A Trail Doesn't Define Your Day

So there is a new trail in Sprockids Park in Gibsons.  It was built by the Mountain Bike Program by Capilano University.  Its a great trail with lots of trail features like a pump track, ladders, table tops and drops.  One such feature is a 4 foot drop into a really nice transition.  I've ridden to the lip of the drop 6-7 times on two different occasions and it just sketches me out.  The reason being, I figure, is that I can't see the landing until the last second.  Its a confidence and trust thing that I can't seem to wrap my head around it.  I wear all the gear that should protect me if  things go wrong. But this is a real mind over matter thing.  Two  times now I've eventually taken the chicken route and I have beat myself up about it for the rest of the ride and for a good long time after the ride.  I'm literally depressed about it.  It didn't matter if the ride leading up to the drop was totally great (which it was) as I defined my ride and my remaining day based on this one failed accomplishment.   In fact, after not doing the drop, I rode the Relax log feature (40' log skinny) which I should have been jumping for joy! Have you been there?

I realized that defining my ride is not about mastering every single feature on every trail on every ride. That the whole ride is made up of several trails with dozens of trail features to master in time.  The key is to master features in time.  One trail feature passed by out of 30 plus features that I did do is a pretty good score on any test! I know there will be a day that my mind and body will tell me to go for the drop, but until that time, I'm in no rush.

---WAB1234---

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