We all make bad decisions, some of us more often than others, but the important thing to remember is that you have to own those choices. If you don't, they're just embarrassing moments that we try to forget; if you do, they're opportunities to learn a few things while still being really embarrassed.I've just come home from yet another ride where I discovered more singletrack that's been sanitized by so-called "mountain bikers" so that the trail better suits their skill level. A few months back it was a handful of live roots being sawed out of the ground, roots that were maybe two or three inches in diameter and stood barely that same height above the dirt. Then it was a bunch rocks that a "mountain biker" took the time to dig out of a different trail, and today it was an entire tree that's gone missing so that a "mountain biker" could have an easier time of climbing up through what any of us would have already referred to as an easy section of trail. And, just to clarify, these trails that are being vandalized - that's the best word to describe what's happening - are already blue and green level singletracks, so it's not like these "mountain bikers" are modifying sections of trail to make them easier for the masses. The masses can already ride them, which is great, so it's the vandals who need to find another hobby so that the masses can keep enjoying this wonderful sport.
The shame that should be attached to the above actions, actions that are happening on trails all over the world these days, just isn't present. So what the hell is going on? I think I know what's causing this problem: no one likes to suck, and no one wants to eat humble pie.
| None of us want to struggle or feel like they're not as good as someone else, neither of which are key ingredients to having a good time. People just want to have fun, and, unless you're a bit of a masochist or have a closet full of leather and ball gags, fun usually doesn't involve suffering, pain and humiliation. |
That's too bad, because getting your ass handed to you is likely one of the most important things that happens during our lives, and it's the sort of thing that we shouldn't be bummed out by. We're supposed to fail miserably at things. A big, warm slice of humble pie is good for you, but the key to proper pie tasting is to actually learn something from it, and to realize that the pie you're eating was likely baked up by you and only you. If you don't, it's just another embarrassing experience that you'll file away; if you do, you can try to convince yourself that you've improved yourself because of it.
But who really wants to have a difficult time, though? Do you want to sit in rush hour traffic every time you drive anywhere? Do you want to struggle at work? How about arguing with your significant other every time you spend time together? No, of course not. We all want things in our life to go smoothly, but if they did we'd also all begin to think we're hot shit and end up with Kanye-sized egos and Kardashian-like morals. We'd also never learn anything, never get any better at living, and probably end up being ridiculously bored. I'm not just talking about mountain biking and all those sanitized trails that I always moan about, either, because there are all sorts of corny parallels between our sport and day to day life.
You're probably at your cockiest in your late 'teens and early twenties, a time when responsibility levels are low and fun levels are high, and this is when you feel pretty smug about yourself, despite the patchy facial hair and questionable clothing. This was around the age that I managed to (barely) get my driving license, two years after I first tried and failed miserably. And, like most new drivers, and especially new drivers that happen to have a penis, I thought I was real hot shit... and then I drove my family's car into a tree while trying to impress a girl. There were no injuries, thankfully, but the car was a write-off, as were my chances of starting a family and living happily ever after with the female passenger, and I learned that I had about as much in common with Ken Block as I do with Oprah Winfrey. I went from hero to zero in the time it took for me to lay down two tire width patches of rubber about fifty feet in length, but those few seconds taught me more than I took in over the previous few months. Humble pie was served, it was steaming hot, and I had to eat it without a fork on that night.
Lesson number one: girls aren't impressed by you doing donuts in your family's car. Lesson number two: don't try to do donuts in your family's car. I'd like to think that I long ago stopped riding my bike to impress other people, just like how most of us don't drive like we did when we first got our licence, and anyone who's seen me ride would probably agree that'd be the last thing that would ever of happened anyways. What I'm getting at is that I've moved past the point of feeling pressured to hit a jump or drop, or to go faster than I actually want to go. Sure, I'll still end up eating shit on many (most?) of my rides, but at least it won't happen while I'm trying to impress anyone. These days, if I want to do something questionable, I'm doing it because I'm pretty good at making really bad decisions. I'm not saying to stop pushing yourself, but I am saying to only go HAM if that's actually what you want to do.
