New to Mountain Biking? Start Here.
If you are new to mountain biking walking into a bike park for the first time can feel intimidating. There are riders flying through the air, navigating technical trails with roots and rocks, and making freeride trails with jumps and drops look effortless. If you’ve ever thought about trying mountain biking but weren’t sure where to begin, you’re not alone.
That’s exactly why we created Find Your Ride™
A Better Way to Learn
Getting started in mountain biking shouldn’t require owning expensive equipment or figuring everything out on your own. Find Your Ride is designed to remove the barriers that keep people from trying the sport and replace them with the tools needed for success.
When you arrive, we’ll provide everything you need to get started, including a park ready mountain bike, full-face helmet, protective gear, and professional instruction from our coaching staff using our park ready method.
Built for First-Time Riders
Find Your Ride isn’t a rental package. It’s a complete introduction to lift-access mountain biking.
The experience begins with our Park Ready™ coaching session, where riders learn the fundamentals of bike control, braking, body position, cornering, and trail awareness. These skills create the foundation for a fun and confident day on the mountain. After the lesson, riders take a guided run with their coach before heading out to continue exploring Highland’s beginner-friendly terrain. Every part of the program is designed to help riders feel comfortable, capable, and excited to keep progressing.
The Park Ready™ Difference
Highland Training Center developed the Park Ready™ Method, a coaching approach that combines professional instruction with purpose-built learning terrain to help riders develop skills in a controlled, progressive environment.
Instead of immediately taking riders onto long trails filled with distractions, we break skills down into manageable pieces and teach them in dedicated learning zones designed specifically for progression. Riders can focus on one concept at a time, whether that’s body position, braking, cornering, or pumping, without the pressure of navigating an entire trail. This approach allows riders to build confidence through repetition and immediate feedback from coaches who know exactly what challenges new riders face.
Once those skills are introduced and practiced in a controlled setting, riders apply them on trail with the support of their coach. This creates a smoother learning experience and helps riders understand not just what to do, but why it works. The result is faster progression, greater confidence, and a more enjoyable first experience on the mountain. At Highland, we don’t believe riders should have to figure things out through trial and error. The Park Ready™ Method provides a clear pathway for learning, allowing riders to build skills step by step and develop a strong foundation that will support them throughout their riding journey.
The Find Your Ride Progression Path
The Find Your Ride 3-Pack was built around a simple philosophy: progression happens one skill at a time.
Each level focuses on a core skill set that riders can build upon as they become more comfortable on the mountain. Rather than trying to learn everything in a single day, riders develop confidence through a structured progression that introduces new concepts at the right time.
Level 1: Bike Park Fundamentals
Every rider starts here.
Level 1 focuses on the essential skills that make mountain biking safe, fun, and enjoyable. Riders learn the foundations of body position, braking, balance, trail awareness, and bike handling through Highland’s Park Ready™ curriculum. The goal isn’t speed. It’s confidence. Riders learn how to stay balanced on the bike, control their speed, navigate beginner terrain, and understand how the bike moves underneath them. These are the skills that every mountain biker relies on, whether they’re riding a beginner trail or a World Cup downhill track.
By the end of the day, riders leave with a strong understanding of the fundamentals and the confidence to continue exploring the mountain.
Level 2: Cornering and Berms
Once riders have a foundation, it’s time to focus on one of the most rewarding skills in mountain biking: cornering.
Level 2 introduces riders to the techniques that help them ride turns smoothly, efficiently, and with confidence. Through focused coaching and repetition, riders learn how to properly position their bodies, look through corners, manage traction, and generate speed through bermed turns. For many riders, this is where mountain biking starts to feel truly fun. Corners become less intimidating and more exciting. Riders begin carrying momentum from turn to turn and develop a better understanding of how to work with the trail instead of simply reacting to it.
Strong cornering skills open the door to nearly every trail at Highland and provide one of the biggest confidence boosts a rider can experience.
Level 3: Pumping and Flow
Level 3 is where riders learn how to create speed without pedaling.
Using rollers, terrain features, and purpose-built learning areas, riders develop the ability to pump the bike through changing terrain by applying pressure at the right moments and staying light when needed. Pumping is one of the most important skills in mountain biking because it teaches riders how to use the trail itself to generate momentum. As riders begin linking corners, rollers, and terrain features together, trails feel smoother and more connected. Instead of simply riding down the trail, they begin flowing with it. The result is a riding experience that feels more efficient, more controlled, and significantly more fun.
For many riders, Level 3 is where everything starts coming together. The skills learned in Levels 1 and 2 begin working together, creating a more confident, capable rider who can continue progressing long after the program ends.
Why Three Visits Matter
Mountain biking is a sport built on repetition. The first day introduces new skills. The second day reinforces them. The third day helps transform those skills into instinct.
By spreading the learning process across three visits, riders have the opportunity to absorb information, practice independently, and return ready for the next step. The result is faster progression, greater confidence, and a more enjoyable experience on the mountain.
More Than a Lesson
The Find Your Ride 3-Pack isn’t just about learning skills. It’s about building a foundation for a lifetime of riding.
Whether your goal is to ride with friends, explore new trails, improve your fitness, or simply discover a new passion, the skills learned through Find Your Ride provide the tools to keep progressing. Everyone starts somewhere. Find Your Ride is where that journey begins.
