To you! 😆 Ha, lured ye in, so just curious, how would you describe your riding, What floats your boat in the mtb world? How would you describe yourself as a mountain biker?

Me? Same as always, main focus is really just getting out and about in the country, it’s good for the soul, trails, views and just finding/seeing new bits of the country when i can, getting out of the city. Never have been the best, never will be, don’t particularly aspire to be, I don’t have the balls! Very much a wheels on the ground type rider aware of my limits, foot high kerb style jumps are about my max! and even these days, hmm, mojo is long gone, the braveness ain’t coming back(wee bit more would be nice mind), I know I’ll hit the ground harder than i used to! 😆 Will point myself down a certain level of rocky/rooty stuff, steeper it gets the more I think twice about it! Appreciating the easier stuff the older I get! Still it’s all good, bimbling about is just a part of life i don’t see myself ever giving up!

So, what does your mountain biking world sound like? What does it mean to you these days?

Basically word for word what you said OP. Pleased I’m not alone!

Got photo’s to prove my earlier, more ‘exciting’ MTB life though.

I haven’t ridden for five or six years. That’s why I hang out on the chat forum, we don’t talk about bikes here…

I take the view that if a sport is popular there must be something to like in it – so I try and find what that is. This makes my tastes quite catholic.  So I see the appeal of long distance riding, racing, techy down stuff, techy up stuff, all sorts.  Only practicalities prevent me from doing everything.

Bimbling about though – that’s not so much in my nature.  If I’m going to do it, I want to do it as hard as I can.

bimbling mibbe gives slightly the wrong sense, ive not quite chucked it! 😆 I’d guess that just describes how seriously I take it all, it’s not really a sport to me a guess. It’s just fun/enjoyment rather than competition probably more what i mean.

Just fun for me. I can forget my worries and responsibilities for a short time whilst scaring myself, exercising and feeling free. Nothing else gives me the same feeling.

love the countryside, love exercise, love being a fat fit bloke.

but most of all, i love the feeling cycling gives me, now, and 45 years ago, nearest thing to flying…………. just ace

It’s mainly a social thing ..getting out with friends who are like minded ..exploring hills & mountains both locally and on mini trips away ..it plays such an important part in terms of my general well being / health .

I can’t imagine a time without it..and hope that day is a long way off ..

Riding a bike fast*, especially down a hill gives me a similar feeling to snowboarding. Not quite the same but close.

Being in the hills is great regardless though, on foot, on bike, on plank(s).

*when I say fast, I mean, well, faster than slow….I’m old and lacking gumption!

Cos it’s great innit?

Bimbling – nothing I love more than a countryside pootle along Devon’s byways.

Fettling – love building, tweaking, servicing, bodgeneering, and generally fannying about with bikes.

Exercise – feels great to put in some miles and make your legs ache. Good for you isn’t it!

Speed – trying to get a pb on a bit of trail (gotta love Strava) and maybe get a cheeky KOM if you’re lucky.

Friendship – some of my oldest and best friends are through MTbing.

It’s lots of things to me: challenge, exercise, fun, time with good friends, time alone, countryside, mental well-being, meeting new people, from dry dusty trails in the sunshine to wind, rain and mud.

I do 24hr races. Stupid idea, needlessly hard, take ages to recover from, if it’s wet not enjoyable at the time. Every time I do one I keep threatening that it will be my last.

I won’t stop though, I love the people too much, met some great folks through it, definitely the best aspect, I would miss them.

Also I do like pushing myself to get better at something and riding a bike quite slowly for a very long time is the only thing I’m half decent at, no chance of getting to the same level at anything else.

And I like being out in the hills in the sunshine.

Tonight I went on my first group evening ride since early spring.

Great people to ride with and good conversation, incredible views, physically challenging climbs, wickedly quick and mostly singletrack descents, pub.

Before that riding with my kids watching them be Froome and Thomas but on mountain bikes and racing each other and then taking eldest for a little taste of some red route for the first time and seeing him pick his way through it.

Before that the wonderful solitude of whizzing through the woods as the light was failing on as fast as I could manage knowing I was probably the last one out on the hill that night.

And hundreds of other rides of different characters.

As for the point it makes me and my family happy what more purpose does it need.

I used to ride in my late teens, early twenties (15 years ago) then stopped riding completely apart from a few years on a fixed gear bike around Bristol. In the last few years I’d always looked longingly at the shiny full suspension bikes in bike shop windows, and a few other factors contributed to me getting a MTB again. My BiL is a very fit road cyclist who’s about to buy an MTB, I’ve grown out of spending hours every week during winter shut away gaming on the PC/consoles, and I own motorbikes but during winter I only ride out of necessity, not fun – a combination of all the above lead to me getting back into mountain biking, for something to do during winter, for something to get my fitness back up to a decent level again, and because it’s great fun!! Mountain biking does make the perfect winter addition for someone who rides motorbikes, I used to commute on the motorbike during winter but I’ve done a few years of that and it’s just fair weather riding for me now.

