Gravel Skills and Equipment: How to be Fast, Safe and in Control plus the ultimate ride checklist

By Frank Pike

Founder and head coach of Beyond Category Coaching

Welcome back Gravel Worlds nation!   I hope you have been productive in your training and being consistent and have been thinking about your nutrition and hydration strategies.  Today, I want to provide information on bike handling skills and some specific drills you can incorporate into your training, so you are prepared and have confidence to roll through any terrain or obstacles plus provide different scenarios of when and how to use these drills.  I will also provide an in-depth checklist for everyday rides as well as your epic Gravel Worlds adventure.  Having the right equipment and supplies can mean the difference between an enjoyable experience or a miserable one.

Like most event organizers, The Gravel Worlds organizers like to think out of the box and have a little fun with their participants, so it’s likely that you will face a combination of any or all surfaces which could include mud, sand, loose gravel or private land that is very rough not just mention potholes and washboards.   Establishing a solid foundation of skills that will help you navigate your bike smoothly through a wide variety of terrain is essential for success on gravel. A deep pocket of gravel skills is the difference between feeling confident or fearful of any obstacles you may face and mastering your bike-handling skills can help you stay upright, avoid crashes, and gain free speed. 

Body Position

How you position your body over the bike and where you distribute your weight are basics for handling your bike, especially when the ground is constantly changing and shifting beneath you. These skills are critical for climbing and descending, as well as riding rough sections of road and trail that may be full of potholes, washboard brake bumps, roots, rocks, and deep ruts etc. 

Descending

The most important body position to get right for gravel descending is the “ready” body position. This is the position you should default to on most fast descents that are steep or long enough where you stop pedaling, as it gives you maximum stability and maneuverability if you need to suddenly change positions. 

To achieve the ready position:

•  Standing with your feet at equal height on the pedals (3 o’clock and 9 o’clock if you picture the crank arms on a clock face), and whichever foot feels most comfortable should be in front.

• Knees should be slightly bent, drop your heels slightly so your calves can relax and soak up vibrations.

• Hips should be hovering over the saddle, your elbows bent, and your eyes will be focusing on the road out in front of you a few yards to 10 yards.

• Hands should be in the drops- I prefer drops vs brake hoods for grip, best control, access to brake lever as well as not as easily getting knocked off the hoods with a hard bump or rough section.

• The ready position on a steep descent: knees and elbows bent, hands in the drops, eyes looking forward, hips above the saddle, feet level, and heels down.

In the ready position, your grip on the bars should be firm, but the rest of your body should be relaxed to help absorb as much impact as possible. The better prepared your body is to absorb impact, the more stable the bike will be over rough terrain. If you are too rigid and stiff on the bike, the handling will be unpredictable, and you will bounce all over the place.  You can think of your arms and legs as your suspension to keep the ride comfortable for you, and smooth and predictable for your bike. This will reduce fatigue and help maintain traction.  Trust your bike, trust your equipment and allow it to do what it was designed for- navigating you over all types of terrain and obstacles.  Think of allowing the bike to float underneath you and allow it to float around  changing its path without fighting it.

Tackling Curves

Bombing downhill in a straight line is one thing, but when you get to a turn with loose gravel in it, you must have the skillset to be able to get through as fast and safely as possible.  There is no one right way for navigating gravel curves with ease, but there are some things to keep in mind that will help set you up for success:

• As you approach the turn, analyze the terrain, and choose your line. Typically, there are 2 well-worn tracks from vehicles that are going to offer more traction and less loose gravel, but this is not always the case. Look for the spot with the greatest possible traction and adjust your speed (coast or brake) if necessary before you start the turn.

• If you have plenty of traction, then you can approach the turn like a sharp turn on a road bike, with your weight on your outside foot pushing and driving into the ground and your inside arm/hand pushing down on the bar (preferable in the drops) with pressure into the turn.  Think of this technique as counter steering.  The pressure on the inside hand is more a gentle pressure like you are pushing your hand thru the drops on the bar.  This is physics 101 and will allow you to maintain your speed and stay on your line as you come thru the turn.

• If you don’t have a lot of traction (loose gravel, sand, or slippery mud), then you want to avoid leaning through the turn. Keep your body more upright and steer your bike through the line of choice. If you need to keep braking through the turn, try to use mostly your rear brake.

