So first off, I do realize, it has been quite awhile since I last shared my crazy world or ramblings, with you. Fear not, my world has definitely been crazy and I have gained clarity through it all. Lets start at the heart and work our way outwards. I mentioned chaos so lets look at what has been going on in just the last couple weeks. First I mentioned heart, and my step-father has been in the hospital as he has just undergone a double bypass. During the week and a half that he sat awaiting his operation, I have had plenty of time to reflect. This single event has been the most thought encompassing portion of the recent year. Everything else branches out from there with very little relevance but the juggling of other thoughts and happenings included, my Birthday, my first ever case of Poison Oak, and trying to keep TheDirtyWheel rolling when everything else felt like it had grinded to a stop.
My fathers medical procedure and state of health left me with alot of introspection about my family, my health, and what things are important to me. Through this process I realized that biking is even more important to my overall being than I would have guessed. During the stressful first days of my father being admitted to the hospital, it was the handful of trail rides that I snuck in, that let me temporarily check out mentally and recollect myself. One of these rides also happened to be my first dance with Poison Oak , and apparently its a slow dance because I am still wrestling with this inflamed weepy beast.
For most cyclists, your birthday is a time to decide what bike parts/gear/goodies you may acquire through gifts or by splurging on yourself without having to justify your purchases with friends,family, or the spousal unit. Lets face it, most non cyclists dont understand our obsession with all things bike, even though they may have more shoes than your local thrift store. My mind was treading this annual path, leaving me with dreams of all kinds of goodies : a remote seatpost? , a fork service for the DH bike, or maybe a set of the NEW HAYES PRIME DISK BRAKES . While all these purchases would be fun, the back of my mind was yelling that I needed to upgrade myself. So I began looking at my health, my riding skills, my website-TheDirtyWheel, and the art that comes out of the passion I have for riding. So what did I decide to purchase that could upgrade all these areas without changing a part on my bike?
Lets take a look at these items because alot of upcoming TDW happenings will come from these purchases:
1. Heatlth and fitness being of paramount weight on my mind, led me to purchase an upgrade to my fitness, which will affect my riding capabilities. One of my personal favorite providers of solid fitness information that comes from our on industry is MTB Strength Training Systems. MTB STS is featured in so many of the best industry websites and magazines such as Decline Magazine and PinkBike.com that I figured I would devote an upcoming website feature to the 12 week DB program with full before and after results.
2. Next was deciding to actively focus on my riding skills, and there is no better manual of riding skill than the MASTERING MOUNTAIN BIKE SKILLS By Brian Lopes and Lee McCormack. There is plenty of solid advice and skills products available from all manner of pros but this book consistently earns rave reviews.
3. Sticking with Lee McCormack and fitness, I purchased a copy of WELCOME TO PUMPTRACK NATION. Yes, I somehow have been blessed with a spouse that has given me a greenlight to turn my backyard into a dirt playground. This is both a chance to improve my skills and fitness all wrapped in one, while also building my childrens enthuisiasm for riding.
4. From there my purchases turned to improving TheDirtyWheel and my newfound obsession with my Gopro and video/photo editing. What have I purchased to improve these areas you may ask? Multiple Tripods, GoPro accessories, Video editing software, and a couple of books on Web design and programming. Time to put in some study so that I can provide a better quality product for all to enjoy.
As I reflect on the direction my bike purchases have taken, I am confident that these items will increase my overall Health, MTB Skills, and obsession for the sport, more than any single bike component could have.
Prepare to follow along as we break ground (literally) in all
My fathers medical procedure and state of health left me with alot of introspection about my family, my health, and what things are important to me. Through this process I realized that biking is even more important to my overall being than I would have guessed. During the stressful first days of my father being admitted to the hospital, it was the handful of trail rides that I snuck in, that let me temporarily check out mentally and recollect myself. One of these rides also happened to be my first dance with Poison Oak , and apparently its a slow dance because I am still wrestling with this inflamed weepy beast.
For most cyclists, your birthday is a time to decide what bike parts/gear/goodies you may acquire through gifts or by splurging on yourself without having to justify your purchases with friends,family, or the spousal unit. Lets face it, most non cyclists dont understand our obsession with all things bike, even though they may have more shoes than your local thrift store. My mind was treading this annual path, leaving me with dreams of all kinds of goodies : a remote seatpost? , a fork service for the DH bike, or maybe a set of the NEW HAYES PRIME DISK BRAKES . While all these purchases would be fun, the back of my mind was yelling that I needed to upgrade myself. So I began looking at my health, my riding skills, my website-TheDirtyWheel, and the art that comes out of the passion I have for riding. So what did I decide to purchase that could upgrade all these areas without changing a part on my bike?
Lets take a look at these items because alot of upcoming TDW happenings will come from these purchases:
1. Heatlth and fitness being of paramount weight on my mind, led me to purchase an upgrade to my fitness, which will affect my riding capabilities. One of my personal favorite providers of solid fitness information that comes from our on industry is MTB Strength Training Systems. MTB STS is featured in so many of the best industry websites and magazines such as Decline Magazine and PinkBike.com that I figured I would devote an upcoming website feature to the 12 week DB program with full before and after results.
2. Next was deciding to actively focus on my riding skills, and there is no better manual of riding skill than the MASTERING MOUNTAIN BIKE SKILLS By Brian Lopes and Lee McCormack. There is plenty of solid advice and skills products available from all manner of pros but this book consistently earns rave reviews.
3. Sticking with Lee McCormack and fitness, I purchased a copy of WELCOME TO PUMPTRACK NATION. Yes, I somehow have been blessed with a spouse that has given me a greenlight to turn my backyard into a dirt playground. This is both a chance to improve my skills and fitness all wrapped in one, while also building my childrens enthuisiasm for riding.
4. From there my purchases turned to improving TheDirtyWheel and my newfound obsession with my Gopro and video/photo editing. What have I purchased to improve these areas you may ask? Multiple Tripods, GoPro accessories, Video editing software, and a couple of books on Web design and programming. Time to put in some study so that I can provide a better quality product for all to enjoy.
As I reflect on the direction my bike purchases have taken, I am confident that these items will increase my overall Health, MTB Skills, and obsession for the sport, more than any single bike component could have.
Prepare to follow along as we break ground (literally) in all
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