Jumping

From MTB Repair and Skills

I'm no expert on big air mountain bike jumping but I do know this: it's important to land on your back tire with your front tire off the ground. This will help you avoid the endo.

EDIT by Bombardier:

Landing a little bit rear-wheel first is okay... for small jumps and drops.

However, this is a BAD thing on larger jumps & drops!

Always try to land evenly on both wheels. The reason for this is, when landing a larger jump or drop heavily rear-wheel first, the front wheel will then slam to the ground. Unless the bike has a long-travel fork (7"+) that can soak up such a landing, it will usually destroy the rider's front-end control and then throw said rider to the ground. It's also very hard on a bike's fork, frame, and wheels. This effect is magnified if landing on a moderate to steep transition, as the distance the front wheel has to travel before contacting the ground increases. Also taken into consideration is that the bike & rider is still moving forward, and the front wheel needs to be on the ground to steer. Landing evenly will allow a rider to quickly adjust trajectory if an obstacle appears suddenly, or the rider is carrying too much speed and overshot the landing. If a rider is in the air and notices a front or rear wheel dipping, braking either the front or rear wheel while still airborne will drop their respective ends. It's like fine-tuning a landing without wildly trying to throw body-weight to correct for a bad take-off. This is an advanced move, and should only be attempted once a rider is comfortable doing smaller tabletops and drops.