Why is Jumpack considered to be the best portable bike ramp on the market?

If you have been scouring the internet and wound up here reading this, it’s quite likely that you’re looking for a portable bike ramp of some description.

It’s no secret that Jumpack was the first company in the world to develop a ‘backpack’ bike ramp when they launched the video of their Pro 3 prototype concept on YouTube in 2015.

The following year the Jumpack bike ramp concept won multiple awards for its innovative engineering and design including the prestigious Invent 2016 Award.

After almost a decade in research and development, it is no surprise that what resulted was an incredibly well thought out, game-changing ‘smart ramp’ that started the portable ramp phenomenon and a host of copy / alternative options.

The main difference between Jumpack and other offerings you will find is the technology, materials and the attention to detail, Jumpack is a product that ticks every box when it comes to bike ramps.

We used a ‘no compromise’ approach to developing Jumpack and refused to complete the project until every single box had been ticked.

The easiest way to develop the worlds first portable kicker would have been to go the traditional route and use timber of some description. But the issue with timber became obvious immediately. If timber ramps were in anyway light enough to carry as you ride, people would have been carrying them from the 1970’s, but they haven’t. Why? It’s simply too heavy. It is possible to remove material to reduce the weight a little, but not without compromising its structural integrity and safety.

So, while timber is an ideal ramp making material for permanent ramps, the portability aspect makes it unsuitable. Keep in mind that when we say ‘portable’ we mean it is ‘designed to be carried comfortably’ by the individual as they ride – all day.

Because it is humanly possible to carry an item, it doesn’t mean that it’s portable. For example, you may find it possible to carry a 30kg suitcase as you ride, but how far can you carry it? Can you bring it everywhere with you? The short answer is no. For genuine portability you need a pack weight of under 8kg or you will soon tire of the transportation effort.

But making a bike ramp that’s light enough to carry leads to other engineering challenges that need to be overcome. Traditionally weight is what stops a ramp from moving during use, and as we know from experience, a moving ramp is not cool and can be highly dangerous.

So how do you make a super-light ramp that doesn’t move when you hit it? You spend almost a decade in R&D and invent the technology that makes it possible. This was the path of Jumpack, make the perfect ramp without compromise, even if it meant inventing and patenting the Anti-Slide dampening technology that makes it a reality.

Jumpack changed the game in ramp design and brought ramp technology in line with the technology and materials used in the bikes we ride today. Bike innovation has constantly moved with the times while ramp technology stagnated. Jumpack changed that.

Another problem with timber is durability, especially in wet weather conditions. Water and timber don’t mix, unless you are prepared to stick to a maintenance schedule to keep the materials protected as much as possible, your wooden ramp will have a finite lifespan.

Jumpack moved away from traditional materials and instead looked at the most durable and weatherproof materials available without compromise. After exploring many materials using aerospace Finite Element Analysis testing, we found a material like that used in the manufacture of assault rifle bodies as the optimum solution. More expensive than timber? Absolutely, but again, if you are trying to design the best bike ramp possible, you use the best materials and processes, not the cheapest. A Jumpack ramp should last a lifetime.

As testament to the strength and durability of Jumpack, we have never had a ramp returned due to breakage or failure. Jumpack is built with military grade toughness.

Another essential ingredient to making a bike ramp ‘portable’ is ease and speed of deployment. The fact that your bike ramp is portable means that you will explore many different locations. If your ramp takes 5-10 minutes to assemble and disassemble each time you find a spot, and you visit 10 spots per day, you could be spending hours of your day building and packing away your ramp. This is a waste of ride time and will become a pain, fast.

It’s fine if you can use ‘magic’ to assemble your ramp for a video edit, but who wants to waste so much of their day preparing / assembling their equipment. Can you imagine trying to set up this style of ramp before security arrives to remove you from the scene? The magic becomes essential.

Jumpack can be deployed and ready to ride in under 20 seconds, without the requirement for any assembly or editing magic. Our ‘Transformer’ style design means that your Jumpack ramp will unfold from pack to ramp and back again in seconds. By the time the security guy arrives, the trick is already done and in the can.

While we claim under 20 seconds for deployment, it will be much faster than that when you become familiar with it. We are told the guys at USA BMX can deploy one in 7 seconds!

Another important ingredient to consider is the size of the ramp, there is a maximum size for a genuinely portable bike ramp. Beyond this size and the ramp becomes a backpack picnic table that you’ll have to try and carry. This might be fine if you’re a 6’, 250lbs monster. But for most of us, size will play a huge part. To get around this we made Jumpack modular, so if a larger or wider ramp is required, you can clip your ramp to your friends ramps to create any size of ramp you need. If you can’t make it large, make it smart.

People also believe you need a big ramp to ‘go big’. You don’t, you need a well-designed ramp and technique. Jumpack team rider 12yr old Harry Banks demonstrates this in the below video. It also demonstrates the effectiveness of our anti-slide technology.

Harry Banks 29' 3" jump

We also understand that not everyone is at Harry level and most people will need to build up experience and muscle memory before hitting a bike ramp at full speed. Therefore, we designed Jumpack with 3 height settings to enable riders to generate that experience in increments. A ‘Learning Curve’ to going big.

A Jumpack ramp will take you from zero to hero in a safe and measured way, helping you to build confidence in your ability.

While Jumpack was the first company on earth to develop a backpack bike ramp, with almost a decade of research and development into materials and design, it’s no surprise that riders worldwide recognize it as the best bike ramp on the market.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLnAS8gddYmJHxwCdJhZ9Eq8rod95Xov1b

@jumpackgetairanywhere