Very well written, one of the best posts I've seen on here in a while and relatable in fact too.

 

I was thinking the same thing!

Great post.

 

 

Thanks for sharing. I'm a fat bastard myself who rides .5 mph on climbs!

I love your quote too. it's totally true. It's the reason why I bought my Slash.

 

Word.

I gave up on having a wife who actually rides a long time ago, but she is willing to drive a car full of water and snacks to support my silly adventures and doesn't give me (too much) sh*t for buying bike stuff!

As a fellow fat guy who just turned 45, I salute you sir.

 

Word.

...and doesn't give me (too much) sh*t for buying bike stuff!

 

Fortunately, my wife rides as much as me, and maybe a more. She definitely spends more than me on bike stuff. And she whimpers when I get to ride without her.

 

This is me except my wife is probably hiking nearby.

Last mountain bike was an early 2000s S-Works hardtail. Got distracted by rock climbing for 20 years. Started spending more time in Santa Fe. Turned 44 this year. Just bought a Yeti.

 

This is me except my wife is probably hiking nearby.

Ditto re my wife.

I'm 52 overweight with new heart stents. On my ebike trying to get back to non-e. I always appreciate the words of encouragement.

 

Whippersnappers!

 

My wife only rides when we're at the beach riding the PCH. She kicks me out of the house to ride, won't let me sell bikes, gear or parts and supports me in races, shuttles DH. I won the wife lotto. She puts up with my car habit too, but only if she can drive them. The TJ Rubicon has been taken over. "This isn't yours anymore, Dopey".

 

Shrooms?
LSD?
PCP?

 

heres hoping this person is or shortly becomes a member on MTBR.. and reads this post.. and sees it for what it is.. a very well written encouragement from a complete stranger

kudos to OP for writting this.. getting this.. attitude out there.. its a welcoming attitude we see many many times amongst MTBer generally.. were all in it for the same thing.. the fun of it! and im sure many MTBer out there.. getting back into it after a hiatus.. or finally taking the plunge in to this madness.. who feel ackward as H-E-double hockey sticks... and dont even know they need this type of positive from someone they see.. as a better rider.. this is bar none.. the BEST way for newcomers to keep going.. pedal after pedal.. mile after mile.. to see and hear.. that those faster guys and gals... were once just like they are now.. slow.. puffing for what seems to be their life... on any and all grades going up..

ive decided a couple summers back.. that ill challenge myself with a hill climbing route.. different years mean different goals.. ill walk if i need to.. but im getting to that summit.. i WILL crest my hill and so far.. the first few hills i attacked.. well the anthills were laughing at me... my latest crest.. was on the fatty.. in the snow.. and i didnt walk was slow as beans.. but i crested it.. pedalling.. wow. talk about raising ones spirits..

i encourage anyone and everyone to set goals.. if you will.. something reachable while being a new challenge.. like my hills.. even if i walk some sections.. theres always next time some of my hills.. im walking less and less.. and i wish the same to everyone else

thanks all.. for being part of this fantastic journey.. keep going

 

heres hoping this person is or shortly becomes a member on MTBR.. and reads this post.. and sees it for what it is.. a very well written encouragement from a complete stranger

kudos to OP for writting this.. getting this.. attitude out there.. its a welcoming attitude we see many many times amongst MTBer generally.. were all in it for the same thing.. the fun of it! and im sure many MTBer out there.. getting back into it after a hiatus.. or finally taking the plunge in to this madness.. who feel ackward as H-E-double hockey sticks... and dont even know they need this type of positive from someone they see.. as a better rider.. this is bar none.. the BEST way for newcomers to keep going.. pedal after pedal.. mile after mile.. to see and hear.. that those faster guys and gals... were once just like they are now.. slow.. puffing for what seems to be their life... on any and all grades going up..

ive decided a couple summers back.. that ill challenge myself with a hill climbing route.. different years mean different goals.. ill walk if i need to.. but im getting to that summit.. i WILL crest my hill and so far.. the first few hills i attacked.. well the anthills were laughing at me... my latest crest.. was on the fatty.. in the snow.. and i didnt walk was slow as beans.. but i crested it.. pedalling.. wow. talk about raising ones spirits..

i encourage anyone and everyone to set goals.. if you will.. something reachable while being a new challenge.. like my hills.. even if i walk some sections.. theres always next time some of my hills.. im walking less and less.. and i wish the same to everyone else

thanks all.. for being part of this fantastic journey.. keep going

Great post.

 

When can you get a full XTR Pivot for $7000 ?

 

I paid 5500 for a lightly used Switchblade with full XTR, live valve, and carbon rims last month. It's a good time to be in the market.

Come to think of it I"m selling a full XTR Trail 429 with about a year of use for 3800 OBO if you're in the market and anywhere around Phoenix.

