Before you ride
- Check tire pressure and look for thorns stuck in the tread
- Tubeless: shake the wheel and listen for sealant; top up if it's quiet
- Charge your phone and tell someone your route and return time
- Pack more water than you think you need
Ride guide
Goatheads &
Goatheads &
flat tires.
New Mexico's most famous trail hazard is a weed. Here's how to spot it, choose the right tire setup, and get home when you do flat.
Meet the goathead
A weed built to pop tires.
The goathead, also called puncturevine (Tribulus terrestris), is a low, spreading weed with small yellow flowers. It isn't native here — it came from the Mediterranean — but it thrives in hot, dry, disturbed ground across New Mexico.
Its seed pods dry into hard burrs with stiff spines, and however a burr lands, a spine points up. That's why they go straight through standard tubes, and why they stick to your tread and shoes and ride along with you.
The plants grow through the warm months, and the burrs are at their worst from about midsummer into fall. Dried burrs stay sharp long after the plant dies, and the seeds can wait in the soil for years, so the same patches come back every season.
Where you'll find them
- Road and path shoulders, especially the dirt edge
- Ditch banks and levees along the Rio Grande
- Vacant lots, parking lot edges, and trailheads
- Dirt roads and anywhere the ground gets churned up
Look for flat green mats on bare, sandy ground and ride around them, not through.
Your tire setup
Tubeless vs tubes.
Both can work here. The difference is how many goatheads you can shrug off before you have to stop.
| Tubeless + sealant | Inner tubes | |
|---|---|---|
| Goathead punctures | Sealant usually plugs small holes on its own, often before you notice | A single thorn can flat a standard tube |
| Upkeep | Sealant dries out, faster in our heat, so it needs checking and topping up | Little to none until you flat |
| Setup | Needs tubeless-ready rims and tires, valves, and rim tape | Works with almost any wheel |
| Low tire pressure | Run lower pressure for grip without pinch flats | Too low and you risk pinch flats |
| Fixing it on the trail | Plug kit for bigger holes; spare tube as backup | Swap or patch the tube |
| Best for | Mountain and gravel riding, and anyone tired of flats | Simple setups and riders who want the lowest cost |
Riding tubes? Stack the odds.
If you stay with tubes, you can still cut down on goathead flats. Thorn-resistant (thicker) tubes, tubes pre-filled with sealant, tire liners that sit between tire and tube, and tires with a puncture-protection layer all help, and they work best combined.
Our take
For mountain and gravel riding in New Mexico, tubeless with fresh sealant is the setup most riders end up on. For short paved rides, tubes with thorn protection are fine. Either way, carry a spare tube.
Get home every time
Don't get stranded.
On the ride
- Ride around goathead mats, not through them
- Don't skid or brake hard on shoulders where burrs collect
- Knock burrs off your shoes before clipping back in
- On remote gravel and trails, ride with a friend and know your bail-out routes
When you flat
- Tubeless: turn the hole to the bottom and let sealant work; plug it if it won't seal
- Tubes: find and remove the thorn from inside the tire before fitting a new tube — carefully, it's sharp
- Check for a second thorn; they often come in pairs
- Patch the old tube at home so your spare is ready next time
Tools & supplies
What to carry.
A small kit in a saddle bag or pack turns a ride-ending flat into a ten-minute stop.
Every ride
- Spare tube in your tire size and valve type
- Tire levers
- Mini pump, or CO2 inflator and cartridges
- Patch kit
- Multi-tool with the sizes your bike uses
- Phone, ID, and a little cash
- Water
Add for tubeless
- Tire plug kit
- Small bottle of sealant
- Valve core tool
- Spare tube anyway, for a hole too big to seal
Add for remote gravel & trails
- Extra water and snacks
- Tire boot for sidewall cuts
- Chain quick link and a chain tool
- Zip ties and a little tape
- Small first-aid kit
- Offline map and a light
Quick answers
Goathead FAQ.
When is goathead season in New Mexico?
The plants grow through the warm months, and the hard, spiky burrs are at their worst from about midsummer into fall. Dried burrs stay sharp long after the plants die, so you can pick them up year-round.
Does tubeless stop goathead flats?
It stops most of them. Liquid sealant inside the tire plugs small holes like goathead punctures, often before you notice. It won't fix big cuts, and it only works if the sealant hasn't dried out.
Should I pull a goathead out of my tire?
With tubeless, yes: pull it, then turn the wheel so the hole sits at the bottom and the sealant can plug it. With tubes, if you get a flat, find and remove the thorn from the tire before you put in a new tube, or the new tube will go flat too.
How often should I check tubeless sealant here?
More often than you would in a cooler, wetter place. Heat and dry air make sealant dry out faster, so check it every month or so in summer and top it up when it's low.
Ready to ride