Rockgardn started life in 2001 as a specialty manufacturer of Downhill/Freeride mountain biking body armor and outerwear. At that time, the DH/FR scene was all pretty new, and largely serviced by small, boutique brands. When the great Recession of 2008 hit, we saw numerous brick-and-mortar shops fail, along with a number of young ecommerce companies. What came in their wake was a small number of the large, very corporate ecommerce firms that insisted on pricing and payment terms that had us essentially financing them. That took the fun, and funds, out of what we had been doing.

However, during that time, due to personal interest, we started to investigate the market for vintage-styled motocross outerwear. From there, the Reign VMX brand was born, with a focus on clean, classic looks. With the passage of time, we saw the same need for classic and age-appropriate designs for the trials world, so we introduced our Up And Over Trials brand.