How to Climb Loose Gravel Trails Without Spinning Out

If you've ever tried to climb a loose gravel section on your mountain bike, you know how frustrating it can be. Your rear tire spins out, you lose all momentum, and sometimes you're walking before you even realize what happened. It used to throw me off all the time—especially when I didn’t expect it. After years of riding in all kinds of conditions, here’s what I’ve learned works best for me when climbing on gravel.

Why Gravel Climbs Are So Tricky

Gravel doesn't give you the grip you're used to on hard-packed dirt. When you stand up or mash the pedals, your back tire can spin instead of bite. And if you grab too much front brake while trying to slow down or adjust, your front wheel might start to skid and slide, throwing off your balance.

The key is keeping traction and momentum without doing anything sudden.

What Works Best for Me

These are the small things that have made a big difference in how I handle gravel climbs:

• Stay seated. I try not to stand unless I absolutely have to. Staying seated keeps your weight over the rear wheel so it doesn’t break loose.

• Smooth pedal strokes. Instead of mashing the pedals, I keep it consistent and even. The smoother you are, the less likely you are to spin out.

• Find the cleanest line. Even if the trail is loose overall, there’s usually a more packed or smoother line—like where other riders have gone. That’s where I aim.

• Don’t overreact. If I start to lose a little grip, I try not to panic or shift suddenly. Just backing off a tiny bit can help you regain traction.

These tips won’t make the climb effortless, but they’ll help you stay moving without slipping out every time.

Mistakes I’ve Made

There’s no shame in messing up—most of what I’ve learned came from trial and error. A few things I’ve done wrong over the years:

• Standing up too early. It puts weight forward and off the rear tire—exactly what you don’t want on gravel.

• Jerky pedaling. It’s easy to get anxious and start hammering the pedals, but that almost always makes things worse.

• Trying to muscle through it. Sometimes I used to just try and power through, but that doesn’t work on loose terrain. Technique matters more than strength here.

Final Thoughts

Every trail is different, and you might find certain things work better for you—but these tips have helped me climb gravel sections a lot more confidently.

If you want to see this in action, I walk through some of this in today’s YouTube video on riding sand and gravel. And if you’re working on your jumping skills too, I’ve put together a full MTB Jumping Guide that covers everything from takeoff to landing. It’s available here on Gumroad, and it helps support the channel too.

Thanks for reading—and ride smart out there.