Currently it’s just local trail centres and natural trails but in the next few years I want to do some riding further afield from Kent, so Wales, peak/lake district etc, and having spent 2 weeks in the Alps on my motorbike last year I need to go back to the Dolomites with a mountain bike. Oh and my job is 2 miles away so I needed a bike to be able to commute, the MTB does that too (yeah, some would say walk but it takes 35 minutes which is a long old walk when you just want to get home!!).

Oh and during the past 15 or so years I’ve surfed, windsurfed, snowboarded, mountain biked and ridden motorbikes so it would seem I always need something with a bit of adrenaline in my life!

Fun.

For me; riding downhill is fun, fast and swoopy, slow and techy, jumps, drops, berms etc. Wheelies, bunnyhops, clearing stair sets, trials hopping about, pump track, skatepark, anything that makes me smile on my bike.

Riding up is just a means to a end for me. Fitness benefits are a bonus.

hmmm, well it’s exercise, and that’s only the first thing i say because primarily a doorstep rider with poor trails on doorstep. currently on holiday in the middle of france, and still riding doorstep trails gleaned from strava. there’s lots of potential for great trails here but it’s all fenced off and private. but still very much enjoying 26″ mtb 120mm fs on the country lanes, gravel tracks, and the the odd bit of singletrack here and there i stumble across. the heat over here (35C avg) at the moment is making me think i can laugh at any heat the uk can throw at me now but am making sure to stay as hydrated as reasonably possible. just like riding off road. any off road is better than none as long as i enjoy it.

Agree with much of what the OP and vickypea have said – different things at different times, sometimes alone, sometimes with friends, but always as good for the mind as much as the body. I have 2 kids – time on the bike at the weekend is “me” time when I can clear my head and escape for a bit! On hols, a good bike ride is something my eldest always enjoys and is equally valued because of that (exercise, quality time etc).

In addition, my bike is one of the few mechanical objects I can legitimately tinker with for the hell of it (unlike my car these days).

Heaving up hills is somehow good for me. Under my own steam. View from the top. Lungs bursting. Honest sweat and fresh air. Sometimes rain. Soaked through. Hooning down unfamiliar woody paths. Nipping down cheeky coastal path sections to camp by the ocean swell. Bimbling through cool pine avenues to the Centre Of The Forest to rest awhile in the silence. Sucking cold water from the bottle. Sitting by a bridge cooling off watching the dragonflies. Night sounds, owls and foxes and strange cries across the moor. The thick dew looks creepy in the bright spot of my front lights. Swish of tyres in the frost. Cold nose drips, wipe on back of mitts.  Smell of sweaty mitts and GT85.

Away from it all. No cars. No clamour.

TV and social media making you want to punch yourself in the face? Grab bike, shut front door behind, go hopping kerbs. Nowhere in particular. Just ride. Seat slammed right down.  Standing room only.  Empty skate parks, floodlit car parks, unlit alleyways, towpaths and city cycle lanes. Explore your neighbourhood and get to know about where you live. Times at home or pub planning the multi-day ride, poring over unfamiliar maps. Placing all your gear on the floor before loading up. I love fitting a foil-wrapped peanut butter sandwich into the tiny Lobo backpack along with just enough kit to get me by for the day.

Less is more.  Your own rules.

The noise of cycling is rhythmic and meditative. Longer rides alter your mind. Help with focus and inspiration. MTB’ing is acoustically peppered with crunching gravel, clattering stones, pinging spokes, buzzing tyres.  All of nature.  Music to the ears. Sometimes I take earbuds and ride to my music library. Gliding through an off-road movie as the lead protagonist to a pumping soundtrack. Let’s go further because it sounds and feels so good.

Daring descents, sometimes fine, sometimes a fluffed line. Adrenalin surge. Over the bars. Blood and dirt. Brambled, bruised and nettled. Brush it off. Get better. Life x1000. Freewheel flying. Swooping through tree-tunnels, caning it over hardpack summer downs. Splashing across fords and skidding through leaf piles, kicking up loamy scents. Tinkering with bikey things at home or on the trail. Stripping it down, rebuilding and making it run nice. Shiny  upgrade for birthday? Maybe a new light set? New tyres? More excuses to get out at night. Ride and a pint with mates? Sunday sorted. Maybe Saturday too. Maybe a new bike or a restoration on the horizon? Maybe this one is just perfect?

Let’s ride it some more. Let’s ride it someplace else. Let’s see how it goes.

