I’ve often wondered why mountain biking doesn’t have any decent literature.
Cos it’s just pissing about in the woods, isn’t it?
Mountain biking doesn’t have the length and scale of commitment as a climbing expedition, doesn’t have the potential for emotional challenge and personal growth. success and failure aren’t as far apart as they tend to be n in mountaineering. Longer, life/perspective altering journeys tend to be more “cycling” than “mountain biking” even if there’s a fair bit of off road in there as well.
To make it a “mountain biking” journey rather than off road cycling, you need to strip the gear off and have someone else carry it.* It ends up being little more contrived, something like a supported himalayan itinerary, then the scale of the operation and assistance tends to detract from the feelings of being “out there”, the jeopardy and the emotional highs and lows. They make a nice short film with pretty pictures, though – like the recent Rob Warner series.
*or do a journey with unladen day trips from camp – then it’s an off road journey with pissing-about-in-the-woods sections!
The other option is getting the highs and lows out of the sport itself, which is either a history of the sport, a sports bio thing or a group history, lifestyle/ messing about in the woods over a number of years type of book. It’s not screaming “gripping literature” either way.