• Remember to look where you want to go, and your bike will follow. Don’t lock onto obstacles that you want to miss, or you will end up steering right into them.  

Climbing

 Climbing on gravel is less technical vs descending.  Many gravel climbs can be ridden the same way you would ride a standard road climb. However, as terrain gets steeper and/or looser, maintaining traction becomes an issue. To avoid the feeling of a wheel slipping or having your front wheel lift off the ground, you can utilize a seated ready position that can be used for navigating all sorts of tough uphill terrain. Here’s how to do it:

• Hinge at your hips to lower your upper body, as if to place your chin on your stem, (lean as far as you are comfortable, or your mobility will allow) Drop you elbows to bring your shoulders down; don’t just hang your head. The steeper the hill the easier it will be to get low.

• Slide forward slightly on the saddle. This will help keep more pressure on the bars, keeping front wheel down, while also keeping body weight over the rear wheel to maintain good power.

Getting out of the saddle is also an option on gravel climbs, but you MUST be careful. I like staying seated over loose or steep inclines and getting out of the saddle when you have more traction. If you must get out of the saddle on steep or loose climbs, the best position to maintain is basically a standing version of the climbing ready position: upper body crouched low over the bars hinged at the hips, and your rear end hovering over the saddle. This helps to evenly distribute your body weight over the front and rear wheel so that your wheels don’t slip. Do not jump forward lest you rear tire will start slipping, when you stand come straight up off the saddle, you should feel the nose of the saddle between your thighs or on your rear end.

Braking Fundamentals

Like steep climbs and descents, braking on tricky gravel surfaces is more about traction. Most modern gravel bikes out there are equipped with disc brakes, so being familiar with how they work is key to avoiding any accidents. Disc brakes are very powerful, so you want to avoid grabbing the brakes with too much force or you could end up going over the bars or locking up your rear wheel and sliding.  The best way to get a feel for how disc brakes operate is to practice stopping on a variety of surfaces (gravel, pavement, grass, etc.). Try stopping by grabbing both brakes equally, and then try stopping by only grabbing your front or rear brake. Note how long it takes you to stop for each type of braking, specifically noting how far you must pull the brake lever before your wheels locks up.   Additionally, try braking on the hoods and in the drops, and note how many fingers you must use for each position. You should know that better and more efficient braking occurs from the drops!  Braking like other skills on the bike becomes very natural and almost intuitive once you practice enough.   

Once you are comfortable with operating your brakes in practice, you can shift your focus to some more advanced techniques on gravel. Keep the following in mind and you’ll be in good shape:

• Keep your weight between the wheels when braking. Body position is important for braking. If your weight is too far forward, then you may lose control of the bike.  The inertia of braking will cause the body to want to lurch forward, but you can counteract this by shifting your body further back as you apply more pressure to the brakes.  Simply slide your rear further back on the saddle!

• Do your hardest braking on the surfaces with the most traction. Let’s say there is a long, hard-packed section before a sharp turn, use that section wisely and slow down quickly before you get to the turn. More distance is needed to brake on loose gravel or dirt so brake with less force and use mostly the rear brake and allow the front wheel to track on your line.  Locking up the front wheel in these situations often leads to front wheel wash out.

Eating and Drinking

Two more skills that are often overlooked and require moving on the bike are eating and drinking.  Some riders are very comfortable riding one-handed or even no handed-on gravel and rummaging around in their jersey pockets and grabbing water bottles from bottle cages, but it can be the opposite for others, even terrifying.   Having to slow down or even stop every time you need to eat or drink over the course of your event will trash your goal finishing time faster than you realize. If you struggle riding one-handed on gravel, it is uber important that you practice riding one-handed on unstable surfaces. Practice on grass or a smooth gravel road at first by taking one hand off the bars for ten to fifteen seconds and increase the amount of time as you get more comfortable. Then, add tasks like reaching behind you, reaching down for your bottle, and putting it back without looking.  The final move which would earn you Jedi status is to be able to put on and take off a jacket or vest! 

Different Surfaces

Gravel is a catch-all term that makes for multi-different surfaces.  The successful gravel rider is one who is handy in all terrains. Some of the key surfaces you may encounter when riding gravel are:

Hard-packed dirt:  You can ride this surface almost like you would ride on pavement, but stopping distance is slightly greater and turning speed should be slightly slower. There are few limitations for riding in a straight line on hard-packed surfaces, so put the power down!

