A poor tradesman blames his tools

[Shadow Puppet]

I'm using similar logic to justify/not justify upgrading my bike.

I was thinking I needed a better fork with more travel than my current Fox Float 120mm but I reckon that Jared Graves could take my bike as it is and ride it 10 times faster than me...... I don't think its the fork holding me back!

I thought I might need some new wheels to drop some weight off the XT wheelset I'm running and make me a little faster. Was looking at a pair of Hope Hubs with Light-Bicycle Carbon rims at around $700. For that kind of money I could buy a years gym membership. The gym membership would make a much bigger difference to my riding than some lighter rims.......

Basically, its the rider not the bike.

I don't know how anyone can have the mentality your mate has. Plenty of riders would have jumped said table top with a shorter wheelbase, could Steve Peat have jumped it on a short wheelbase bike? Hell yeah, the bike isn't stopping him.

 

[blacksp20]

Sounds to me he has a confidence problem but is covering up by blaming his bike instead of admitting he is afraid and getting some advice so he can have a go. I might understand if it was one or two obstacles but it sounds like he whinges about anything other than firetrail.

Personally there is one basic obstacle at Ourimbah that I'm not keen to ride due to fear and too much self preservation, even though I know I have the skill to do it, but I'm happy to admit it's me and not the bike. Doesn't stop Madstace from heckling me everytime I get the guts to have a crack only to pull up short and take the B line. I've got a thick skin, I can take it.

Tell him to man up or stop crying.

 

[SummitFever]

There is only one answer to all of this ... ride more.

 

[kielie]

Don't think it's fair to put peaty in the same sentence as this guy haha, but yes for jumping shorter wheelbase would be better in this case. Problem is he probably wouldn't even be able to tell if he was on a bike with a minimal change in wheelbase. Just the creative excuses he continuously comes up with. If it feels right just ride it.

I generally ride within my limit but still try and push myself. Only thing left at ourimbah is that first gap near the top. Hopefully tick that off the list soon. If I die I always have old mate to carry me down the hill.

 

[Calvin27]

Ride more in the dark!

The amount of PRs I've done while night riding is ridiculous. You just do it without hesitation or fear mostly because you have no idea what's up next....


Then after a while blame the lights.

 

[Ride_Guy]

Ride more in the dark!

The amount of PRs I've done while night riding is ridiculous. You just do it without hesitation or fear mostly because you have no idea what's up next....


Then after a while blame the lights.

Or see how sketchy riding in the dark can be and then shred in the day light haha

 

[Jaredp]

You promised you wouldn't dob me in.

Personally I find the kind of guy that relies on one piece of shit for everything and firmly believes it will see him through xc/am/dj/fr/dh to be far more annoying. they are also usually the kind of douche that doesn't bring their own spares/tools/first aid kit but needs them more than all others.

We had that guy in our group for ages... In the end I got shit off with lending tubes to a guy with 7 year old paper thin tyres, waiting for a gear grinding shitbox always late to the regroup site. Not to mention the consistent whining about how stupid we were for updating our gear.

What did I do? I started telling him straight: you make us late, you spoil the ride with constant mechanical failures. You annoy everyone with your constant over compensating rants... Update your gear or you won't be welcome on our rides.

A month later he bought a new bike. Nothing over the top just a trance, and now we all find him far less annoying.

 

[Knuckles]

It's definitely the bike. Tell him he needs to buy my bike, it will make him put Kovarik to shame :thumb:

 

[Haakon]

I was the guy for a while wondering what all the fuss was about tubeless, and considering it a normal part of the ride to make everyone wait for a tube change every second or third ride... Ahem. I have since happily admitted I was very wrong on that score!!

But I agree that its always about the rider - or more accurately its about the riding. Who really gives a shit what you're riding (so long as you're not constantly making everyone wait around of course ), just ride the bloody thing!