 

It's not the dog in the fight, it's the fight in the dog!

How we may have abused our bodies in the past cannot be a marker to our future. Adapt and overcome.

If you can only do 1 mile, do one mile. Then another, then another. There are days where I am not good at this and the old self wins out. But I keep focusing on the new self, the healthy man in the mirror not the one I see right now.

And yes, get what inspires you so that you might stick with it. That is why I keep building and rebuilding my bikes. More to keep me active than any real improvement (real or imagined) to the bike.

Well stated sir!

 

What a great way to start my morning, reading this thread!

 

I was grumpy, about to head to the grocery store. Figured I'd pop in here and see what kinda poo was being flung where, but dang it...WHAT DO I FIND?!?! POSI-EFFING-TIVITY!!!
Now I'm going to the grocery store in a better mood...maybe I won't even listen to Pantera and cart check dawdling old ladies on the bread aisle...maybe.

To us all, no matter your "level"...reach down every now and again and push a little harder, set a goal, then set another. I personally balk when things get serious and jocky, so I convince myself to PLAY harder. Turn the fun to 11 every time.

 

Pantera is energizing music and therefore, "positive". So, please do crank it LOUD.

 

Huh. I thought Pantera was a sandwich joint. 🤷‍♂️
=sParty

P.S. Or one of these:

 

Huh. I thought Pantera was a sandwich joint. 🤷‍♂️
=sParty

P.S. Or one of these:
View attachment 2083478

Want, and on the bucket list if I find the right one. Off to check ebay motors.

I guess not. The only one on there is 112K

 

I DARE YOU to make eye contact grandma! 😆 😆 😆
Leave it to me to kill the positivity.

Can't be that guy...
Here ya go for the antidote...

This is exactly what my playlist looks like. Aggression and Chill.

 

About halfway in, I'm like this guy had a heart attack and had an out of body experience and is seeing himself struggling up the climb (the one that nearly killed him) as he's leaving his body and the poor fool thinks his wife is lovingly waiting and smiling when really she's smiling because he just dropped over on the trail.

Then I realized there actually were two guys. Good on you OP for offering kind words. We all go thru our ups and downs fitness wise, or I would venture to guess most of us. I know there have been plenty of points where I was proud of where I was, plenty of times I was embarrassed or even worse, thought I should be proud and then got humbled by someone in way better shape (not that they were being obnoxious, just that when our ride ended I was like holy crow, I have so much further to go to really be in truly good biking shape).

 

About halfway in, I'm like this guy had a heart attack and had an out of body experience and is seeing himself struggling up the climb (the one that nearly killed him) as he's leaving his body and the poor fool thinks his wife is lovingly waiting and smiling when really she's smiling because he just dropped over on the trail.

Ok, a bit morbid, but the vibe checks out - on a macro level.

 

I cannot count the number of times in my life that I've told myself, "Just start over."

Seems like nearly daily, in fact.
=sParty

 

Looks like twice today at least

 

I've been on both sides of the encounter in the last few weeks. I just love riding and enjoying the outdoors.

FTR: my wife's bike is turquoise, mine is pink and both are Tallboys. And both have XO drivetrains. Everything else is correct.

 

I'm drifting away from the racing passion and have become more focused on driving or flying to ride.

Exploration is what started the bike habit in the mid 70s with exploring the neighborhood. Then in the mid 80s I bought my first mountain bike at 15 and it was all about what's around that corner? What's over the hill? How fast can I go? Can I ride 100 miles? I haven't not had a bike since 1976 and I'm only 53 so there's a ways to go


I look at my single speed and see dirt from all over. Moon dust and loam from here. Red dust from Sedona in the Allen sockets. DG from a rainy day in Arizonas White Tanks mixed with mud from Ireland and black volcanic gravel from Iceland on the chainstays. How can that not be cool? Also, the smells from those rides will always be with me and I keep going back.

 

I paid 5500 for a lightly used Switchblade with full XTR, live valve, and carbon rims last month. It's a good time to be in the market.

Come to think of it I"m selling a full XTR Trail 429 with about a year of use for 3800 OBO if you're in the market and anywhere around Phoenix.

I paid 5500 for a lightly used Switchblade with full XTR, live valve, and carbon rims last month. It's a good time to be in the market.

Come to think of it I"m selling a full XTR Trail 429 with about a year of use for 3800 OBO if you're in the market and anywhere around Phoenix.

Yes I'm sure you can find a nice used one for that price but I was assuming new and it was sarcasm

 

Yeah I caught the sarcasm; I was just noting that it may be a bit misplaced given the deals going on bikes these days.

