FAQ

In this section, Lu Furber, Dirt Series Program Coordinator, provides answers to your frequently asked questions.

Click on any question or "plus" button to show the answer and any "minus" button to hide the answer.

If you find your question answered here, great. If not, please just send it in to us, and we’ll answer it for you personally.

Registration

Do I have any options if the camp I want to take is already full?

Once a camp fills up, we start a waitlist. Use the camp schedule or the registration page to access it.

The waitlist stays open until the day before the camp. The registration page says camp full / waitlist. This means that the camp is full and that the wait list is open.

While the ideal of course is to get a guaranteed spot, if you're okay with being contacted at the last minute, or in other words if can hold your weekend open just in case, your chances of getting in off the wait list are actually quite good.

Do you offer discounts for returning participants?

We don't. Well over 50% of our camp participants are either returning participants or referred by those who have participated before. Discounting these registrations would be very similar to just changing our camp pricing.

That said, we love seeing returning participants, and finding out both how much they have progressed and how much we can help them progress still.

We do offer group discounts for groups of eight or more, and a fixed number of scholarships for those who couldn’t otherwise afford the camps at all. Please contact Lu Furber at info@dirtseries.com for more information.

Logistics

What time does the camp start and where do I meet the group?

Most camps start at 8:30AM. Whistler and Calgary camps start at 8AM. All camps start at the host shop. If you need directions, please feel free to click on their link on your particular camp location page.

What time does the camp end?

On Sat the riding ends around 5:00PM; there is then an in store session which runs from approximately 6:00PM to 8:00PM.

On Sunday the riding finishes at approximately 5:00PM. If you need to get home and don't think that the finish time will allow you to do that, please talk to us in advance so that we can try to make arrangements to accommodate you.

What if the camp involves driving from the shop to the skill and riding areas, and I don't have a car?

All you need to do is get yourself to the shop in the morning. We'll arrange carpools with other participants from there.

Will the camp still go ahead if it’s raining?

Yes, it will. Barring a natural disaster, we will be out there, ready to have a fantastic time. Take it from past participants, once the skill sessions begin, you practically forget it’s even raining. That said, be sure to bring appropriate clothing so that you’re as dry, warm, and comfortable as possible.

Are the co-ed camps still taught by women?

Yes, they are, with some male coaches added in for good measure. Check out their bios in the coaches section.

Do you have any recommendations for lodging on-site?

Yes. We include a list of suggestions in the details for each camp. Just click on the name of a specific camp on the camp schedule. If the information’s not there yet for the particular camp you’re interested in, please trust that it will be soon. We’re working on it as you read.

Skill Levels and Disciplines

How do you determine my skill level and decide which group I ride with during the weekend?

We ask you to fill out a fairly extensive skill and interest questionnaire when you first register for the camp. This gives us a good idea of where you're at with your riding, and what you're most excited to learn.

If your skills and interests change significantly between the time you register for the camp and the actual camp date, you have the opportunity to submit another participant questionnaire as an update.

We use all this information to place you in a group, and ideally, this is the group you'll feel happiest in throughout the camp weekend. If, however, you find that you'd prefer to be riding and learning with a different group, we'll switch things for you.

If a camp offers cross-country and lift-assisted downhill options, do I get to choose between those too?

Yes. In these situations you can choose to spend both days riding the cross-country trails accessed from the valley, both days riding the downhill trails in the bike park, or one day in each area.

There are more and more options in our program all the time, so if there’s a particular style, level, or skill set you want to focus on, now is your chance.

Could it be possible that I am too much of a beginner for this camp?

Very unlikely. In order to enjoy the camp, all you need to be able to do is ride a bike comfortably on bumpy gravel terrain, shift your gears, and use your brakes. Our step-by-step approach and ultra-encouraging coaches will take it from there, and probably teach you a year’s worth of skills in one weekend.

There is always a great group of beginner riders at every camp, and since we organize all the participants according to ability level and interest, you’ll be in good company. The list of skills you can look forward to learning is long. Here are some to start you off:

(1) A dynamic on-bike body position: neutral position, ready position, fore-aft movement and lateral movement.

(2) Front wheel lifts: getting up a curb and over a log with ease.

