Supercross Terms

Published: 04th October 2006

Author: Photo by Sutty

Here's a few terms and explanations that are used in Supercross.

Whoops: A series of closely spaced bumps, similar to moguls in snow skiing.

Doubles: Two jumps that the rider tries to clear.

Triples: Three jumps that the rider tries to clear. They are usually three stories high and 70’ in the air.

Hairpins: Tight U-turns found on the track.

Tabletop Jump: A jump that features a flat top with ramps at either end.

Set-up Jump: A jump that can be set up either as a stair step, or as a small bump placed before a larger jump or tabletop, where the rider uses the first bump to jump to the top of, or over, the following obstacle.

Holeshot: Leading the pack through the first turn.

Roost: Flying dirt kicked up by the rear wheel of motorcycles.

Block Pass: When a rider overtakes another rider by moving into his opponent’s path, effectively blocking the line of travel.

Stuff: A tactic used by riders that squeezes opponents underneath in a turn, occasionally forcing them wide and “stuffing” them into the tuff blocks.

Pinned: Rolling the throttle all the way back for maximum acceleration.

Lipstand: When a rider crashes face-first into the ground.

Endo: An unfortunate occurrence when the motorcycle flips “end over end” with the rider.

Arm Pump: A condition that occurs when a rider grips the handlebars too tightly and the muscles in his forearms become so tense that it is difficult to hold onto and work the handlebars.

Flying W.: An unintentional maneuver that occurs when the rider’s legs are suddenly kicked into the air above the seat while he maintains his hold on the handlebars. This can happen when riders land short on the doubles or miss-time the whoops.

Brake Check: Considered an “underhanded tactic,” this is when a rider momentarily brakes hard in the middle of a slow turn to force the trailing rider to suddenly brake. Caught by surprise, the follower usually loses momentum or rams the leader’s rear tire and falls over.

Whip it: At the end of the race, look for wild aerial antics at the finish line. The winner is likely to whip it after taking the checkered flag, throwing his machine sideways in the air so that the rear wheel whips out to one side and seemingly passes the front. At the same time the rider may wave to the crowd, or take one or both feet off the foot pegs to add to the show.

Nac-Nac: A most impressive maneuver, this act is done while airborne. It requires the rider to take one foot off the foot peg and swing it back over the other side of the bike, like he’s dismounting the bike in mid-air.