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I just need a course from this guy on the transition from helmet to hat 😯👍. Good video like always and very nice place to ride 👍

Those helmet cap transitions are crazy fast and smooth!!! 🤣 💀

Flipper foot off-road broke my ankle when the bike went down… it’s so true to tuck em in!

My bike comes with a rider system where the rider uses the number of fingers best suited for every situation, as they arise.

I recognize the first mistake from horse riding. I teach my students the same principle, but explain it differently as riding boots are more flexible. When I tell them to turn the toes parallel to the horse instead looking like Charlie Chaplin, they can force the foot, but it doesn't give the correct effect on the rest of the leg. Therefore I started telling them to push there heels outwards. When they did that the knee/rest of the leg automatically reacted on that movement in the positive direction that I wanted to teach them. When off roading I told that myself as well. That I need to push my heels outwards. Now I even do it when riding on the road.

Currently riding through the jungle in Thailand. I have consciously stopped flipper footing. Level of control has improved massively. Thanks, I needed this.

I trust my instinct and use 3 for clutch and 2 for brake, that speech assures me, thanks... 👏👏👏👏

About 4 years ago I was taught to only use 2 fingers, and to keep them on the levers. So much so, I’ve worn the black powder coating off my brake lever where I rest each finger! I just noticed it about 2 months ago.

Two fingers on the clutch lever and two on the front brake lever while covering the rear brake with right foot on slow corners, especially off-camber uphill tracks, body position and look through the corner. Appreciate your instructional videos.

Driving my motorcycles more than 35 years it's always learning . Thanks for your tips Bret!!

Despite riding dirt bikes since the early 1970s, I was a four finger rider until my first track school at Pacific Raceways on a Suzuki Hayabusa. It was a CLASS school with Reg Pridmore. The acceleration of the Bus was so strong exiting the bus stop chicane that I switched to two finger clutch and brake for more control. Been doing two finger ever since on both street and dirt. Nice video! Will take your foot position advice to heart. I tuck my feet in when I get in tight spaces but am no doubt lazy in more open riding. Definitely need to improve on that! Thanks!

the way i fix my finger problem was easy, i changed the levers to shorty levers and only fit 2 fingers, 3 will be a very squeeze fit, but fors sure there is no room for the fourth finger to be on. so all fixed, and after 2 years riding like that i can jump on any bike and only use 2 fingers no matter the levers.

When I was 19 I twisted my foot and leg back on a CR500. Bottomed out in the sand top of 4th gear. Blew my knee out and have been living with it ever since. Walking with a limp at 63… Still love riding Great advice

I broke my ankle 3 days ago doing exactly this bad flipper foot move. I’m a brand new rider on a vstrom 650. I took a dirt road for a quick tour and found some thick sand. The sand plus my inexperience caused the crash but the flipper foot caused a broken ankle. Great video and safety tip.

I came to Moto from Bicycling, took my Daddy's hat from the Estate and after Safety Course found my first, had to learn more on the second including picking it up by the Bars (Aruba Elite Police technique), glad y'all call us outside!!

Good stuff! Been riding dirt 35 years, this is the way! Man I wish I had a teacher back in the day like this!!! Thanks for sharing!

Show off. I haven't seen your videos for a while and then watching this one I see three guys pulling up on motorcycles. Two stop and put their feet down. One brakes and steps off as the bike comes to a halt. I knew which one was Bret. Really fancy. Good video Good information, even for a street rider. Thanks

Dude! Your helmet to hat transition is stunning! Commendable!

Yellowpine is in a beautiful area. You’d think it was still our own private Idaho. 👍🏻🇺🇸

Tim & his wife are a great couple!! we stopped in last August and she was cooking supper for folks working on the mine there and we got to eat some of her homemade spaghetti!! Ohh my Gosh!! The BEST ever!! The 3 of us from Arkansas had a fantastic meal in Yellow Pine thanks to them!!

Bret, where the heck were you in "69 when my hodaka super rat gave me lesson in foot grabs bush.... followed by " tree smacks fingers". all hard learned lessons passed down by great people like you, keep on teaching. Its hard to break my 50 year old habits but Ive learned alot from your channel and rider courses.

