Has Your Mountain Biking Become Stuffy?

The other day I was up at the Whistler Bike Park, chatting with a couple of other high-level coaches. The conversation landed on something that I see all the time with riders I work with: mountain biking (and especially coaching sessions) can sometimes get a little… stuffy.

What I mean is this: many of us, especially the more analytical riders, can get overly focused on 'the next best thing'.

• The next strategy

• The next technique

• The next new bike upgrade

• The next piece of feedback

Always chasing more, always doing more, always trying to be more.

At first it comes from a good place, a genuine hunger to improve. But the unintended side effect is that some riders can end up adding more pressure, stressing themselves out, and actually making riding less enjoyable in the process.

The trap of too much focus

I’ve seen this play out as:

• Constantly comparing yourself to others

• Picking apart everything you’re not yet good at

• Getting stuck in cycles of negative self-talk

• Forgetting to notice the progress you have already made

• Carrying thoughts of one F&*cked up corner halfway down the trail with you

Instead of being fuelled by the fun of riding in itself, riders can end up beating themselves up. “I didn’t ride that feature.” “I’m still bad at this.” “I should be able to do what I used to do.”

And yet, it's likely none of you reading this are doing this for money. Mountain biking isn’t your job. At the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter whether you clean every feature on a trail.

Remember your why

When most of us started riding, it wasn’t about ticking boxes or hitting outcomes. It was about the simple joy of being outside, riding with friends, chasing each other down trails, and laughing whether we kept it rubber side down or ended up covered in dust for the apres.

Progression happened naturally, because we were relaxed, having fun, and willing to play. It was an outcome of the process, not the outcome itself.

So what if you could get back to that place now?

• Where riding isn’t about being “good” or “bad”

• Where the measure of success isn’t the feature you did or didn’t ride

• Where the focus is simply on getting back to your why, whether that be to go fast, feel flow, get outside, or my personal favourite - to have fun!

Paradoxically, this is often when riders progress the most. When they stop obsessing about doing everything “right” and start enjoying the process again.

An invitation

So here’s the question I’ll leave you with:

Has your riding become a little too stuffy?

And if so, how could you bring some of that beginner fun back into it?

Take the pressure off. Let go of the outcome for a ride or two. Go chase your friends down a trail, go ride something silly, go get dusty. Smile either way.

You might just find that progression sneaks up on you again... not because you forced it, but because you allowed yourself to enjoy it.