The author with pie on his face at the 2015 BC Bike Race. Photo by Margus Riga.
Much like being nineteen and having a penis and driving license will make you feel invincible, preparing for something to the nth degree can also have you being pretty smug about your success. Being ready, or at least thinking that you're ready, often counts for shit, however. Life will teach most people that fact by the time they're an adult, but that doesn't stop us from doing things like studying, working hard, and training to be better at whatever it is that we do, even though those efforts often count for about as much as your vote does. I was reminded of exactly that fact a few months ago while "training" for the 2015 BC Bike Race.
After procrastinating about getting my act together, I hired a coach to make up for lost time, and I even went as far as to actually follow his instructions. I ate less candy than usual (still too much, obviously). I even remember stretching on one or two occasions - crazy, I know. Pre-BC Bike Race, I felt like I could show Nino and Julian a thing or two about climbing, and I was more worried about people accusing me of doping than how I'd actually fare in the race. It turns out that I may have well of been smoking some really good dope, because not only did I not meet my own expectations, I exploded spectacularly. Have you ever ridden so poorly that fellow racers who pass you like you're going backwards end up telling the medical team at the upcoming checkpoint that they should take a look at you? Yeah... it was that bad, and that was just on the first day. Granted, it was insanely hot out, and I hadn't had much practice riding my bike on the surface of the sun, but my detonation spoke more about my bravado to brain ratio being way out of line than anything else. Things just got messier when, on the third day, I found myself being held up behind a European racer who's own bravado to brain ratio was skewed in the exact opposite way. So, rather than relaxing and recovering like someone with some common sense would do, I used that time to crack my helmet into a few pieces and knock myself senseless. The feeling of slinking away from the six hundred person strong BC Bike Race campsite after pulling the plug a few days later, right in the midst of everyone else getting ready for their morning start time, was pretty humbling to say the least, and I had only myself to blame.
The taste of that humble pie taught me a few things. First, it reinforced the fact that I'm not good at racing bicycles, and that no amount of training will change that - it's just not in my DNA. I think I already knew that, but it was good to reconfirm it. More importantly, it reminded me that things can go south regardless of how much time and effort you've put into your upcoming mission, be it a bike race, a big project at work, or just you trying to cook a nice dinner for once, but also that it doesn't really matter in the end.
I crashed that car into a tree, and I didn't finish the BC Bike Race this year, neither of which I'm proud of, but I am going to go for a nice ride with a few friends this afternoon. We're going to skid a lot and have tons of fun, which is all that really matters. And, if I do something dumb and break body or my bike, I'll have only myself to blame, which is fine with me.
About 1pm while I'm sitting on my tailgate eating the PBJ that I brought from home, I watch him walking out with the biggest sling/wrap on his shoulder and arm I've ever seen...I felt no sympathy whatsoever
Those douchbags are everywhere out here
Ha! Just kidding.
You should keep an eye on the buy and sell, I'll bet he's selling everything cuz his wife / dental practice won't allow him to ride no more
Sympathy for a loudmouth is hard to conjure, that's how humans work. Humble pie is about You, Yourself, and no one else.
And I have yet to meet an inexperienced brag on a DH trail. Let's hope he learned from it.
...meanwhile, you were eating pb&j and talking shit, undoubtedly exaggerating his pre-ride smack talk.
Who's the real loser in this story?
I could care less about 80% of the videos posted.
The irony of all this is that the dudes that would benefit the most from reading Mike's words are probably skipping this article to find the next video. cuz reeding hurts yor spelling skillz and makes u less cool.
"I could not care less" means you are not able to care less than you already do about said thing.
Now where's that pie server?
for instance i often use long words i don't understand o make myself sound more photosynthesis. haha
My mindset has always been that eating humble pie makes you want to get better and have more fun.
No pie = no grrrr = no improvement = no fun
Improve your skill not the trail, i dont likely think that folks reading here are the culprits of this kind of crap, but honestly if someone dosent speak up it will continue.
bike parks are smooth for a reason, your local trails should stay however they were built. if you cant make a climb with your single speed, fixie, fatbike, rigid, whatever.... walk it, dont sanitize the trail.