Nearly fell off my seat when you started talking about foot position. It's a big deal what you do with your feet, they're half off what attach's you to the bike. You covered the other half just as well, hand controls. It's a big deal what you do with the bars, too. Excellent vid, cheers.

Your words about losing control and not surfing the bike down the gravel and the like, ring so true now for me because I was in an accident a few days ago, in town. Walked away with a lot of deep bruising, but no broken bones thankfully. When you're confronted with it, there's really nothing you can do. In this instance - I accidentally wheelied my Versys (I let my frustration get to me and didn't realize I was giving it so much gas before releasing the clutch suddenly) and all I could do was when I felt the bike falling backward, was pushing myself away from it (and probably partially got thrown too) and landed hard on my side. Full gear substantially reduced the damage I could have taken especially since I rolled numerous times after hitting the ground. Still recovering, but eager to get back on my Versys once it gets a proper look over. Anyway wanted to share that. It's still pretty fresh for me. Your videos have been an inspiration, and I've learned a great deal from your lessons. Thanks for everything you do to help educate people. I'm eager to move forward from this experience, and continue improving as a rider.

Great stuff Bret...the foundation to riding is key...starting at the base and controlling the clutch and brake...always good to reinforce the basics - keep the videos coming...thanks!!!!

Welcome to Idaho! Great riding here. I've learned and unlearned alot watching your videos. Thanks!

Bret, you just keep flowing with fantastic tips in all areas of adv riding I love your channel and learn so much.

I'm 63. I started riding off road on a Bultaco Lobito 100 at age 8. Since age 16, I have been riding both dirt and street and dirt, I've had over 50 different street legal bikes (pretty much everything but crotch rockets, I don't mess with trash like that) I have over one million street miles, and have never gone down on the street. Back when I was a kid I crashed a lot, learning how to do wheelies, jumps, and slides. No serious injuries. As a teenager I raced MX, where I did wind up with a few fairly serious injuries, which is why I had to give it up. I wasn't the only one, every weekend usually more than one rider would be out due to injuries from the week before. Some showed up to watch, in casts and on crutches. It's part of the deal, or at least it was back then. I agree with you on foot position, but as for how many fingers you should use on the brake and clutch, that depends on many things. The bike, the brake, the clutch, how much strength and control you have in your hands, and the terrain. I can use 4 fingers on the brake safely, because I have good control of my fingers. Whether I'm using one finger or four (assuming one finger is enough) is irrelevant. I have the ability to apply the right amount of pressure on the brake no matter how many fingers I am using. Controlling a motorcycle is not a simple task. You have to make thousands of calculations per second. It's like reaching for a glass of water on a table in front of you. You first movement will not be very accurate. But as you hand gets closer to the glass of water, you fine tune your movements more and more. Being just slightly off will result in your either missing the glass altogether, or knocking it over. Riding a motorcycle requires the same kind of precision. As for the clutch, it does not need to be quite as precise as the brake in most cases. Anyone who can ride can control the clutch well enough to be able to take off without stalling the bike, or taking off with the front wheel in the air. Remember, the clutch and throttle must be used together and well coordinated. Some bikes have a really light clutch that you can use properly with one finger, while some, like my Harley, actually require 4 fingers due to the physical effort required. Remember, the rear brake also requires a lot of precision, due to weight transfer when braking. It is very easy to unload the rear wheel and lock it up. Years ago, when I was younger and in better condition, I use to love doing tight fast left hand circles on dirt bikes, right up to the point where the rear wheel slid out and the bike went down on the left side. Never got hurt doing that, but it was hard on bikes. BTW, that little stunt you did at 4:40, where you hopped off the bike while it was still moving, with the stand up, was not very smart. I can just see someone trying that, and dropping the bike on top of them. At my age, I have to stop the bike, put the stand down, and slowly get off. That's good practice even if you don't have to do it that way.

Great to see Kyle from Backcountry Adv Moto. His Idaho BDR series were the very first videos that got me interested in ADV riding. Thank you both for all the great content!

Great seeing a video on the very basics being covered. A great teacher never forgets it always goes back to the basics

Cool to see brother Kyle with you Bret. He’s a solid dude, and should have more subs 👍🏻

The "no flipper footing" advice is also quite valid on the road for all the same reasons. Granted you will (hopefully) encounter less rocks and tree branches, but on the other hand you're likely to take more lean angle.