(3) Technical braking and descending: getting the most out of your brakes, choosing your lines, and making descents of all kinds more than manageable.

(4) Climbing: key techniques to minimize your exertion and maximize your success.

(5) Tight cornering: making your way through switchbacks and twisty spaces.

(6) Straight line riding: all the secrets for narrow trails, bridges, and even teeter-totters if you’re so inclined.

Beginner riders have a fantastic time at our camps. If you’re thinking of attending, you should.

Will this camp be challenging enough if I'm an advanced rider looking to focus on freeride and downhill skills?

If you want to focus exclusively on advanced freeride and downhill skills then you would be best coming to one of the camp locations that excels in that style of riding.

The first that comes to mind is Whistler, since there’s a whole downhill park to work in, and coaches involved who have won races and earned freeride titles on its very trails. The Winter Park camp is also based in a bike park, and we are working on incorporating bike park options into the Park City camp as well.

Locations like Santa Cruz, Los Gatos, Calgary, Cumberland and Hood River can also work really well since there are some fantastic technical descents, and a large amount of advanced trail options overall. Be prepared to do some pedaling though.

Here are a couple of the advanced sessions offered:

(1) Line selection, maintaining traction, creating fluidity and managing steep rock faces and successive technical drops.

(2) Gap jumps, wall rides, tricks, and incorporating air into more technical trail environments.

That said, we bring enough stunts and related teaching aids to all locations to be able to put together a labyrinth of planks, a-frames, and teeter-totters, create high speed cornering challenges, and set up wheelie drop and manual drop ramps at varying heights too. We’ve actually worked on refining these stunts recently, and are excited for the extra levels we’re now able to teach.

So, if you’re at the peak of the pyramid and wanting the most challenging conditions around, click on the name of a specific camp in the schedule and pick a location that matches your preference. Still have questions: email us and we’ll be happy to help.

I'm an avid cross-country rider, but would like to get faster and more comfortable in technical terrain - going down drops, managing steep descents, clearing obstacles. Is this camp for me?

Yes. There are heaps of options in between the beginner and advanced scenarios above, and often those with lots of miles under their tires are super quick to pick up new techniques.

We’ve had expert and pro level cross-country racers come to our camps and find that developing their technical skills allows them to shave all kinds of time off their rides. Plus, it’s fun for anyone to learn new skills, and incredibly useful too.

Equipment

What kind of bike do I need to bring?

You need to bring a mountain bike that fits you and is in good working condition, that is to say with gears and brakes working, bolts tightened, and recently checked over by a certified bike mechanic.

Ideally you'll want to be on a dual suspension bike, but having just front suspension will work just fine too. Having a quick release on your seat post is also really useful, as it makes raising and lowering your saddle during the skill sessions and rides that much easier. If you don't have one already, you might want to consider getting one before camp, or buying one on the first morning. Of course an adjustable seat post like the crankbrothers one is the most wonderful option of all.

If you have two bikes at home and are trying to decide between them, bring the one that is best suited to the skills you most want to work on.

That said, if you're planning to bring a downhill bike that would be very heavy to ride uphill, you might want to attend one of the camps that that has lift accessed mountain biking as one of the options.

For more information on the different characteristics of the different camps, click through the location pages. For more information on getting your bike ready for the weekend, check out the section titled 'What to Bring'.

Do I need a full-face helmet?

It depends on the camp you’re taking, the skills and rides you’d like to do at that camp, and then your personal choice (except in the following case).

We require full-face helmets for our more advanced bike park skill sessions and rides. We strongly recommend them for other bike park riding, North Shore style riding, and advanced downhill and freeride focused riding of all kinds.

If you have a full-face helmet, bring it with you. If you’d like to rent one on-site, click on the bike shop link associated with your camp and double check that one will be available for you. We'll have a limited number of Bell Drop helmets to demo. If you'd like to use one, it's best to email us about it in advance.

If you bring a full-face with you, it’s helpful to bring a cross-country or half-shell helmet as well. Sometimes you might choose to be in skill sessions that are lower risk (and higher heat) like bunny hops and track stands, and you’ll be happy to have that lighter helmet around.