Case in point: This evening was feeling flat so I went out for a short blast over the park and common.  Just because. Returning home I saw two peregrines screeching and wheeling together over a church tower. One split away sideways then flew right over my head. I grinned and made a turn down off the street, following the falcon and whooping loudly with unalloyed delight before taking some air off a grassy bank, weaving through the deserted Winter Gardens like a loon. I did another circuit, following the muse of my front wheel.  Another hour passes.  One hour that seems like three.  Life-lengthening.

51 years and nearly 40 of them with a mountain bike. There have been long gaps when I physically couldn’t, and all I could then think about was getting to the point where I could once more.  Is that the point?  There seem to be a lot of points.  Because of a painful physical condition I now can’t walk far to the places I loved most of all – so the mountain bike gives me access.  I can leave the bike on the bank and swim in the pool/river.  I can also go and see what’s over the next hill.  And the next.  A mountain bike is magical mystery machine that also keeps you in shape.

Currently ’08 P7 running single-speed (32/16 ) and 130mm forks. 2.35 front. 2.4 rear. Loving it.

Edit:

<span style=”font-size: 0.8rem;”>* 51 years and nearly </span>30<span style=”font-size: 0.8rem;”> of them with a mountain bike.</span>

Fun! No other words needed.

Does there have to be a point? I like pointless stuff.

It’s cathartic, it helps clear my mind as it forces you to concentrate on the now. It’s why I like climbs, being on the edge of exhaustion and just about holding on does wonderful things to my brain. In truth, I get similar with running so it’s not just about the bike, it’s about being outside exercising and pushing myself.

Malvern Rider, wow I really want to get out on the bike after reading you’re reply. You’ve just summed up everything I love about riding far more eloquently than I ever could. But yeah “what’s the point of mountain biking to me” I just bloody enjoy it, nothing more, nothing less.

Malvern Rider sums it up perfectly. I’ll add:

I’ve always done it, so it’s what I do. I was messing about on a bike in a wood before I knew it was mountain biking, and I guess I never stopped. For me the challenge is always pushing myself out of the comfort zone, whether that’s fitness or techy riding, don’t really mind. And if we’re being honest, mountain biking satisfies my inner geek and shiny bit magpie inner self.

Checking my PRs for any that haven’t been broken this year

OMG there’s one from 2016

*goes riding*

It started as an extension of mountaineering for me; another means of getting out into wild country after feet and touring skis. Being self-sufficient was part of the attraction.

It’s just for fun, fitness and a good way to pass the time. I enjoy riding bikes, it’s a simple pleasure and a great way to explore the countryside.

I spent my youth riding a BMX, I was never any good at it, but it was still good fun. I bought a mountain bike when I finished uni and started exploring the local area. There’s not a huge amount of great riding locally, but there’s enough to keep me interested, and no two rides are the same. I love the way the trails are affected by the weather, and the subtle changes in technique required as the conditions change. In short, it’s always rewarding.

Space – both mental and physical.  The ability to slow down by going faster.  Happiness.

access to the hills was what started it, then got sucked in – that and a  guy at work got an MTB and I thought ‘ooh, that’s nice’.    still doing it, that was back in 1986, some fallow spells but basically it’s out in the outdoors, at my own pace or with mates..

I got into mtb when I was a roady club racing and fancied a crack at xc racing. Racing gives me a buzz, so it worked for me. Then same with the road bike for me, just riding out either chills me or I get a buzz depending on how many beans I’m giving it. You can just pick a ride that suits your mood or one that changes it. You see some great stuff, you are out in all weather’s, it puts a smile on my face and makes me feel alive. I have to say after 25 year’s cycle commuting, I don’t look forward to every ride, but there hasn’t been one ride where I don’t feel better for doing it. And being vain, it makes me feel good. I’m a trim fit and healthy 47 year old, there is nothing I haven’t been able to with the kids, and doubt there won’t be with the grand kids. I came out of the army with some mental health issue’s and had 26 year’s working as a nurse since then, and never had a day off due to my mental health. I’m pretty sure this wouldn’t have been the case without cycling, it let’s me put life in perspective and just reminds me I’m a lucky guy.

I like these threads, they remind me that I’m not quite as wierd as I thought 🙂

I don’t actually identify as a Mountain Biker anymore. I do like to ride my bike up and down mountains, but the mindset is very diferent. To my mind Mountain Biking is an adrenaline sport. Mountain Bikers like to be at the edge of their comfort zone where I like to be well within mine. They enjoy scaring themselves where I don’t. Basically they start to have fun at just the point where I stop.

I enjoy getting out into the hills, preferably on my own. It’s hiking with the advantage that I can go further in the limited time I have. It’s trail running with the advantage of machines to tinker with and drool over.