Great advice and reminder on the feet. I find myself getting lazy or having bad bike posture if riding a lot of pavement prior to going off pavement.

7:10 in... Just noticed this. Good job having the reverse-field flag on the proper side. A “Flag Proper” goes on the left arm, and a “Reverse Flag” goes on the right arm. This way, the stars always face forward. Just saw that, good job. 😎👊🏻 Also, thanks for the tip on the fingers for break and clutch. Been riding for over 20 years, mostly Harley’s, but today, I own (and love) a KTM 1290 SAS. I’ve taken the BRC, ARC, Off-Road and ATV courses from MSF over the years, and they always said “full fingers”. Experience taught me two was enough a long time ago, regardless of what MSF said. It’s nice to hear someone else affirm this. 👍🏻

Excellent short but concise video!! I never thought about the flipper foot but I am a relatively new ADV rider (1 year) but now I know. Thanks Bret!

Good reminders of basic but important practices. Another great video, that even more experienced riders can benefit from.

Great video Brett. Loved the format including other riders with varying experiences. Cheers 👍

Now Bret tells me. Do Not Flipper Foot! I was flipper footing during a stream crossing where I did everything absolutely wrong. My left boot toe caught in the mud. The tibia repair took 1 large plate plus 13 screws, while the fibula healed on its own. Once that healed, I needed a complete knee replacement on the same leg. Don't do this.

MTB riders these days are also taught to use 1 finger on the brake levers, 2 at most, especially on the better hydraulic disc brakes. One is all you need since the brakes generally have good leverage and the levers are long enough for 1 or 2 fingers. Also you get to keep a good grip on the handlebars. Not a firm deathgrip but just the right amount for control. And being much much lighter than a fully loaded ADV bike, the stakes are much higher in the washout and endo departments if you accidentally do a 4-fingered grab on an MTB front brake. Good tip on the foot position too; very eye-opening. I'll watch my subconscious foot position the next time I ride out to see if I get to stick to this. 👍

6:15 The helmet hat transitions are nothing short of epic

Amazed by Bret's "Helmet to Cap" speed maneuver.

Boas dicas, segurança sempre. Abraço

Had this twisted foot on my first slide in the mud... very important hint for beginners!

anything less than 4 fingers on a DR650, you aint stopping!! Best thing about a DR650 is you can grab a fistful of brake on the dirt and not get into trouble, an F800GS on the other hand ....... Back when I was a (young)motorcycle instructor during the mid 80's, 4 finger braking worked well when trying to get those single pot calipers to grip that solid disc(s). Brakes have come a loooooong way since then!!! Good vid!

Tho I'm from Alaska, I was visiting family in Idaho a couple weeks ago and spent some time around the Yellow Pine area....awesome country around there! I have metal in both knees and ankles with no wish to add more, so keeping my feet and knees in is very important to me, along with riding mostly on the balls of my feet. I try to always ride with two fingers on brake and clutch but do find a third finger creeping in on the clutch quite often. Not great at it yet, but when giving the throttle a blip to cross mud, water, or up an embankment, having the third and fourth fingers on the handlebars really helps the control! Another great video, Brett....cheers!

I was also taught to clutch with four fingers and brake with two,before going to a MSF training for my license I rode dirt bikes and always used two fingers on both brake and clutch. After the riding class and license I tried to get use to using all fingers on clutch and brakes but was having a hell of a time in the control and sometimes braked too much or was late on the clutch. I'm going to the old self taught way for it is the most effective. Thanks for putting this out there, it helps so many riders to know this.

Good advice and presentation. First time I rode a disc-braked lightweight dual-sport I found out very quickly to go light on that front brake! Coming from racing enduro on Bultaco's (dual drums) in the late 70's we had to use a "bit" more pressure!

Great tips. I always use 2 fingers on the brake and 4 on the clutch (all street riding).

Good tips, control and exposure.

