I met Ryan Bratton at the 2022 North American Trials Championship (NATC) during the Bentonville Bike Fest. Watching him riding the expert sections of the course on a mountain bike blew my mind! Sure I’d seen Danny MacAskill and Ali C doing it on YouTube, but it’s another thing altogether seeing it in person.
As you probably already know, trials is a fairly niche sport, and the latest competition style trials bike geometries look… kinda freaky. Don’t get me wrong, I love my comp bikes, but they aren’t necessarily the best way to get people interested in actually learning to ride trials because it’s so unrelatable and esoteric. What I love about Ryan’s riding is that since it’s on the mountain bike, it’s more approachable. He rides a “real” bike. While people might find it hard at first to see themselves riding at Ryan’s level, they can definitely relate to the bike and see how the trials skills translate to mountain biking. (Ironically, I actually wrote this introduction before reading Ryan’s interview…)
I recently had the opportunity to watch Ryan compete again at the 3rd annual trials competition hosted at the Arrowhead Bike Farm in Fayetteville, WV. After you read this interview, check out the video highlights from the expert category of that competition!
How long have you been riding bike trials?
Off and on for almost 20 years
How did you discover bike trials and how did you get started?
My dad and I got into mountain biking when I was about 15 years old. I would always try to ride through riverbeds or up and down steep inclines. For some reason I was attracted to obstacles more than covering miles. One day my dad and I were driving through Springdale and Jeremy Van Shoonhoven was doing a demo at a business, we stopped and watched Jeremy effortlessly hop from one stack of pallets to the next. I had no idea trials existed before this point, but now I was hooked and had a goal to work towards. It would be years before I got my first trials bike (a used Planet X Zebdi) but I practiced on my mountain bike constantly. Some of my first exposure to being around other trials riders was at Eureka Springs Fat Tire Festival (nationals was even there once) and the trials comp at Devil’s Den mountain mountain bike championships. I took over setting up both of those comps but stopped after several years due to lack of interest. The comp at Arrowhead Bike Farm was a great experience and reminded me of those rider focused comps where trials was the main event and not just a tack on.
How would you define/describe “bike trials” in your own words to someone who never heard of it?
Parkour on bikes
What type of bike trials riding do you prefer (style, obstacle types, moves, solo/group, etc.) and where do you like to ride?
I love natural rocky terrain, skinnies, and sometimes urban. I find I have the most fun riding during our NWA Bikes Trials group rides. Everyone has a different approach and strength so watching other people can give you new ideas to try.
Why do you ride bike trials and what keeps you motivated to keep riding?
Motivation comes and goes but I try to keep myself excited about trials by learning new weird ways to approach the same old obstacles or seeking out totally new obstacles and seeing if I can clean it the first time.
What’s the bike trials scene like near you? Are there other riders? Group rides? Comps?
We have had a few riders come and go over the years but generally our group has been between 4-8 riders of the past 10 years.
How do you manage fear when doing scary lines?
I have backed off of pushing myself to go as big as possible, I have been hurt a few times over the years and had to learn a few times the hard way:
Never try new moves in an area where there is no safe place to bail. This might mean hunting for the perfect size wall in an urban setting instead of trying an up to front for the first time in a river bed full of rocks that want to hurt you.
Small injuries can become big injuries later in life. If you want to enjoy riding bikes for a long time, give those seemingly small injuries plenty of time to heal.
Who are your bike trials ‘heroes’ and/or influences?
The rider I always enjoy watching is Chris Akrigg.
What are your perspectives on the trials biking scene in general and in the US in particular?
Unfortunately I don’t think trials will ever be big in the US. There are tons of easier ways to have fun.
What would you like to see happening in the US with respect to bike trials?
I would like to see mountain bikes skills parks incorporate mountain bike, beginner and sport level obstacles.
What advice would you give to someone who wants to start bike trials or has just started?
Don’t worry about getting on the back wheel. This is the biggest mistake I see newer riders focusing on. Until the gaps you are doing are bigger than wheelbase, most obstacles can be done with two wheel moves.
Any interesting / funny / crazy bike trials stories or experiences you can share?
One time a local mtb personality posted a wheelie challenge on social media. So I did a 3 mile wheelie and had a friend help film it, but I think I hurt the dude’s feelings cause he ignored me, haha!
Anything else about bike trials that you’d like to share?
I think comp style bikes can actually be a barrier to entry for new riders, they can be hard to get a hold of and feel very odd for normal riding. The fact is any mountain bike with decent brakes and a bash guard can be used for obstacle riding. Unless you are riding expert or higher level obstacles a trials bike actually makes beginner and sport level moves harder. The negatives of a mountain bike is they can be heavier and more parts to possibly break. Street trials bikes or even old school trials frames built with modern parts can be a great compromise.
I spent plenty of time on a GU comp style trials bike. When I started riding obstacles on full suspension mountain bikes I had a Kona Kadabra then a Transition Scout and my favorite was the Orbea Rallon. More recently I have been on hardtail mountain bikes, a Nukeproof Scout and currently a Transition Throttle. One of my favorite things about having a do it all bike is coming across new obstacles on a trail ride:
How do people find you online? (i.e., YouTube, web, social media, etc.)
Search “NWA Bike Trials” on Facebook or Instagram
My Insta: ryanlbratton
Group ride videos by trials rider John Bradford: https://m.youtube.com/@john2wheels860/videos
What other US bike trials rider(s) should I interview here?
John Bradford and Josh Woodmancy are 2 of our local riders
1 Comment
Jeff Hayes · August 5, 2024 at 11:20 pm
Thanks for these interviews Tim!