What makes you want to ride...

Whytepeak
Whytepeak Posts: 2,616
edited February 2009 in MTB general
Going on bikeradar, reading mbuk, watching earthed, looking in the mirror, eating toast...
What is it that provokes a desire to get out on your steed?
Now that we are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak and not to please ourselves. ROMANS 15:1
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Comments

  • Seasons + Animal Commencal Podcast's
  • -liam-
    -liam- Posts: 1,831
    edited February 2009
    The alternative is being confined in a house with 3 young kids gradually decreasing your ability to hear the missus in the kitchen whining about the washing up not being done :lol::lol:

    Also its the one thing in my life that I never have to work to motivate myself to do.I just look forward to getting out and about,, even on the coldest wettest days so who am I to argue ? Must be that I enjoy it.
  • my innate drive to be a f**king menace.
  • On crappy days, it is the buzz you get from knowing you have done something that day, and most of the population will have just spent the whole day in front of the TV. Always nice to get home just when your housemates are waking up as well!!
    I just love being outdoors, and mountain biking gives the the shot of adrenaline I need every now and again to feel human!! The daily 9-5 drag just gets samey after a while!!
    2009 Giant Anthem X2
    2009 On One Il Pompino in SS CX mode!
    2009 Giant Defy 2.5
  • weeksy59
    weeksy59 Posts: 2,606
    The desire to lose weight... and the freedom of space and outdoors.

    I've lost a good chunk of weight this year so keeping going with that is the plan.

    Also getting out by myself into the outdoors, the hills, the freedom, the space and the fact i don't see or hear a single person for 2-3 hours :)
  • -Liam- wrote:
    The alternative is being confined in a house with 3 young kids gradually decreasing your ability to hear the missus in the kitchen whining about the washing up not being done :lol::lol:
    Substitute "washing up" with D I Y and that's my alternative too. I've also a load of friends who are always asking me along :D
    More freerange chicken than Freeride God
    Bighit , 5 , BFe
  • I'm a type 2 diabetic and got this when I gave up racing and training in 1992 - didn't give up eating anything I wanted, though! :oops:

    After trying to eat sensibly without much success, I realised that going out again on the bike and eating whatever I wanted (within limitations) was the more enjoyable cure! :P
    AT MY AGE, I SHOULD KNOW BETTER !!!
  • Soggz
    Soggz Posts: 221
    The smell of freshly churned dirt coupled with the freshness of the air! Can't wait 'till spring to mix it all up with new flora and fauna!
    Utopia!
  • i dont need any motivation to get out! 8)

    if i have the time and the weather is half decent (no rain) then im out :D
  • Watching the first 2 whistler scenes on ROAM....Bloody love it. Hate the rest of the film tho :lol:
  • grantway
    grantway Posts: 1,430
    edited February 2009
    Excapisim is the key away from the T osers on the roads and out into
    open space, no vehciles along side you playing Knob

    And if you see another Mountain Biker they say hello
    you wont get that from the un-human walking the pavement

    Nice thread
  • stev68
    stev68 Posts: 109
    Being at work all week listening to crap on the radio allday bogging up cars for esure customers,dark evenings(dont get night riding :? ),noisy kids, shat t.v,nagging wife lol the list is endless! just love getting all the stuff together night befoe ,then totall nirvana :D
    Told ya itll hurt!
  • LV
    LV Posts: 28
    Being obese, unfit and signed up for the BHF Dorset bike ride in April!
    2009 Mongoose Tyax Super
  • wordnumb
    wordnumb Posts: 847
    Primarily, my motivation to get out on the bike is disappointment / disillusionment in the world around me. I have no aspiration to be the fastest / hardest rider, just love the places, appreciate the people involved in the sport.

    When the singletrack is flowing there is little to compare.
  • P-Jay
    P-Jay Posts: 1,478
    Different things on different day’s tbh.

    Haven't been out for nearly two weeks now because of a bad chest infection that's not responding to antibiotics and it's killing me.

    I've got, in my own opinion an incredibly stressful job, and riding a nice trail is like meditation to me. If I’m concentrating on riding the trail, hitting those roots, nailing that drop or just pulling a little wheelie, I forget about targets and the boss, 12 hour days in the boiler room and the bloody FTSE. Even if its winter and I only get 2-3 hours a week in it's enough to give my brain time to reset.

    Sometimes I like to ride really aggressively to work out my stress, really push and hit things as hard as possible and grunt a lot. I must look a right sight ha ha.

    If the weather is nice and it's really hot a nice cool forest on top of a mountain is about the nicest place on earth. Those days I usually just roll along taking in the view and the general ambience.

    I really mostly need it for fitness, but I try not to think if it that way, if I keep beating myself up to get out and ride to lose the weight I need to lose it starts to feel like a chore and not a joy, so much so I've started to go to the gym for fitness and just ride for the fun of it.
  • Actually, just having a bike makes me want to ride... I can't WAIT for my bike to be built... I just want to abuse her so bad :twisted: ... urgh I need to lie down :lol:
  • Northwind
    Northwind Posts: 14,675
    I don't really know, I just do. I got back on the bike as physio for a knackered leg, with no real intention of doing much serious riding, forgetting (as I had for 10 years) that actually, riding bikes is BRILLIANT.
    Uncompromising extremist
  • Love for the outdoors + the thrill of a good technical section of trail + i just love riding a bike dont know why
  • Motivation - I love riding my bike it destresses me and makes me feel alive again. The feeling you get after a good bit of singletrack / downhill or even an enjoyable climb is great.

