Trying to get my girlfriend into mountain biking

LeighM

Whilst I enjoy my solo rides, I'd also like my girlfriend to come along every once in a while. She's not overly keen just yet, but I've managed to get her to come with me to Cannock at the end of August so that's a good start.

I know FTD well and don't think there's much she won't be able to roll over, but I was wondering if there are any other midlands-ish trail centres with bike hire that are similir in difficulty to FTD that we could also try.

She's physically fit and goes to the gym 3-4 times a week but I don't want to push her too far too soon and put her off before she's started.

I'm sure many of you have been in asimilar situation so any tips as to what to try/avoid would be great. It'd also be good to get a female perspective, any girls out there with any advice?

TIA.

blister pus

start again and get a new improved cycling bird

hoochylala

LeighM wrote:

I know FTD well and don't think there's much she won't be able to roll over, but I was wondering if there are any other midlands-ish trail centres with bike hire that are similir in difficulty to FTD that we could also try.

Try Sherwood Pines - Blue + Red route, Plently there to keep you busy for a good few hours - everything rollable and a bit easier than Cannock - there is a 'downhill' skills area if you want a little bit more fun on the day.

Failing that, go with Blisters advice

Kiwi Kranker

I have been in exactly the same place. Despite being gym fit my fiancee was not riding fit so you need to design your trail accordingly. I started off in Brechfa where there was a trail whereby if you ride it fast its still fun but if she rides it slow its still fun for you yet still challenging for a newbie yet rideable.

The key thing is for a trail is to not scare then away, everybody's first mtb ride is nerve wracking so get them through the first one with out giving them grief about speed etc is the key! Everyone wants to feel they have done well no matter what level!

I am sure if you get the first ride right it goes from there! Good luck!

Bling Bling

Tbh, this question pops up a lot, but it is much harder to answer than that. You know your girlfriend - you know she is more than just a girl, she is an individual. Why don't you ask her what would make the experience enjoyable for her, maybe check out the options online together and get her to choose.

sandy hill

MIght I suggest that you take her spd shoe shopping?

cycle monster

My wife loves exercise so getting her to come cycling is not a problem, especially as our young boys love it. She does like to vary the location a fair bit though. I have found it best not to push it too far. We are all different and some will be more into it than others. Bling Bling's advice sounds on the money.

LeighM

Thanks for the input folks.

Kiblams

I used sherwood as a good beginners step for the missus, we did the first half of the blue route before she told me she was bored stiff so we headed back and did the red instead.

It was a fairly slow rate of improvement to when we started riding other trail centres across the UK (this may be different for you) but now less than a year on she is getting so much quicker every week, I am beginning to struggle to catch her up at times on the downs after giving her a little room to go ahead

Good Luck and try to be patient and stay calm

covelove

my advice would be to make sure she has a decent bike, even if it means swapping yours for hers for the day. My wife rekons its a real put off when she see's females out on some crappy carrera halfords job with their hubby in front on a blinged up zesty.

cooldad

This ^

I see the same thing with kids - father out on a fancy job, and the kids looking miserable on some solid steel bso, that probably weighs more than they do.

Stevo_666

cooldad wrote:

This ^

I see the same thing with kids - father out on a fancy job, and the kids looking miserable on some solid steel bso, that probably weighs more than they do.

Sounds familiar :oops:

shx8000

I took my GF to Dalby, we started off on the blue route nd ended up doing the red.

She's been once before, but hated it, and I ws pretty sure it ws this ttitude tht meant she was gonna hate riding with me. As it was she loved it, and I ws really surprised by how well she did. She's now looking at spending £2k+ on her first bike.

Difference between going with me and time before, was that we hired a womens specific full susser from Purplemountain. Girls like to be comfy

Xiphon

Make sure she's riding a 'proper' bike - my missus has a small Patriot, and will happily tackle any terrain just by following me down the hill. She's not a 'mountain biker' per se, but does enjoy day long xc rides.

Kiblams

I have always tried to ensure that mine and the wifes bikes are closely matched, we have the same brakes and both run RS Toras. Just need to upgrade her drivetrain to Deore and we are level pegging. Lucky her birthday is in a few months

Xiphon

Mine:

http://www.pinkbike.com/photo/5287757/

Hers:
http://www.pinkbike.com/photo/5287749/

Both pretty much bomb proof, for riding around the Lakes.

tsenior

dont bother, once you are married with kids you will be glad to get away by yourself for a few hours.

then return refreshed, clear minded and ready to regrout the bathroom

.blitz

LeighM wrote:

I know FTD well and don't think there's much she won't be able to roll over

mrs. blitz does some of FtD but there are some sections she's not comfortable with. We miss out those sections and have a social along one of the bash roads until we pick up the trail again. It may be worth reccying some of the escape routes so you can bale/chill as required.

Dubzy

Would you share her interest if she took up flower arranging? No, didn't think you would.

