SKILLS AND THRILLS... A LAUGHING MATTER
ONE OF THE MOST OVERLOOKED INGREDIENTS TO MASTERING MOUNTAIN BIKING IS LAUGHING. In my early years, my pal Garrett and I would scope out the hidden single tracks and dial them in...
... then take the rest of the fellas out, pretending like it was our first time.
To be sure, there were a lot of Oh shyte moments... but, it was all fun n games and the trickery was paid back many times.
The riding back then was a lot more adventurous.
We'd wander down cow paths wondering where they led. We'd drop off steep ledges wondering of the rickety equipment would hold up.
Bending a seat post isn't even a thing any more. Neither is carrying spokes and spoke tools.
Amidst all that breaking of parts and trespassing was a lot of laughter.
We weren't in a hurry, weren't rushing, weren't racing. We were learning, playfully approaching a new and exciting sport.
The last few weeks I've been taking out a young padawan, Rocky, on our local trails.
Today I was reminded of those old times. We dropped in on some truly steep stuff - 36% according to the Strava file - which I'd previously been down more than a few times.
There was a lot of stopping, a lot of hootin' and hollerin' and a lot of laughing... because it was so dern fun. Taking our time allowed the kid to recover and get ready to charge the next section.
Come to think of it... most of the teaching of sporty things that I've done in my life has involved a lot of laughter and time taking. It just works better...
... and the steep, technical MTBing works a lot better with a really solid connection to the handle bars. The kind of connection you get with our superlight race gloves.
These gloves are very light. Perforated 100% leather palms, perforated lycra tops. The form to your hand and give you great feedback.
For many, especially your very biased developer of said gloves, these are the only way to go... road, gravel or mountain.
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... our race socks made with EZ Breathe yarns and FastMax compression technologies.
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use promo code BuyGlovesGetSocks at check out and get them delivered for $25 bones.
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This code will stop working Saturday night.
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163.6
Paddle
8.25 hrs sleep
https://www.strava.com/activities/4398985947