    A lot of peoples lives are so dull they sit in front of a box watching tv or playing games then they go and sit in a box to get where they want to go. and if its work i dare say a lot of them sit staring at a box to do there jobs. Too many boxes in there lives :lol:

    I dont want to be one of those people
  • Steve_F
    Steve_F Posts: 682
    Work does it for me. Sitting in front of a computer 7 days a week already has me thinking I wish I was out of my bike!

    Apart from that I don't really need much motivation.

    A better question for me would be how can you keep yourself off your bike? Doctor told me to take some time off to fix my knees but I haven't missed a weekend yet. Oops!
    Current steed is a '07 Carrera Banshee X
    + cheap road/commuting bike
  • llamafarmer
    llamafarmer Posts: 1,893
    Monday mornings!

    Sitting in front of a computer 7:30 - 4:30 5 days a week. I can't wait to get out at the weekend and challenge myself in the mud, roots and rocks. It gives me a reason to get outdoors and enjoy the seasons and forget about everything except the trail in front of me and whether I can make it to the top of that hill without stopping for a breather. Sharing it all with people who feel exactly the same makes it even better.

    Is it the weekend yet? :(
  • It’s a great way of unwinding, it’s “my time” away from work, wife, kids, shopping and all the other stuff, a good way to see the country side and get some fresh air.

    I enjoy the physical side too, since I packed in footy it’s the only exorcise I get. Just love cold bright mornings (and we’ve had plenty of these lately). Some times tired & wet, lungs feeling like they are going to burst, legs burning, but once I’m back and showered I feel full of energy for the rest of the day.

    I ride with a group of friends I’ve known a long time, some since school, and it’s a good way of catching up / keeping in touch. I do like the occasional ride on my own though, my pace my route etc, and this is when I do my best exploring, I grew up in Wakefield and I keep thinking I know this city but I’m still finding new spots & routes.
  • KonaMike
    KonaMike Posts: 805
    I rode a bike allot as a kid and now I'm 34 with 2 kids of my own but there is a strange feeling of familiarity and satisfaction I get every time I get on a Bike !! It makes me feel younger,healthier,less stressed and like I still have that one thing that I do just for me .
  • Great Thread this

    My reasons are (in no particular order)

    The personal challenges:L stamping on those cranks to see if you can get up that killer hill or improve your time by a few seconds
    Stress relief
    Weight loss / fitness
    The love of being outdoors
    The comaradery between bikers
    The technical side of mountain biking as I love hands on tinkering, maintenance and upggrading
    The pride in owning (a) decent mountain bike(s)
  • dav1
    dav1 Posts: 1,298
    life
    Giant TCR advanced 2 (Summer/race)
    Merlin single malt fixie (Commuter/winter/training)
    Trek superfly 7 (Summer XC)
    Giant Yukon singlespeed conversion (winter MTB/Ice/snow)

    Carrera virtuoso - RIP
  • .blitz
    .blitz Posts: 6,197
    Whytepeak wrote:
    What is it that provokes a desire to get out on your steed?
    There's no desire, it's what I do. Everything else is an interruption.
  • OwenB
    OwenB Posts: 606
    My desire to get fit and the love of the outdoors should be enough to get me out riding. However I've been so busy this year I've not gotten out much and annoyingly I'm only ten minutes from Grizedale and loads of other good riding country.
    My new bike (not yet arrived) has got me itching to get out and ride regularly again, stuff the boring chores of day to day living I'm off into the woods!
  • On the Kona

    I love bouncing off the rocks in Derbyshire and that feeling of 'I could die at any moment' really gets the adreneline going. Nothing better than pushing the limits, if it goes wrong ever at least i'll get some of that national insurance money put to use after donating for 10 years without any need.

    On the Scale

    For some bizarre reason I've become addicted to climbing, the feeling of your lungs trying to split your rib cage and then the rush of energy as your body begins to recover and return to a normal state. But I also like the sheer speed of dry singletrack, nothing better than having the bike dancing about underneath you as you ride on the edge.

    Also, as mentioned before if I ever need to switch off, or think to myself for a bit, i'll saddle up and head off out for a few hours and just mong out on the road or bridleways. Usually returning with some crazy ideas or just a load of babble to bore er in doors to death with.
    Scott Scale Custom
    http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v496/ ... C09729.jpg

    Kona Coilair 2007 Dark Peak Destroyer
    http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v496/ ... C09727.jpg

    "BOCD - If it aint perfect it aint good enough"
  • .blitz wrote:
    Whytepeak wrote:
    What is it that provokes a desire to get out on your steed?
    There's no desire, it's what I do. Everything else is an interruption.
    Smooth..10/10 hehe.
  • .blitz wrote:
    Whytepeak wrote:
    What is it that provokes a desire to get out on your steed?
    There's no desire, it's what I do. Everything else is an interruption.
    Smooth..10/10 hehe.