Why We Ride

[highharry]

I had a rough saturday nite last weekend and so decided to have a quite one on sunday watching movies. I rented out that wild hogs number mainly because i wasnt in the mood for anything to in depth. Closer to the end of the movie the a line came about about "you are the posers, go back and think about why you really ride". i know this movie is based on moto riders but i felt this quote relatd just as well to us mtb'ers. Ive been thinking about it and i recon it just comes down to people needing a sense of freedom and total control over what happens. So i was just wondering about what drives other people to jump on their bikes whenever they get the chance.

peace.

 

[johnny]

I'm not sure, although I am interested as to why you would post a thread about MTB riding in the off topic section.

Will move it to Genereal MTB for you now.

 

[Lemontime]

I ride because I can, and I have a damn good time while I do it!

 

[Plow King]

I ride/race to push myself. I don't really think beating others is an achevement. I set goals before/after every race and try and beat them, instead of beating others.

I also ride for fun, nothing better than having a joke around and fun when out riding. however I dislike people that take shit to seriously and it becomes 'practise' rather than just riding.

 

[screw loose]

serenity

Cool thread. . I've been thinking about this lately, so here goes;

There's something about riding that turns me back into my own self. From the rush of daily life to complete serenity, hurtling down a mountain.

I've been riding almost exlusively with my mates for almost the extent on my riding days, and had a session by myself the other day. It was a week day and I was by myself; which reduced my chances of distraction to almost zero.

Expressing myself using my bike and the track, nothing more, had a tangible impact on my sense of self. At the end of that day I felt light and whole. The riding experience takes you away from bills, girlfriends, work, and all you have is the next few feet of track in front of you. . I can't put my finger on it. But that experience is something I'll always come back for, it's a way to whipe the slate clean and be left with who you are; not your problems and worries. . problem is, it only lasts for a few hours; right about till the time when someone cuts you off in traffic.

 

[fatass]

Here's a little something summing up exactly why, from howies.co.uk

Sport is my anger management.
Sport is cheaper than drink, cheaper than drugs and a better high altogether.
Sport takes me to a place where nothing else matters. Where nobody hassles me, nobody loves me and nobody hates me.
A place somewhere between home and work.
Not quite rest, not quite recouperation.
A place where I use my body for something it really needs.
A place without deadlines, and the tick and the tock of life.
Where the final demand letters don't matter.
Where mountains become molehills.
Where it's not about competition or who's the boss.
A place with no gold medals or prize money, with no memory, no location.
A place called Me.

 

[j dizzle]

Riding for me is trying to push my physical limits. Whether that is railing a berm harder than before, or kicking tricks bigger than last time, to me, its always about pushing the progression, being better than the last time i tried something.

I dont wanna sound like a poetic fagget or anything, but when life gets tough, and it feels like not much is worth anything anymore, i go for a ride, and experience my biggest passion, biggest love, in my life.

Posers, though, really do shit me...

 

[NCR600]

Sport is my anger management.

Yes, nothing manages to make me angrier than sport.

Sport is cheaper than drink, cheaper than drugs and a better high altogether.

You either need to get a new dealer, or back off the booze for a sec. I can get drunker than any man alive has ever been for the price of a bottle of Inner Circle 150 proof rum (about $85), or so high on heroin that I'm dead for the same amount. I've spent tens of thousands of dollars on sporting equipment over the years, and still I'm crap at it

Sport takes me to a place where nothing else matters. Where nobody hassles me, nobody loves me and nobody hates me.

You've obviously never been heckled by the crowd when a 12 year old passes you when you're walking your bike up a big hill in a race

A place somewhere between home and work.

No, that's my car.

Not quite rest, not quite recouperation.

True, but it what brings about is the need for rest and recuperation, and ambulances, and spine braces, and physiotherapists and...

A place where I use my body for something it really needs.

What, broken bones? cuts? Major head injuries?

A place without deadlines, and the tick and the tock of life.

Obviously, or no-one would bother taking times at races.

Where the final demand letters don't matter.

Well, they do, particularly the ones threatening to take your car that you put down as surety on the loan to buy the Santa Cruz

Where mountains become molehills.

Or the other way around if you're as fit as me

Where it's not about competition or who's the boss.

No sports are based on beating other people? Are they?

A place with no gold medals or prize money, with no memory, no location.

Sounds like the day after the last race I went in 10 years ago. I didn't win a medal, and thanks to the party that night, I woke up with no memory or knowledge of where I was.

A place called Me.

or a place called reality. You pick.

Sorry if I come across as bitter! (It's only partly true, honest!)

There is nothing I hate more than emotive and psuedo inspirational slogans invented by marketing people to induce sporty types to buy their clothes.

 

[NS_Suburban]

Haha how insightful, NCR600.