Sad times.
Pushing oneself just beyond the edge of ability whilst knowing the limit. Combining that with the only competition being with yourself and the aspirations of friends while progressing at the same time is the definition of fun for me personally.
I read this recently somewhere, sorry as I cannot provide the source but the writer had his/her head in the the right place:
"My country is pretty big, I've never seen all of it but I've been to a few places. But at the same time, from now till the moment I die I would not have traversed even 1% of the earth.
And then the Earth is a speck of dust in the galaxy and that our galaxy is less than that when you consider the universe. And then there's me, on earth, worrying about my next wage."
You just described the situation here at Athens, Greece, were a bunch of spoiled brats keep digging & flattening all the elements that make a trail challenging.
Add on that the constant expansion of their destructive activities, snatching the hiking trails by transforming them into… flat race tracks, along with a bad altitude over anyone daring to spell the obvious.
It is no wonder why more & more people raise the question if the only solution would be to bane all bikes from the woods! This line of action will affect all disciplines, not only downhillers, but so far, they seem unable to get it.
So I will just repeat the following:
-Learn to REALLY control your bike. Speed will come gradually.
-If you cannot clear it, don’t remove it. This is your chance to be a better rider…
-Don’t remove it! You are spoiling someone’s ride…
-Learn respect. There are people out there, ridding way before you learned to balance. Usually these people ride were you cannot. Don’t destroy their playground
And
-Respect all the users of the public trails. Transforming a multipurpose trail into a DH “flow” course, will hurt more people than you may imagine.
Damn.
Uncajohn
Fast forward to the Hawaiian vacation...
Day two, and I think it would be a fabulous idea to take the boogie board in the rental condo and hit up "Big Beach." Hey, I'm rippin' it on the mtn bike, right? Well, needless to say, by lunchtime on the second day of our vacation, my wife is on the phone with the travel insurance provider while I'm getting a CT scan. Speed bumps really suck with cracked vertebrae.
At least I'm only having to endure a couple of months of discomfort, but it really sucks missing out on prime riding time--even on those newly sanitized trails that annoy the author so much. On that note: While trails evolve and change with time, it's a real piss-off to finally find the best way over that root or rock, only to have it dug/cut out of the mountain your next time through!
the same so called gnarly dh sections that the numpys in their full face and race pyjamas show up to ride.
why don't you try ride one before you slag every other person who does.
and if you have maybe your not quite as talented as you think you are!.
Whoever is vandalising those trails is trying to sabotage them if they're that easy. Most people would realise a tree is a solid object and just ride around it, no?!
Maybe he took it to plant it in his backyard, where btw, it would enjoy the rest of its life being watered on a regular basis, and even maybe getting a nice supplement of tree food every now and then...?
You didn't mention that said tree was laying on its side next to where it was previously sprouting from the ground..
Where I ride we don't have people ripping out the flora and fauna, we have the eco-nazis booby-trapping runs(in a county-owned park made for biking and hikers), by placing logs and other bike-stoppers on the back-side of blind entrance features
As always, great read Mike.
I don't think the hikers realize just how fast mtn bikers are going when they try to "teach us a lesson". Ive had too many close calls. I sacrifice riding in a lot of areas due to lots of foot traffic. Not worth getting "taught a lesson" for having fun and not sitting at home playing video games or cooking meth.
No, I don't actually think someone removed the friggen tree(unless maybe it was of the fruit-bearing kind?) to give it a better life in their backyard. What I DID think was that my sarcasm would be more obvious.
I shall take back the cookie I awarded myself.
You think the guys riding the fest jumps aren't trying to impress each other?
my point here is... Step it up when you ride and try to make it worth the investment. No one wants to hear your story if you have taken zero risk.
Those people can pick up a shovel and go build their own trail. While Levy did say he isn't as apt to go full bore any more, which eventually happens to us all after gratuitous amounts of served humble pie, he is not so proud as to try and try again to clean a section of trail, or get off and go around. The point is, unless you built the trail, the trail isn't built to suit you. If you aren't riding things that are difficult for you, you might as well switch to road cycling.