I'm a combination of self taught and watching your videos. Finished some technical riding over the 4th on my KTM 890 Adventure R near Frazier Mountain, CA. Nice variety and great landscapes. The KTM was my first motorcycle at age 60 and I only road once as teen. I figured go big. I did some of the technique you showed and the skill set seems to come naturally from my MTB background. Crashed a few times but learned a lot in the process. I should be getting good fast. Thanks for the tips.

Thank you for the video. The third riding error is to wear Gaerne Balance Trial Boots. 😉 As a trials rider, I always have one finger on the clutch as well as one on the brake (on- and offroad).

Please keep making the videos there are people that need it . It’s surprising how much is over looked when your riding, I’m a two brake guy 60 rear 40 front and yes I ride a adv too . I do find your videos very very helpful thank you 🙏 from your Canadian follower

New things to learn. Thank you, Bret, for all your tips in the movies here on the channel. Bengt/Sweden

hello ,guy ,I just want to say thank you very much of this Vedio ,I am a new driver ,my first time drive out for my travel is a 13 days 5000 km one ,and 1000 km of the road is off load ,I did not image the challenge is so hard for me and the plenty hwy in Australia is full of sand and rock and some even big cover hole .I feel so lucky I learned the right hand position and skill ,and it really really help me lot of times and make me feeling so lucky to finish the trip .thanks very much again !!! and wish you good luck . 感谢！！！！

@ Bret Tkacs, fantastic information and training. Thank you. If I may, an additional aspect , if you ride with either one or two fingers resting on top (not pulling) of the front brake, it effectively assists in stabilizing throttle control, as it provides a natural reference, especially important over rough terrain. Stable throttle, more stable bike control. Certainly for me anyway :-). Once again, thanks for your brilliant videos.

Your helmet to hat transition is on point my friend.

I don’t think I would’ve ever thought of my foot position like that while riding off road. My two riding buddies and I are planning on doing several sections of the WA and ID BDR on a summer road trip in a couple months. I’m definitely going to be paying attention with what my feet are doing when we do another training ride next week! I’ve been taking a deep dive in your channel lately and am gaining some VERY useful knowledge! Thanks! 🍻

Excellent tips as always. Thanks Bret.

Well said.. all you teach is immediately useful and helpful .. also a reminder of that for long time riders is very nice.. Thank you from italy

Thank you Brett for another great video with some very good tips. I'm a lot like Tim where I'm a new rider and use more fingers than I should for my brake and clutch. I look forward to more content that you put out from Idaho.

Always ripper training info and a world of experience that you regularly share. I came back to riding after a 33 year absence and even though I raced motocross in my 20's, I knew I needed to refresh my knowledge and get rid of my old bad habits... watching your channel and a few others really helped my 63 year old retired carcass from getting damaged and making my wife very cross :) A great many thanks Brett and also to the guys that help out with your channel. Warm Regards from Oz, Mark

Thank you Bret ji for doing this video. I regularly watch your videos and appreciate !

As you say, a good stand is the foundation for good riding. Thanks for your precice advice and your inspiring channel. Günter from Nürnberg/Germany

My first bike years ago was a 2007 Sportster 883 which has a tiny fuel tank. I trained myself se well to always hug it with my knees that even today riding a 1250 GS Adventure I find I'm still pressing my knees into the tank even though it's huge. Definitely helps keep the feet in, great tips as always Bret

Thanks for the reminder tips and explanations. 👍

Great video, and thanks for the tips. I suffered a spiral fracture last year from skiing and it is no fun at all. Also great to see Kyle from BAM! Looking forward to more content from ID.

You're a really good communicator. Good advice. Thanks

Self taught. I used 2 fingers. That let me lock the front at will, but maintain control. (Street riding) Then did a course, and was taught 4 fingers. I learned the hard way that if you lock the front that you can't recover. I gave the trainers feedback and they just blew me off. I should have realised as the instructor locked the front and crashed demonstrating the skill. He was too badly injured to continue the day. The bikes we were using were Honda CT110 (it was a required course for the motorcycle delivery riders for Australia Post) that had single leading shoe drum brakes. Without doubt the least effective brakes I've ever used by a good margin. Still only needed 2 fingers on the street to lock the front solid.

