We’ve all been there before. You’re having a great ride down a new trail and you run into a long rock garden. This sight can sometimes be very intimidating for both new and experienced riders. After this article, you should be able to ride rock gardens like a pro.
Steps to Ride a Rock Garden:
- Choose the right line or path that matches your skill level.
- Maintain a firm grip with a relaxed body posture.
- Distribute your weight evenly across the bike and use your limbs as additional shocks as you go down.
- Use your speed to guide your momentum from gap to gap.
- Some rocks have grip, others do are more slick. Look for signs to tell the difference and adjust your riding style as you go.
What is a rock Garden?
In trail riding, a rock garden is a section of a trail that is covered by rocks. Rock gardens require different techniques when riding them and can have different levels of grip or slickness depending on your area. When it comes to riding rock gardens like a pro, anticipation and technique are key.
Line Choice - Start Small and the work up
Whether you’re racing or casually going down a trail with some friends picking a line or creating a mental path down the trail is essential to riding down rock gardens successfully. There are potentially hundreds of lines a biker could choose to take as they go down an obstacle or trail. By picking the right line, you can make riding easier, faster, and overall more enjoyable.
When choosing a line you should consider your skill level, the bike you are using, and the ultimate outcome you are wanting. Are you looking to go down a trail for the first time? Perhaps you’re wanting to do a speed run? Or possibly wanting to try something more difficult? A great tip for you is to do a test run and pull over on the side of upcoming obstacles and plan out your line. Many mountain bike racers will do this in test runs and know their lines before the race. This definitely makes their lines more efficient and results in quicker times.
When picking a line on a trail, there are usually several lines a rider can take. However, a rider should try to mentally create 3 lines to potentially follow. A cutout line, a smooth line, and a direct line. A cutout line is a path that will completely forego the obstacle. The smooth line is one that goes through the easier and smoother parts of the obstacle. While the direct line will be the one that goes straight through the obstacle and is usually the quickest and most difficult.
As you practice and improve your riding skills, you can move to the more direct paths and try more challenging lines. However, it’s important to always have a cutout path so you can bail on the line if the rock garden becomes too difficult.
Identifying and picking lines while going down a trail can be tricky-especially with speed. Whether you are riding an unfamiliar trail or looking to ride a little bit quicker, be constantly aware of your surroundings. Keep your head up, look ahead on the trail, and look for features you can roll over and maintain your speed. A great way to get better at picking lines is to ride on familiar trails and practice picking different lines. The more you practice the better you’ll be at identifying lines and riding over rock gardens.
Utlize Proper Technique
When riding down the rock garden, it’s important to consider how your body is positioned and how you guide your bike down the path. You will want to be in a more aggressive position – commonly known as the ready position or attack position. This will include the following:
- Leveling your pedals and having equal weight on each.
- Bent knees and elbows.
- Upper body leaning just behind handlebars.
- Hips back and rear off the seat
- Fingers on brakes ready to slow down when needed.
- Head up and eyes looking forward – you should be looking ahead about 15 to 20 ft. for the next obstacles. Your bike tends to follow where your eyes look.
By being in the ready position you will have more control of your bike and be able to make quick decisions as you go down the trail. This will help prevent mistakes and help control your weight from shifting too far forward and potentially causing you to high center and wipe out.
While it’s important to be in a ready position, try to ride loosely. A common mistake that many riders make is having a death grip on the handlebars. As you go down the rock garden, you will want a firm grip, but allow your limbs to remain loose. This will allow your legs and knees to engage and act as additional shocks as you go down.
Ride with confidence
When it comes to riding a tough section or rock garden, confidence is key. Don’t let the trail intimidate you. Stay positive and follow the line you previously mapped out. Additionally, taking the obstacle a little slower is a great trick to get better if this is your first time going down the trail or if you’re working on improving your skills.
Speed can be your friend when you’re going down rock gardens. This can be counterintuitive, but utilizing your speed to carry you through a rocky section can make rock gardens easier and much more enjoyable. This doesn’t mean taking the section at full speed, but rather allow your momentum to carry you through from gap to gap.