For me, riding gets me away from everyone, its all about me. I don't tend to ride with others too much, I avoid the skatepark if theres more than half a dozen or so other people there, and I like to get out on the trails in early morning or late afternoon, when nobody else is around. I like to progress out of sight, I like to hit up the streets when the shops have closed and nobody gets irritated by me hopping onto streets or riding down stairs. I ride to get away from other people and the pressures of life.

 

[derelikt]

http://youtube.com/watch?v=4GbuAeOdoq4




......................

 

[frostbite]

Its fun.

There is many parts to it for me. Theres the sense of achieving something physically demanding when you reach the top of a steep climb.
Theres the awesome competitive feeling when you chase your mate through single track only feet behind him, and when the same guy is on your tail seconds later.
Theres the shot of adrenalin when you pass the point of no return and commit 100% on an obstacle that you havent ridden before and that scares you and you know that you WILL ride it, right now.

 

[fatass]

Yes, nothing manages to make me angrier than sport.


You either need to get a new dealer, or back off the booze for a sec. I can get drunker than any man alive has ever been for the price of a bottle of Inner Circle 150 proof rum (about $85), or so high on heroin that I'm dead for the same amount. I've spent tens of thousands of dollars on sporting equipment over the years, and still I'm crap at it


You've obviously never been heckled by the crowd when a 12 year old passes you when you're walking your bike up a big hill in a race

No, that's my car.

True, but it what brings about is the need for rest and recuperation, and ambulances, and spine braces, and physiotherapists and...

What, broken bones? cuts? Major head injuries?



Obviously, or no-one would bother taking times at races.



Well, they do, particularly the ones threatening to take your car that you put down as surety on the loan to buy the Santa Cruz



Or the other way around if you're as fit as me



No sports are based on beating other people? Are they?



Sounds like the day after the last race I went in 10 years ago. I didn't win a medal, and thanks to the party that night, I woke up with no memory or knowledge of where I was.



or a place called reality. You pick.

Sorry if I come across as bitter! (It's only partly true, honest!)

There is nothing I hate more than emotive and psuedo inspirational slogans invented by marketing people to induce sporty types to buy their clothes.

1. funny
2. I don't do drugs, or alcohol, im 13!
3. well find another sport
4. I'll give you that one.
5. and... more sport to get fit again
6. No, railing that berm lower, getting that little bit flatter or boosting that little bit further
7. sport doesn't need to be racing
8. meh
9. well get fitter
10. don't have to be, ever taken your bike up to the woods for a sesh, for the hell of it? That's not beating anyone, that's called having fun.
11. Me, I pick that.

only being bitter in retaliation for your bitterness, more so for post counts sake and I got nothing better to do. Post why you ride maybe...? Don't take this aggresively, it's not how it's meant to be. Also this really applies to the skateboarding or surfing kind of "live for it" approach. Except for mountains to molehills.

 

[Woodsie]

Fun and shiny things.
Mmmmmm.... shiny things...

 

[Gravjunkie]

You'll have to speak up....I'm wearing a towel!

 

[lanky kona rider]

too be different.

but honestly, just the freedom. And getting away from the family for a bit, they are always hassling me

 

[RahXavi]

too be different.

but honestly, just the freedom. And getting away from the family for a bit, they are always hassling me

i agree getting away from the family abit and the fredom of riding is great also riding with friends to much can become anoying...riding alone sometimes is great

 

[Purt]

I had a rough saturday nite last weekend and so decided to have a quite one on sunday watching movies. I rented out that wild hogs number mainly because i wasnt in the mood for anything to in depth. Closer to the end of the movie the a line came about about "you are the posers, go back and think about why you really ride". i know this movie is based on moto riders but i felt this quote relatd just as well to us mtb'ers. Ive been thinking about it and i recon it just comes down to people needing a sense of freedom and total control over what happens. So i was just wondering about what drives other people to jump on their bikes whenever they get the chance.

peace.

i never have control i just ride and hope im still alive by the time i reach the bottom of the track!

 

[Link]

I ride because when I pop wheelies through the city all the hot chicks outside Hungry Jacks on Swanston St reckon my dyed black hair, side fringe, tight black jeans and my-chemical-romance t-shirt look totally awesome!

I also ride because of the simplicity of it... its just my cromo hardtail with long travel single crown forks, no front brake, single speed gears, no helmet, my mate with a camera (taking sick photos)... and me... pure zen

 

[LIAM?!]

I ride because when I pop wheelies on swanston street all the hot chicks outside Hungry Jacks reckon my dyed black hair, side fringe, tight black jeans and my-chemical-romance t-shirt look totally awesome!

I ride because I know im better than you.

 

[Tizz]

I think that people ride because you go riding and you know that you can go anywhere you want. people sometimes want to be free and with mountain bikes you can go anywhere. rain hail or shine it doesnt matter when your riding. No terrains hold you back and just the feeling of riding in general is why people do ride their bike.