, the dude have a head balance, lol

[Hallmar]

Riding with one hand in any bicycle is awesome, but when you have a heavy bag on your hadlebar now thats a hard way to drive in your bicycle:]

[rorme]

Try ghost-riding with two bikes, one on each side. I've done that before (years ago I went out mountain-biking with two friends, neither of which owned a bike, but I had 3 - I was into it....)
I'd advise you practice that away from other moving vehicles, but it can be done.

[sbates-1]

im not sure the point of this ible but in light of the be nice policy well done on co-foundering an awsome website,
but with i find it easiier to ghost ride your bike while in your car, the cops and enviroment love it :P