 

****! This fatty's going to buy a dream machine. Thanks for the pep talk 👍

 

I've always had dreams of being a very good mountain bike rider. My health just sucks and it's been challenging to pull this dream off. I need to drop a serious amount of weight. I know how I must do it. I need to climb my ass off every weekend on my local steep trails. My new Trek Slash will be my pal to pull this stunt off.

I know people groan when they hear the word Strava. However I like their challenges and they give motivation to try harder. Years ago, I pulled off my first 61 mile ride for the Gran Fondo ride challenge. Basically you ride 61 miles in a single ride to earn the badge. I rode to hell and back to pull it off. Then it became easier and I slowly started to make it routine to complete this challenge once a month. I did it on a gravel bike.

The next challenge I want to pursue every month is the climbing challenge. It's going to be a lot more suffering than the Gran Fondo challenge. But I must do it. I need to get stronger so I can tackle harder trails much easier.

 

I know people groan when they hear the word Strava.

I'm back on Strava.

 

In my area the people on Strava are beginner enthusiasts that literally perpetuate all the reasons Strava sucked in the first place. Not much has changed there

 

Hey, guy. You are 45+, heavy, and it appears you just spent $7k on a full XTR Pivot Switchblade. You have good taste in bicycles. I have seen you three, maybe 4 times riding in the last few weeks. You ride with your wife. She, patient as ever, rides the same bike you do, only hers is blue. She clearly loves you. Her love for you is so apparent that she is there riding with you, patient enough to take a break from her own self effortlessly pulling the hills. Love is when she waits for you with a smile, while you overcome life's adversity. She sees the outer shell and waits patiently while your old self emerges from the shell of a man you have become. Me too dude. You are lucky to have her. Cheers to the one-woman support group.

When I passed you while you took a break, there was no animosity between you and I. I'm fat too and was overtaking your spot at what seemed like 0.5mph. Toddlers crawl is faster than my pace. The only thing that confused you was how we looked so similar in appearance yet "how are you just riding along like that?" is what you said. Not sure if you heard me, but I replied "muscle memory! I'm ramping up my fitness too, I was huffing and puffing at that same spot 3 months ago. I've dropped 15 lbs. in 3 months of riding, yesterday was my biggest day in over a year, and my mark set for the tippy top was far, far away. But I made it in 3:05. 2700' vert in 6.5 miles. I stopped at least 10 times." Yes I said all that while I passed, which I know is word vomit, and why I wrote this. That and to say "keep going" dude. Keep moving that finish line further away. Good on you for buying a bad ass bike.

A wise man once told me "Buy the bike that makes you want to ride it. Buy a bike that makes you want to fiddle with the adjustments, the backsweep, lube the chain and wipe the frame clean, instead of watching TV and feeling depressed"

Keep riding dude. Keep going. Keep moving the line a little further every time.

TWM-

Great to see this encouragement from a fellow rider, especially the observation about having the right people in your life. In retrospect, my wife was both the reason I stopped riding, and the reason I started again.

Back when we were young, newly married and on a tight budget, I took her and our sister in law with me to explore a new trail. The bike I was on was absolutely questionable, even for speed bumps in a flat parking lot, but I didn't know better. Anyway, we popped out of the trees to face a steep, long slab. I chivalrously volunteered to go first and identify a manageable line for them to follow, so I started down and the brakes just cooked, I lost my footing on the pedals after breaking one against a rock, was supporting my body with only the saddle and bars. With my legs akimbo, my groin was functioning like a shock that was bottoming out repeatedly. I barely managed to stay on the bike and knew my 2 options were to either crash on the rock, or crash into something softer like a bush. So I took aim at a shrub towards the bottom and hit it, full send. All I heard was peals of laughter from my wife and sister in law. Imagine being so deep into a bush that only your shins and feet are visible, bike equally buried, and to an onlooker, a couple of young, beautiful women laughing their guts out at your predicament. Not that I could blame them, but still a blow to my self confidence. Had to walk the rest of the way out, then stopped at a dumpster on the way home and unceremoniously tossed the bike. That was the last trail ride I thought I'd ever do.

Nearly 20yrs. later, still married and with a couple of teenagers in the house, she ruptures a disc in her lower back, requiring surgery during peak COVID. All went well and she made full recovery but obviously adjusting to some new limitations. Her doctor approved her for cycling, so I purchased a full squish bike to be as easy as possible on her. She loved getting back on and riding with the family. As it was with COVID, that's mostly all we ended up doing. Enough that I ended up setting my son and myself up with capable trail rigs. I'll be at Sea Otter this year, entering my first race at 47yrs. old. I was on the fence, unsure if I was up for it, until my wife encouraged me to enter, and she will be there to cheer me on. To this day, her and our sister in law still double over anytime the story is told. Maybe they'll have another to laugh about after the race, either way, I'll still be on the bike and enjoying the sport and community as long as can🤙