I'd love to be able to afford new bikes all the time, but in 30 years have had just 4 bikes - Repco Tracer, Shogun Trailbreaker, Mongoose NX (suspension forks, super luxury!) and now an Anthem (freaking space age machine!). They have all managed to provide endless entertainment and allowed me to scare myself silly finding out exactly where my chicken out limits are.

Real men learn on rigid bikes with crappy brakes - and learn to admit when they're just not good enough to launch the drop off regardless of what they're riding....

 

[bootsandall]

Haakon you weren't flattin that often! Craig just likes to bang on about things like that. I flated just as much! Your Mongoose served you well and it was weight training!

 

[nathanm]

Just to take this on a tangent. I'm the fat bloke. You know the one who has to push up mild climbs and you have to go back for just in case he's died of a heart attack.

I fugging hate it making people wait for me, thus ride solo a lot of the time, but nothing beats going out for a ride with mates.

 

[FoxRidersCo]

In the early 2000's there was a nutter guy who would do all the Belair and associated DH tracks here on a 10 speed cromo roadbike and beat all the squids on their 5-6K 8" duallies to the bottom...

He overtook me when I was on my Demo9 in a rock garden, I was impressed so I bought him a beer.

It's definitely not the bike to blame... well not always

 

[eastie]

(equipment aside) The slowest guy/girl is the one who's working the hardest, who hurts first and for the longest.

 

[driftking]

offer to ride his bike one day, that way once he sees his mates can do it on his bike no problem he cant blame the bike.

 

[DJR]

Ride more in the dark!

The amount of PRs I've done while night riding is ridiculous. You just do it without hesitation or fear mostly because you have no idea what's up next....


Then after a while blame the lights.

The big effect (esp on shared use trails) is not having that niggling feeling that a walker might just be around the corner... at 11PM nobody is around.

But OP - that's quite funny. I'd almost say, either just outride him, help him to learn how to ride properly or suggest an MTB skills course for him

 

[DJR]

offer to ride his bike one day, that way once he sees his mates can do it on his bike no problem he cant blame the bike.

That's a great idea. Esp if it involves a 4ft+ drop or a 10ft+ gap.

 

[kielie]

I always ride his bikes, it's a very convenient way to test all the latest gear haha. Still does little to change his mind about the capabilities of the bikes.

As for night riding, all my climbing PB's seem to come after dark, especially when your ebay lights start to fail on you but that's a different story.

 

[Nerf Herder]

*snip

I fugging hate it making people wait for me, thus ride solo a lot of the time, but nothing beats going out for a ride with mates.

+1 I hate being the ring stinger ... Tail end Charlie ... The old fat guy out the back. Just fucks with my head knowing I'm slowing people down. But, I hate riding on my own more. I enjoy the ride so much better when somebody else is suffering more than me :whistle:

 

[pharmaboy]

Just to take this on a tangent. I'm the fat bloke. You know the one who has to push up mild climbs and you have to go back for just in case he's died of a heart attack.

I fugging hate it making people wait for me, thus ride solo a lot of the time, but nothing beats going out for a ride with mates.

If you get a chance, head off first, most groups will wait a bit before leaving and often will slow to your speed - only downside is they will be behind you chatting and joking while you are breathless and choking.

 

[Shadow Puppet]

If its a matter of waiting for him, just wait. I'm sure we've all been that guy that's new to mountain biking. You feel shit cos you're holding people up, you feel shit cos your lungs are strewn across the track, you feel shit cos you're legs have blown up in a million pieces......you wonder why the hell you're doing this stupid sport........... I did.

If people weren't supportive during this newb period I probably wouldnt have stuck with it. They were, and most of them are my best mates today.

Yeah, it sucks sometimes when you only get to get out for a ride once a fortnight and you have to spend it waiting for the new guys/girls but it wont last long. They'll soon be buzzing your back wheel.

If you don't like it, ride on your own. There's a bunch of people you can 'ride with' and don't have to wait for on Strava. They won't provide you with any of the laughs/good times you get with a real group ride though. It just part of MTBing.