Some hobbies are personal and although you want to share your enthusiasm with your loved one - when you do, you can see her shutters coming down and her mind thinking "boring".

Hey, such is life - Venus and Mars and all that. :roll:

paulrockliffe

Mine insists she borrows my bouncy bike because it feels like she's riding the sofa. Apparently.

I get some funny looks, I'm sure everyone things I'm a right bastard, but she always has first pick of the bikes; Carbon 456, built light but strong, or Santa Cruz Bullit built heavy. She always wants the BUllit and flies up the hills on it. Awesome!

anton1r

My missus mtbs.

She more enjoys the exploration factor of MTBing which therefore means we're less likely to be hitting the same trail centres over and over (4/5 times at Glentress was more than enough for her). Absolutely fine by me as it means we try out other trail centres and get out into the local hills semi regularly.

Oddly enough she prefers the uphill section of routes (she powers up them usually leaving me behind :oops:) and doesn't like the downhill type trail sections as much, so she's pretty slow on them. However, she's happy enough to hop off and walk the bike down if needs be which is fine as it keeps us moving!

One other thing is she fanciers herself as a bit of a photographer. So we'll often be riding along and she'll randomly stop to take photos. Again if that's what needed to get her out on her bike then fair enough!

In summary, my missus mtbs she enjoys the outdoors anyway so give her a decent bike (she's got a decent HT and for her next bike I suspect she'll go XC full sus for comfort factor), allow her to take her time (to a degree) and she's more than happy to be out in the hills with me.
I guess if your missus is more of a sex and the city type your pretty screwed though!

t0pc4t

Dubzy wrote:

Would you share her interest if she took up flower arranging? No, didn't think you would.

Some hobbies are personal and although you want to share your enthusiasm with your loved one - when you do, you can see her shutters coming down and her mind thinking "boring".

Hey, such is life - Venus and Mars and all that. :roll:

don't knock flower arranging until you've tried it my friend

missgroover

You could always do what my other half did to me a few years ago - chucked me on his old hardtail and raced off round the MBR trail at Coedy, occasionally shouting instructions over his shoulder and laughing at all the swearing I was doing. In at the deep end, sink or swim was his theory!
Worked though as I ride more than he does now

lukem2

Thank yourself lucky, my gf wont even gt on one. Its not all bad though, she has absolutely no idea how much i spend on my 2little " hobby :twisted:

missgroover

Yes it can certainly become a money pit can't it?
I describe it as an elaborate and expensive way of self harm
But I wouldn't have it any other way!

Kiblams

lukem2 wrote:

Thank yourself lucky, my gf wont even gt on one. Its not all bad though, she has absolutely no idea how much i spend on my 2little " hobby :twisted:

My wife rides the trail centres with me and has no idea how much the bits on her bike are worth, she just lets me get on with maintaining and upgrading the bikes

.blitz

What? That? Nooooooooooo I've had it ages...

mea00csf

first time i went out mtb was with my brother. i was on a 17 or 18" bike with the saddle as low as it would go. we went to ......Wharnecliffe :shock: Picked the more crosscountry ish bits but i was petrified for a lot of it.
weirdly the thing i remember most was going over the bars in the carpark, just as there's a little dip to go around the gate into the woods. One tip, warn your girlfriend how powerful disc brakes are so she doesn't pull them like she would knackered, old, badly set up brakes :oops:

seriously tho, judge what route you do carefully. If she does other sports that require a bit of bottle and is ok with just general cycling she'll be fine on much harder trails for instance. if she's never ventured out of the gym and hasn't ridden a bike since she was a kid, something more gentle would be better.

LeighM

Thanks for all the advice folks. Over the past few days she seems to have taken more of an interest, we've watched some youtube vids of FTD and she has an idea as to what she can expect.

I'll be taking it very easy and stopping before each section and even before any of the gnarly-er bits so she can get a heads up first. She's not overly concerned about having a mis-hap on the trail... bizarrely her main worry about cycling is "sore bits" and her "legs getting too big" :?

Whilst we've hired a HT from Swinnertons for the day, we've looked at a few bikes should she decide she likes it, the Spesh Myka and Trek Fuel EX 5 WSD being her favs so far.

We're both outdoor types (we have 2 spaniels so we have to be) so I think she'll enjoy the exploring aspect of mtb. She's no stranger to the more extreme passtimes either, she's recently started horse riding and we've both been taking snowboarding lessons (her idea) so she's a fair way from the "sex and the city type".

So we're a few weeks away from our first outing, but I'm starting to think it'll be a positive experience.

el loco pollo

Get married. You'll be desperate for an excuse to get away from the mrs and you'll save a load of money on expensive bike gear.

Joe_Pineapples

My worst nightmare would be The Burd saying "can I get a bike too?".

My bike is my campfire, my doorway, my release, my constant, my passion, my me time.

She can work on her bloody candle collection!