Not all rocks are created equal
As you explore new trails and take on new rock gardens, you’ll find that each rock obstacle and the terrain are different. Some rocks have a lot of grip while others are slick. Learning to read signs while you’re riding is an essential skill to have as you take on new rock gardens and trails.
How to ride up a Rock garden
When climbing up a rock garden there are a couple of different tips and techniques that you will want to do to get the most out of your bike.
Adjust your Seat Position
When climbing, it’s best to position your seat where your foot is at the bottom of the pedal stroke. Essentially, your knee will be slightly bent and you will reach 80-90 percent leg extension. This will allow you to have maximum efficiency while pedaling and give you the most power as you make your climb.
Body Position
Keep your body forward but your weight planted in the saddle. What I mean by this is you’ll want to bend your arms to keep your upper body over the front to keep it from lifting. But so your butt is planted in the saddle. Keep your weight low and keep the grip on the rear tire – hopefully avoiding those avoiding rear spins.
Where to Look
Similar to riding downhill, always be looking ahead 10-15 feet. Be sure to keep your head up and forward as you follow your line. By continually scanning the rock garden, you can choose where to best go in advance and not just ride into a section that you’re not going to be able to make it up.
How to Use Your Gears
One big tip that can greatly improve your climbing ability is to be mindful of your gears. Be sure to anticipate what is coming up on your ride and adjust accordingly. One common mistake made by beginners is to forget about changing their gears throughout the trail. If you’re approaching a steep climb, shift to an easier gear at the base. Once you’ve completed the climb switch back to more normal gear. Sometimes the rolling terrain and variation in rock gardens can be tricky. However, with practice, shifting gears will become second nature.
The Best Setup for riding over rocks
Lastly, let’s talk about bike setup. The primary focus will be tires and wheels as they’re going to take the brunt of the force and hopefully be your only contact with the ground.
Tire Choice
When picking the best type of tire for a rock garden I recommend a downhill or enduro styling casing tire. By having a thicker casing on the tire, you ensure your tire isn’t going to deform as easily and it will hold its shape nicely. These types of tires are also going to be a lot more tear-resistant and the thicker sidewalls are going to be a little bit stronger and help you out in the long run.
Another thing to consider when selecting a tire is the rubber compound. I would recommend going for a really soft rubber compound. Yes, you are going to sacrifice rolling speed and rolling resistance is going to be a little tougher. But the softer rubber compound is really going to mold and grip that rock. Ultimately, giving you the best chance of getting through that slippery rock garden.
Tire inserts can be a biker’s best friend when going down a rock garden. I highly recommend using them for both your front and rear tires. An insert is going to help prevent your rims from getting destroyed by rocks when you have hard hits. Tire inserts will also help stop rocks from piercing holes through the tire. When your tire hits a rock and compresses, the insert is going to give you a little extra cushion and protect it.
Tire Pressure
For the best results, I would strongly recommend going with firmer pressures than usual. Having your bike pressure higher is much better to ensure that any sharp impacts aren’t going to damage the tire or end that ride prematurely. A recommended range for bike pressure is 25 PSI – 28 PSI. By having a higher tire pressure and using tire inserts, you can ensure you’re doing your best to protect those tires.
Wheel Choice
Wheel choice can be crucial. There are two main choices when picking a wheel – carbon or aluminum. There are pros and cons when choosing between carbon and aluminum. If you plan to regularly go down rock gardens or if you’re a racer, the aluminum wheel will generally be the better and safer option. Aluminum wheels can be fixed -sometimes even trailside – if you bend them or hit a big rock. The weakness of a carbon wheel, especially if it’s not paired with a tire insert, is that it will probably crack when you hit it really hard on a rock.
Another big difference between carbon and aluminum wheels is the compliance or flex in the wheel. The carbon wheel is much stiffer, whereas the aluminum has a lot more give or flexes in the tire. So when you’re hammering through these rock garden sections, an aluminum wheel can actually be more comfortable and have more durability.