Loose over hard: This is loose rock or dirt over a hard surface. This is less predictable, so you’ll want to increase your braking distance, turn a little slower, and turn by leaning a little less and steering a little more.

Sand and mud:  In both sand and mud, the surface will tend to steer the bike for you, forcing you off your line.  You will want to let the front wheel wander and float a little as I described earlier.   Don’t fight the handlebars too much and correct by steering with your hips.  You can achieve this by pointing your head and hips in the direction you want to go. You won’t want to turn by leaning the bike, so it is best to keep the bike more upright to maintain traction. Your stopping distance will increase, and your turning speed will be slower.

Brake bumps (rumble bars) and potholes: Avoid them, if possible, but sometimes hitting them is inevitable, or it may be faster or safer to hit the obstacle instead of swerving around it, especially if riding in a group.    If you know you are going to hit a pothole (and can’t hop over it), make sure to hit it as straight as possible. Assume your ready position, turn your arms and legs into shock absorbers to separate the bike and body.  The bike will track through the pothole with ease if you let your body really absorb the impact. For brake bumps, make sure you have a firm grip on the bars and keep your upper body as relaxed as possible while letting the bike glide up and down over the bumps. Once you are through it, continue with your pedaling and pace as you were.  

Practice, practice, practice

The most successful gravel riders have experience with all these surfaces and understand all these skills. There is no way to master any of these skills over night; you need to practice. Be sure to research your events to get an idea of what types of surfaces you may encounter and figure out a way to simulate these surfaces in your training. If you don’t have gravel nearby, try to think of what surfaces may be available to you. A beach, an EMPTY beach volleyball or playground area can be awesome places to practice your sand riding.  Experimenting in the rain or snow can be great practice for gravel mud riding.  Riding your gravel bike on nearby singletrack trails can be a great way to practice riding on rougher surfaces and mastering steep climbs and descents. A grass field can be another place to practice skills such as braking, cornering, reaching into jersey pockets and shifting between different body positions. Get creative and come up with something that works well for you.

Whether you’re riding for one hour or on an epic 12hr journey it is important to know what to take on rides of various lengths and know the routes.  There are a small number of essentials you should carry on every ride.  The items you add to your endurance ride checklist depends on the length of your planned ride, the type of ride, and the resources that will be available (or not). To keep it relatively simple, we classify 2 ride types:  “everyday rides” and “epic adventures”.

What to take on everyday rides

In addition to food, water, an ID, and probably your phone, here’s what should be on your ride checklist for every ride.

Pump

CO2 cartridges are lighter and quicker, but a pump can be used repeatedly. It is better to be prepared for multiple flats than it is to get air into a tire more quickly once or twice.  The choice is personal on which you want to use.  I personally have gone to 100% cartridges. 

Tubes (and Tubeless Tools)

If you’re running tubed tires, carry at least two tubes. If you’re running tubeless tires, you should still carry 1-2 tubes. Tubeless wheels and tires reduce the risk of flats and can run a greater range of tire pressures. But they are not flat proof!!   If you’re just losing pressure and the tire bead is still seated firmly on the rim and you have extra sealant, you can try adding more sealant through the valve stem (you’ll need a valve core remover) and inflating. When the tire is no longer seated on the rim or has a cut sidewall, you will need to change it roadside.  If you go the latter route, make sure you have the hand strength or tools to remove the tubeless valve stem.

Tire boots and patch kit

A tear in the sidewall of your tire can end your day!  You can’t just put a tube in and go; you must place a non-stretchable material between the tube and the cut. Wrappers from gels or bars work well, or you can use a dollar bill or use a tire boot that has adhesive on one side, so it stays in place. A patch kit is also helpful in case you go through your supply of tubes.

 Tire levers (2)

Metal or plastic- it’s your choice.  Metal can be damaging to carbon rims, but plastic levers can snap in half.  Even if you are an awesome roadside mechanic and can remove and remount your tires without levers, still carry them because they are good for removing mud off tires and frame parts.  Just because you may not need to use them, someone else might and it is always a good thing to help your fellow riding mates.

Multitool 

This is a must have! make sure yours has a chain tool. You may need to remove bent links to piece the chain back together.   If your bike has Torx bolts, those funny looking “star” bolts- make sure you have the right size wrench in your multitool or carry individual Torx wrenches as needed.  

