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from CCRIDER77:
I hate riding on gravel, mostly because it gets kicked up chipping paint and unprotected teeth...
When I ride on gravel, I keep moving at a moderate steady pace. Too slow and you sink a little making the bike squirrel. Try to maintain an upright riding position, shifting your weight back onto the rear wheel for better traction and to prevent the front wheel from plowing when you steer.
Do not make any sudden movements. Accelerate, stop and steer slow and steady. When braking, go light with the rear brake. Some front brake is OK too, but be careful as the front wheel may try and lock up rendering your steering input useless.
Same basic technique applies to riding on the sand.
from BILLWOODHOST:
I grew up riding on gravel--in about a square mile of the stuff--tailing piles from lead and zinc mining in the Joplin, MO area.
Personally, I like to be one gear LOWER, so I have instant power to gain stability if needed. Too slow in gravel will put you down in a hurry, but at the lower speed, usually no harm done.
At a little higher speed, your chance of going down is much less.
from PHIPSD:
When back country touring, I have sometimes found myself on really horrible rutted trails. If possible I try to keep the speed around 30 mph and the power on if I can and very smooth and steady on the brakes.
Mostly I try to use the gearbox to slow down and I make a point of slowing WAY down if I am on a steep downgrade and using compression braking in first or second to maintain my speed at a safe level.
One last thing. I found it very helpful to keep more weight than usual on the pegs so that the bike has the ability to bounce around somewhat without upsetting my sense of control. The real trick is to try to stay calm and not become tense and frightened.
You have to be able to stay a little loose. Once you have tried it a few times, it's really not that bad. Just watch out for heavy gravel though. That can be a little tricky to steer through. For a beginner it is best avoided. I prefer to ride in the ruts unless they are too horrible. If you do hit some heavier gravel though, you will need to keep a firm grip on the steering and give it some gas.
The hardest thing for me to get my head around was the idea that the bike was usually much easier to control at a moderate speed than it was at a very slow speed.
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