I challenge you to ride a mountain bike down a muddy hill, brakes on full lock, tyres skidding, while you barely manage to keep it upright and not have the most fun of your life! Yeah there are definitely parts that fall into that category of ‘fun now that we’re home’ but a lot is primary fun.
I don’t know where you live but the Scottish Highlands can produce some seriously “fuck this” weather. When you’re still hours away from home and the sleet and winds pick up, your soaked to the bone and hands too cold to pull the brakes, you look back on it with more fondness than you felt at the time.
OK that definitely sounds not fun. I’m in Aotearoa New Zealand which doesn’t get that bad. Even in the middle of winter, in the northern bike parks, it’s pretty ridable without risk of hypothermia. I hope I do get the chance to ride over there one day though
Don’t get me wrong, we have good days too but the weather can change in a heartbeat here. It’s what catches most people out, especially on the mountain, too many people head out thinking it’s a nice day then the weather changes, cold wet and zero visibility. Easy to get tired, lost and confused and needing to call mountain rescue only too find out they were only 10 minutes away from the car park.
I remember biking years ago in Wanaka and climbing at hang dog in golden bay on the south island. Beautiful place, can’t wait to go back, take my kids. It’s just so far away.
I’ve never rode in the south island, would love to but accomodation etc is so expensive. South island is definitely the more picturesque place, it would be a wonderful place to live
Back when I was young me and the missus spent months in a shitty van traveling around. Back then you could rock up outside the airport and find a van with the keys and paperwork and a note saying to take it as the previous owner had left.
I challenge you to ride a mountain bike down a muddy hill, brakes on full lock, tyres skidding, while you barely manage to keep it upright and not have the most fun of your life! Yeah there are definitely parts that fall into that category of ‘fun now that we’re home’ but a lot is primary fun.
I don’t know where you live but the Scottish Highlands can produce some seriously “fuck this” weather. When you’re still hours away from home and the sleet and winds pick up, your soaked to the bone and hands too cold to pull the brakes, you look back on it with more fondness than you felt at the time.
OK that definitely sounds not fun. I’m in Aotearoa New Zealand which doesn’t get that bad. Even in the middle of winter, in the northern bike parks, it’s pretty ridable without risk of hypothermia. I hope I do get the chance to ride over there one day though
Don’t get me wrong, we have good days too but the weather can change in a heartbeat here. It’s what catches most people out, especially on the mountain, too many people head out thinking it’s a nice day then the weather changes, cold wet and zero visibility. Easy to get tired, lost and confused and needing to call mountain rescue only too find out they were only 10 minutes away from the car park.
I remember biking years ago in Wanaka and climbing at hang dog in golden bay on the south island. Beautiful place, can’t wait to go back, take my kids. It’s just so far away.
I’ve never rode in the south island, would love to but accomodation etc is so expensive. South island is definitely the more picturesque place, it would be a wonderful place to live
Back when I was young me and the missus spent months in a shitty van traveling around. Back then you could rock up outside the airport and find a van with the keys and paperwork and a note saying to take it as the previous owner had left.