First of all, let me start off by saying that mountain biking is hard. Life is also hard. Mountain biking can also be TONS of fun. So can life.
Today, on a long ride with my husband, I realized how much I've learned just by picking up mountain biking.
Lesson One:
You will fall down.
The lesson is not in the fall... but in how quickly you get back up and keep going.
You just will. If you ride long enough, eventually you'll do something that accidentally results in a fall (no one falls on purpose). Last weekend I fell... twice. I was riding with people who were much faster than me and I was struggling to keep up with their pace. Only one of my falls actually hurt (and caused some minor bleeding) but because I was so worried about catching up to the group, I jumped up as quickly as possible... got right back on my bike... and kept going. When I caught up to the group and showed them my battle scars, I realized that I never even actually processed any pain. They asked if I was ok and I smiled and said "YEP."
The bruises on my body after that ride were little reminders all week that life will knock you down sometimes but you can choose whether you stay down or you can get back up and keep attacking the path before you.
Lesson Two:
Keep your focus on the path in front of you.
You want to know HOW to fall on your bike??? Look at where you DON'T want to go. Let your eyes stray to the rock in your way... or the cliff to the side of you... and you will be sure to HIT that rock or go over that cliff.
I used to struggle because I was always looking at the obstacles in my way. There were two big rocks and a TINY little path between them (just big enough for a bike tire). I looked at those rocks and HIT THEM EVERY SINGLE TIME. When I started looking at the little path between those rocks, I was suddenly able to ride it.
If you are constantly looking at the obstacles in your way in life, you will NEVER get around them. Don't look at the obstacles.... look at the path.
Lesson Three:
You have to finish the ride.
No one is going to come and rescue you when you get tired. It's up to YOU to get yourself up the mountain... and it's up to YOU to get down. Even if you turn around and go back the way you came, YOU are the one who will complete the task.
Climbing can be hard. It can be frustrating. It's often exhausting. But in order to ride your bike down a mountain, all fun and flowy, you first have to ride UP that mountain which means you have to know what you're made of. You have to learn to keep pedaling no matter how much it hurts. Take a break if you must but as soon as you can... keep going!
Life can hurt while you're going through it but if you stop "pedaling" you will stay right where you are... right in the hurt. You have no choice but to "pedal damnit" (this is a phrase plastered right on the tube of a particular brand of mountain bike).
Lesson Four:
There are UPS... and there are DOWNS.
Ironically, this is where mountain biking and life differ. In mountain biking, the UPhill can be hard. In life the "ups" are high points... the good times. In biking, the DOWNhill can be a BLAST. In life, the "downs" are typically a bummer.
Regardless, in both, there are ups and downs and one thing you can be sure of: it won't be ALL UP or ALL DOWN. Whatever you are feeling right now... it won't last. It will change.
I hope your LIFE is full of UPS and your BIKE RIDE is full of DOWNS!
OK BLAIR... ENOUGH WORDS... MORE PICTURES PLEASE ( I know that's what you're thinking).
OK... here ya go! Here's a photo dump from our lives lately... enjoy!
 |
| YUBA!!! HEAVENLY'S MOST AWESOME AVALANCHE DOG. WE WATCHED HIM FOR A WEEK. |
 |
| AWESOME "SKY ON FIRE" SUNSET |
 |
 |
| YUBA WANTED TO TAKE IN THE SUNSET TOO |
 |
| MIKE AND YUBA SWIMMING |
 |
| SO SLEEPY |
 |
| HE LOOKS LIKE HE'S IN PUPPY PRISON |
 |
| SWEET BOY |
 |
| SLEEPING AGAIN |
 |
| AND THIS... IS NOT YUBA! HAHA.... THIS IS TALLY! SHE BELONGS TO SOME FRIENDS OF OURS AND WE GOT TO WATCH HER FOR A NIGHT! |
 |
| TALLY AGAIN... SNUGGLING WITH YUBA'S HAIR BRUSH. |
We've had a blast being dog sitters lately. We also had Brewster (another Heavenly dog) for a few days in the mix but sadly, I didn't get any pictures of him. We took NO pictures from mountain biking. Sorry... but we were too busy getting shreddy!
That's it for now. I'm hoping to have some pictures of a few completed house projects soon. Stay tuned!