What to take on epic cycling adventures (4hrs + or more remote routes)

When your derailleur hanger snaps off in the middle of nowhere your choices are limited. You’re either going to make your bike into a single speed or walk, unless of course you are carrying an extra derailleur hanger…

Epic endurance cycling events like Gravel Worlds, Unbound, or the Mid-South and a host of others all have remote areas and aid stations can be few and far between. If your bike breaks you either need to be able to fix it with what you have on you, settle in for a long walk, or call for a ride.   Essential tools and replacement parts are crucial to your ultra-endurance ride checklist, but there’s also a balance between being prepared and being weighed down by too much stuff.  Therefore, you need to know before you go: know how technical and rough the course is.  Are there any minimum maintained roads that will be worse than others? Are there sectors that cover private property? -this can be some of the roughest, bumpiest, and worse sections of the course.  Has there been rain lately in the area that might cause more washboards vs normal?  Knowing this info can help determine the extent of your checklist. 

In addition to the everyday items above, the endurance ride checklist of gear below will get you back on your bike in most situations. This is more stuff than most competitors carry, and most would rather be a little lighter vs hauling so much gear.  For those who prioritize finishing over winning, and who are going to be out on course far longer than the top competitors, the added weight is a small price to pay for peace of mind and the ability to get yourself rolling again. 

Hydration pack

The more remote the course and the greater the distance between aid stations, the more you need to rely on hydration packs in addition to bottles. If the wind shifts or you have a mechanical your time to the next aid station will likely increase which means you need more water and supplies.   Hydration packs also provide room to carry some of the gear below or extra nutrition.

Quick links (2)

You’re not going anywhere without a chain, and if yours breaks a quick link is the best and easiest way to put it back together. You may need to use your chain tool to remove damaged links, so afterward be careful about shifting into your easiest gear, as the repaired chain may be too short now. Quick links are so small that you can carry them in your saddle bag for all rides and leave them in there permanently.  

Duct Tape and or Zip Ties

Who remembers that show from the 80’s called MacGyver? If you do, you know exactly where I am going with this.  Tape and zip ties are all about getting into MacGyver mode.  Each can be used in creative ways.  They can hold a tire together, tape makes for a great tire boot, zip ties can hold broken parts together again.  The possibilities are endless when you are out in the middle of nowhere and you get your MacGyver on!  The goal is just to get to the next aid station or somewhere more accessible.  Wrap some tape around a piece of cardboard to store the tape in your bag. Zip Ties can be placed easily in bags or packs.

Other Misc Gear: Again, most will never need the following items, but this provides a more complete list if ever needed. These items would be good for mulit-day bike packing type adventures.

Derailleur hanger

This is another very light, very small piece of equipment that could save your day. 

Set of extra brake pads

A set of pads is small and weighs next to nothing but will be extremely helpful if you end up needing them.  Conditions that are wet and muddy can cause havoc on pads and wear them out or prevent them from working at all.  

Shifting Hardware

Derailleur cables, a long tube wire for Shimano Di2 or an extra battery for SRAM eTap.  If you encounter shifter problems, you want to get the rear derailleur working again to get how to the finish line or a safer location.  

Tires

I know this seems crazy, but I have heard and read of situations where riders completely blow out or tear a tire beyond repair.  I consider tires on the extreme side for the checklist, but important to mention nonetheless, especially for those adventures that are not supported at all or in very remote areas that never route you thru a single town.

Chain or chain links

If you snap a chain and have a power link and chain tool you can get going again and get to the next aid station. But if your chain is more damaged take advantage of the opportunity to change it out. This is also a good time to remind you to refresh drivetrain parts before major events.

Chain Lube

This can be carried with you if desired.   Usually not needed for single day events but more for multi day events like bike packing.  If you are on a dusty course, ride through a rainstorm, or ride through a lot of water, you will want to re-lube your chain.  This will help prevent failure as well.

Extra clothing

Often reserved for multiday events or events that offer a drop bag service.  Items to include are cycling shorts and jersey, warm gloves, a skullcap, long sleeved jersey, rain jacket, knee warmers, and arm warmers.  You never know when weather will turn on you.  

Whew! That was a lot of info and I hope you enjoyed it.  Stay connected with me at BCC or email me directly at frank@beyondcategorycoaching.com  with any questions you may have.  See you all soon in Lincoln for the 2022 Gravel Worlds.  

Ride.  Fight.  No Surrender!