Another great informative vid! And just a positive remark, I love Tim’s riding kit! Looks awesome with the Tiger 900! Oh and it’s great seeing all types of adv bikes on your channel, Bret! Mixes it up and makes it interesting! Cheers!

I've learned with mountain biking to use two fingers front an rear brake so from then on it was second nature.

Guilty on the feet positioning when in the street and off road but two fingers on brake and clutch unless trail braking then only one. Great video.

Thanks Brett, Learn a lot over the years watching your content! If you're ever in Australia get in touch I'll show you some great tracks we have here!

Point #1 - Even practicing keeping it tight this literally just happened to me a couple weeks ago. Ended up with the foot facing backwards when the foot caught the ground in a low side slide on the trail gravel. Luckily my buddy was there to help right the bike and no permanent damage to the ankle or knee. Point #2 Been following your suggestion for some time.

I learned riding lane splitting in SF - two fingers on clutch and break was naturally evident as the way to go. Took some official courses got hammered to use 4 fingers, "thats something people who teach themselvse and who ride dirt do" was their opinion on finger riding. And yeah I'm totally back to using 2 fingers pretty much immediately after that. I can't speak to track riding, but for most street riding (100% dirt) I think 4 finger clutching and breaking is quite antiquated - its a loss of control for no real gain - maybe if your doing gnarly stop and go and need to conserve hand strength. Best I can tell it is a legacy of older drum-brake era bikes that require more physical strength to operate and your official msf style courses haven't caught up. Now to improve my flipper footing - whichI know i am terrible about.

I went to YellowPine last year. Great stop on the IBDR!

6:18 Your helmet to hat transitions never fail to amaze me

New rider, just ordered my first Adv bike. This was a great video for me, thanks!

I was taught 2 fingers as a teenager, though the bike was older than me and needed a good fistful to stop it. When I finally went for a licence and had a modern bike, I had to consciously use 4 fingers as stipulated for the test. I was reminded of this after the test so I must have still been seen to use only 2 at some point. Now the last 2 bikes have had heavier clutches and my hands are not as strong so it is 3 on the clutch for good control but still anything other than 2 on the brake is odd. Trail braking with one finger but adding another when braking with purpose. Do what works best.

Yup point 1 happend to me. I ended up under my bike and the foot stuck faceing down into the ground and the bike on top very nice situation. I had to wait until the others from the group came to help me.... Thanks for your Videos!

New to the channel and like what I have seen so far. It is no surprise that you see many riders transition to ADV bikes. I rode dirt bikes and motocross as a kid/teen but have been riding street/road and cruiser bikes for many years now, so that is where my head is at. Current bike is a Triumph Rocket 3 GT, which is a tad different than an ADV. Planning to get an ADV to enjoy the dirt roads and back country where I would not dream of taking my bikes. I think it wise to brush up on knowledge and technique before getting the bike and taking a course (or preferably the other way around if a course provides bikes for students). I have ridden a lot but consider ADV different enough to seek quality ADV specific training and attend a course.

I have a chance now to practice a few things that I have learned from watching your videos as I am in Lake Tahoe and riding the National Forest Rd 73 . Paved for 4 miles ish with some spurs that I need to walk first before attempting to tackle them . There's a great connecting Rd called N.F. Rd 6 and that will take you 15 miles to Truckee Ca . That's an awesome ride . One thing to note is that one needs to be aware that someone can be coming from the opposite direction and in turns and thick brushy areas you may not see someone on the trail until they are right on you . I had a UTV guy coming at me but he slowed down and gave me just enough room to get by without hitting the manzanitas . No biggie but something to think about . Can't wait to hit those backroads again .

Great informational video and thanks for the first hand pointers. After having you on my case for a day I'll be sure to keep my feet in and use two fingers!

As always, simple stuff makes a big difference. Great vid my friend. Stay safe!

New subscriber here. No mater how much experience one has always remain teachable. Thanks for the video.

Thanks a lot Brett, this sounds very important and I should have heard this years ago! Stay safe!

Great!!!! I'll try the foot tecnic today

I found that putting "shorty" levers on my 800GS did the trick. Since they are shorter, the ball at the end of the lever is much closer to my middle finger. So I can easily use two fingers because there is some additional leverage provided by contacting the ball while clutching or braking. BTW, I find my self carefully watching your helmet-to-hat switch at the beginning of your videos. I should watch the rest with as much focus!