The "what to bring" section suggests flat pedals. I ride with clipless (SPD) pedals all the time, and feel that I won’t ride as well without them as I’m used to being "attached" to my bike. Should I really switch my pedals and shoes for the weekend?

Funny. I had this very same question the first time someone suggested I use flat pedals to learn a new skill.

Basically, if you’re super comfortable with your clipless pedals, so much so that you never have to think about getting in or out, you don’t have to use flats for the camp.

However, flats really do make some skills much easier to learn. For example, when learning wheelie drops you want to make sure you can get off the back of your bike quickly, and when learning to ride on elevated planks you want a wider platform under your feet for balance and, again, the opportunity to get off your bike super fast.

On the flip side, flats make technical climbs slightly more difficult and long rides a bit more tiring, as there isn’t the same exact efficiency involved. What we suggest you do is put a pair of flat pedals on your bike, set yourself up with a pair of flat soft-soled shoes, and practice on them a few times before the camp.

Depending on how comfortable you feel, and what skills you most want to learn, you can then decide to: a) use flats for the entire camp, b) use them for just the morning skill sessions and switch back to clipless for the afternoon rides, or c) not use them at all.

Note 1: if you plan to switch pedals at lunchtime, it’s a good idea to bring a pedal wrench with you as well.

Note 2: If you haven’t already read through the ‘what to bring’ section, please head over there and take a look through it now. There are some important points on shoe / pedal compatibility, so important that we’re tempted to type them out here again too. We’re going to trust you to look at them there though (and promise they’ll make a huge difference in your camp success).

What demo equipment will you have available at the camp?

We’ll have a great selection of cross-country, all-mountain, and freeride Trek demo bikes at all the camps. We’ll also have downhill bikes at the locations with bike park components – Whistler, Winter Park, and potentially Park City too.

We’re just sorting out the specific sizes and models of the bikes now, but can tell you already that they’ll include the Lush, Remedy, Slash and Session. If you want to get details on any of these bikes, head on over to the Trek Bikes website. It's super complete and also super easy to use.

All the coaches have fallen in love with their Trek bikes, and we’re already excited for you to get to try them out yourself. The bikes will all have Fox Racing Shox suspension too.

We’ll also have the following products to demo:

Crankbrothers: flat pedals, a few sets of clipless pedals, and two of their new adjustable seat posts.

Race Face: leg, arm, and knee armor in a variety of sizes; women’s specific armor at all camps, and additional unisex armor at co-ed camps.

Bell: cross-country and bmx helmets and a limited number of downhill helmets as well.

On top of that, if your coach is wearing or using something you're interested in, just ask and they'll be happy to show it to you, talk to you about it, and give you whatever information you might find helpful.

How do I go about arranging to use the demo equipment if I’m interested?

It's smart to get in touch with us to reserve demo equipment in advance. However, if you don't do that and only decide to try something once you get to camp, it makes sense to check in with us, as there is often extra equipment available.

If you'd like to reserve a Trek demo bike, please email Lu Furber, the Dirt Series Program Coordinator, with the following information:

• the camp at which you'd like to demo
• either the specific bike or the type of bike you're interested in
• your height and weight
• the day -- either Saturday or Sunday -- on which you'd prefer to demo


The policy with demo bikes is to give as many participants as possible the chance demo once, before giving any one participant the chance to demo twice. In other words, if you use a demo bike for one day, you’ll be able to use one for the other day only as long as there isn’t someone else who hasn’t yet had the opportunity waiting already “in line”.

If you aren't planning on bringing a bike to camp at all, check in with Lu to see if she has an idea of the demand on the demo program for your particular weekend. If it looks like she'll only have a demo available for you for one of the days, she’ll offer you some rental suggestions.

If you'd like to reserve armor, pedals or a helmet, please email Lu the following information:

• the camp at which you'd like to demo
• the items you'd like to demo
• related size information
• whether you'd like this equipment for one or both days

Please note that we can’t reserve equipment for you if we don’t know which size to reserve. Please be sure to send us complete information. Thanks.

With armor, pedals and helmets, we're usually able to make equipment available to participants for both camp days. With the adjustable seat posts, we usually have to limit use to just one day per person.

All this equipment is fantastic, and we’re really happy to be able to offer it as part of our program.