Nail it! - Information

For 1 - 8 riders       from £30pp

The progression from Ride it! this course takes the basic skills and develops them further.

Who are you?

You have been riding for a while now and have been riding blue and red trails, although you sometimes feel uncomfortable on some of the more technical reds. You're getting started jumping but are a bit wobbly especially on landing, and your drop-offs are okay but you lack confidence. You don't venture off trails much yet but you have an interest in exploring hill and mountaintrails.

what are you riding?

You're riding a trail bike, perhaps a burly hard-tail, possibly a full-suspension bike. You probably have over 130mm travel in your fork, and you have tires probably 2.2 or more inches wide. You have effective brakes.

where will we be riding?

We'll be based at a trail centre, riding some blue trails, and some sections of red and also perhaps a little 'off piste'. We may spend a little time in the car park practicing skills in a safe and comfortable environment, although we will also spend time on some dedicated jump lines.

how physical will it be?

The day will utilise several parts of the area you are in, and so there will be some riding between these spots. You will be encouraged to practice skills continually throughout the day. The total distance travelled can be less than 15km in the day, but you will work hard.

Be prepared to travel within the trail centre to get to the best spots for the skills, and there is likely to be up to 300m of ascent in the day as we will be practicing on several descents

how technical will the riding be?

You should expect to be asked to ride some red features after training and skill development, and some blue trails at speed. Almost (if not) all features ridden will be rollable, but some of them will not be straightforward.

what do you need to bring?

  • Helmet- in good condition under 3 years old
  • Bike - in good repair - (get in touch if you need to hire a bike) ideally with flat pedals
  • Small personal first aid kit
  • Lunch and Water
  • Appropriate clothing for the weather forecast
  • Small repair kit:
    • Pump
    • Spare tube (even if you are tubeless)
    • Small multi-tool
    • Spare Chain link or two
    • Spare rear derailleur hanger specific to your bike

session specific content

We'll start with a brief kit check, and then go into a brief bike check, then look at the following skills:

  • Body Position - revision - looking at Manualling technique
  • Dropoffs
  • Basic Bunny hopping
  • Pumping Revision - looking at timing
  • Getting air
  • Navigating steeper trail features
  • Line choice
  • Flow

By the end of the session, riders should understand the importance of good body position in the basics of getting air. They should understand when to get more and when to get less air on the trail, and how to get more or less. Comfort in the air will be increased, and landings will be more in control. Riders will have an understanding of some of the basic principles of going 'off piste' on steeper terrain, and will have navigated terrain requiring them to use their new found good body position, as well as their drop-off and manualling techniques in a real environment.