I modified (lengthened) the clutch arm on my old KLR so that I could comfortably use it with 2 or three fingers. Stock it was just too much for a long day of technical riding, the mod greatly improved feel and allowed for a better experience.

Absolutely amazing and essential tips. I am “re-learning” to ride offroad and I have so much to learn. Thanks for the video. Alessandro 🇧🇷

Thanks. Good advice. I’m glad to say have not ‘flip-footed’ as I’m usually hanging on for dear life!! So I clutch the dear bike as though I’m riding a horse!! I’m a newcomer on a gsa 1250 and guess I have been lucky. Enjoying the videos.

Excellent tip and advice !

I was reminded that foot position alone won’t compensate for crappy boots. Took a serious log to the toe cap of my SG12s last weekend that completely glanced off and aside from a scuff - if that were my old crap fox boots, I’m sure I’d have many broken bones. (It also proved that I keep my toes in as the boot was pushed into the bike rather than ripping it off.)

Great tips. Thank you!

Thanks for the advices!

I know this is an old video, but im a self taught durt ruder from little kid. Brake clutch have always used your method, i also always keep my knees tuckef and my feet tight in. Learned that lesson young hit trees rocks and they taught me to stay rucked. One other thing though I do is I always engage my rear brake a little before my front and drpending on the steepness of the hill, i may use it more because i dont want to end up over tge handlebars. Same at red lights street riders put the right foot down to get on the gears quick. I put the left foot down to hold my rear brake for starting uphill. 😂

absolutely correct thing. So many riders use all fours for clutch & brake and ends up with crash.

One week after watching this I was riding my BMW GSA on a two-track UTV trail, consciously keeping my toes in. I misjudged the proximity of an embankment to the left track I was riding and my foot was pinned between a rock and foot peg. I suffered a Lisfranc fracture of my first four metatarsals but because I had my toes pointed in I did not tear my Lisfranc ligament. Although I am now in the heavy metal club, it could have been much worse. Thanks for all of your videos!

New rider. Appreciate the lessons. Got a 2022 RE Himalayan to ride with my sons on Northern portions of the Continental Divide trail. Bucket list item. 🙂 Liked and subscribed.

Not sure if anyone is still following the comments for this video - but oh well! 😁 Let's just put it out there anyway. I use a somewhat "weird" grip for both throttle and clutch. At least it is not common at all, I've maybe met one or two people in my life who did the same. I've been riding for 27 years, most of these on road, but recently predominantly off road. For the record, I'm mostly riding a 1996 Africa Twin, heavy beast with on electronics, weak brakes and stiff clutch. I have other bikes as well, and had quite a few over the years, but the grip has never changed. So what I'm doing is keeping my index finger around the grip at all times and using the other fingers on the levers. Usually, I would use middle and ring finger on the brake and middle-ring-pinky on the clutch, because it's really heavy. Offroad, I often go to only middle finger on the brake. Anyhow, no matter how many fingers I use on the lever, the index finger will always grip the bar. I have no idea why I do that, it feels natural and I never even thought of another way for many, many years. I think I have pretty good control - but what do I know. What can say is that "over-braking" hasn't caused me much trouble yet. Another thing: If I really need to ride relaxed and concentrated, I actually consciously ride without any fingers on the levers. I know that sounds stupid to most of you - but that way, I ride much smoother and more relaxed. I have trained gripping the levers very quickly from this position and again, it hasn't caused me any trouble yet. I'm not doing this all the time, by no means, only when I feel a little insecure etc and need to consciously relax. The advantage of riding relaxed is more important to me in that case. Anyone out there using this grip? Any thoughts?

Here in Western Australia we have licence assessors (a breed apart) who will fail you if you don't use four fingers on the brake lever ! I have scanned the rule book and cannot find where the use of four fingers is mandated. Go figure their rationale. (Maybe they are so old that they were brought up on drum brakes). Racers, dirt and road, have been using just a few fingers for as long as I can remember. To my mind, riding off road with four fingers on the brake lever has the potential to wrench you hand off the bars if you hit a big enough bump during the process. Great video, and relevant.