Sometimes I get frustrated by my own cowardice. I’ll look at a line that I know (from Strava, Trailforks or just the tyre tracks) has been ridden by lots of Mountain Bikers and think “stop being a wuss, just go for it”. Then I remember how much I hated being off the bike with broken bones and resolve not to spend my precious leisure time beating myself up.

main focus is really just getting out and about in the country, it’s good for the soul, trails, views and just finding/seeing new bits of the country when i can, getting out of the city. Never have been the best, never will be, don’t particularly aspire to be, I don’t have the balls! Very much a wheels on the ground type rider aware of my limits, foot high kerb style jumps are about my max! and even these days, hmm, mojo is long gone, the braveness ain’t coming back(wee bit more would be nice mind), I know I’ll hit the ground harder than i used to!  Will point myself down a certain level of rocky/rooty stuff, steeper it gets the more I think twice about it! Appreciating the easier stuff the older I get! Still it’s all good, bimbling about is just a part of life i don’t see myself ever giving up!

This. AKA ‘pony trekking, but on a bike’

Cake.

I started road cycling 2014, after years of inactivity, smoking and being generally rubbish. Stopped all that, lost weight, got fit. Fell in love with being out on the lanes, the freedom, the sounds and rhythm – tyres swooshing, perfectly tuned and lubed gear quietly humming, heavy breathing but in control, looking for a burn in my legs, finding it and holding it. Loving the hills, loving seeing my friend’s pained faces whilst we’re chasing each other to the top. Malvern Rider describes it perfectly, I read it and instantly thought, that’s it, but I had a roadie kind of version.

But cars….motorists…all the anger in our beautiful country, slowly killed my passion.
This spring, I was just losing my mojo, wasn’t feeling the strong compulsion to get out on the bike. But I’d had this thing in the back of my mind for a long time, to want to get away from the quiet tarmac lane I’m on, and into those woods over there. I’d wonder, what’s over there, or in there, and what’s at the top of that grassy hill.

I sold my TT bike and bought my first proper hardtail. In an instant boom, I was back in love, oh wow, this is amazing!! I’m in the woods/heathland just near my house, I didn’t know this bit was here! I can work just as hard up the hills to get the HR buzz if I want, but it’s just so peaceful and beautiful. I’d stop at the top of a hill, there’s nobody here, no roads, no angry people, it’s dead quiet apart from some birds of prey soaring, it’s absolutely gorgeous, stunning, calm and peaceful.

But I’m a roadie, good legs and terrible handling! I joined an awesome local club, and have learned stacks. How to ride the thing (did a couple of basic skills courses) and more importantly, got shown where to find the good stuff. Met some great people, and it’s nice that MTBers end the ride in a pub rather than a poncy coffee shop 😉 It’s only 7 weeks since I’ve been riding MTB, so quite nervy on the steep stuff, but love the singletrack.

I did kind of get lucky and buy my hardtail right at the start of the best summer I’ve ever known (I was born 1980), and have had the luxury and riding hard, dry and fast trails! But I’m not soft, I’m actually looking forward to the mud!

Depends on my mood, the time of year, fitness, what bike I’m on, what trail I’m on, the weather, and plenty of other factors.

At the moment I’m really enjoying my commute. 25 miles each way on the road means I can do it in about 1h30 on the road bike, or 1h51 on the rigid singlespeed*.  But the rigid singlespeed makes Swinley a viable diversion, which makes it even more fun being able to smash out a lap of the blue on the way home.

Over the winter it’s all about turning up in some predetermined car park in the dark to ride around the woods with some other lunatics. Gets me out of the house, socialising, keeping fit and to be that’s British mountainbiking.  Big summertime loops in the, Peak, Lake district or Scotland are all well and good, as are trail centers, but there’s something a bit more real about the humble muddy singletrack night ride.

Big days out in the mountains when a combination of fitness and weather align so it feels like you could just keep knocking out hills and passes all day.

Reaching mach2 on a red run descent, riding everything blind and the whole thing just flowing like a rollercoaster. It’s like Zen, but with a huge shot of adrenaline and endorphins.

*slight detour via cycle paths accounts for some of that extra time.

good thread!

Looking at the pictures taken at Ardrock, i can fairly safely state that the “point” of mountain biking is to enable middle aged blokes with little hair but big beards to buy very expensive carbon trinkets, and then hang those trinkets on the back of very expensive German Camper vans………..

seriously, look at the pics, and play “spot the not middle aged man on £5k bike” game

(i should note that i am in fact middle aged, but i haven’t got a beard or a camper van…… yet…….   😉

tbh I do fancy turning up to one of those enduro’s and seeing how shit really am! 😆 think I’ll fire across to dunoon some time, try out a few stages first mind! But it sounds like I should fit in fine with my half corroded scratched up hardtail! 😆

Just like being up in the mountains. Any bike will do.

The higher, the better.

I’m only 30(ish), ride a steel hardtail and have only a slightly receding hairline, I do have a beard though, can I join in?