Up hill and down dale always prevails

Mountain biking has come a hell of a long way in the last 25years, but still the fundamental aspects of it exist – getting out in beautiful landscapes; enjoying a buzz when zipping along a trail – and having a damned good laugh with your mates.

Over the years bikes as have become more advanced and capable, we’ve been riding more adventurous terrain and the sport has exploded.

Without progression in MTB technology, we might still be wrestling our bikes down basic trails completely out of control.

But it’s important to not lose track of why you got involved in the first place – don’t forget to have fun!

This Yeti SB6C 30th year anniversary edition represents the absolute pinnacle of modern MTB development – carbon fibre, advanced suspension design, no-holds-barred specification and a strictly limited edition paint scheme to top it off. A bike like this will handle anything you are willing to throw at it – and is one of the most desirable bikes available on the market.

Without a doubt, the latest high-tech modern mountain bikes like this Yeti SB6C can enhance your mountain biking experience.

They allow you to go further, faster and over incredibly steep and technical terrain without batting an eyelid. The capabilities of the modern mountain bike are frankly insane – most riders will never get close to what a bike like this is capable of doing.

Whilst we’re not suggesting you forget about modern bikes and kit – do you ever actually think about the bike when you’re hammering down the trails?

Afterwards in praise, perhaps. But rarely in the moment.

Do you think we were thinking about our bikes when we were about to drop in to this incredible trail in Verbier Bikepark? We were nearly wetting ourselves with excitement about dropping in, and imagining hitting each turn and jump – but certainly not thinking how smooth our 11speed drive trains were, or how nice the finish was on our carbon fibre bikes.

It takes two to tango

Whilst it’s the riding that matters, the fact is attempting to ride a trail like this on a cheap hard tail with poor brakes and a twisty suspension fork simply wouldn’t be enjoyable. Even if you survived, it would be terrifying – and you’d be longing for the plush suspension and powerful brakes on that Yeti. The bikes of today have changed everything.

But lets rewind a little here. Whilst trails like this are what we all really aspire to ride, for most this type of terrain can be a little out of reach – just like a £7000 top of the range bike.

What really matters is the fun you have on the type of trails you normally ride, with the people you ride with.

Good kit will always improve your experience – but it’s not the most important thing.

These guys meet every Wednesday night, near the Factory Jackson office, and ride rain or shine. There’s regularly up to 30 riders out – of all abilities, ages and riding styles. Note the variety of dress, and bikes. Anything goes in this group. Photo | Matt Reeves/Folly Flyers

We ride with local club Folly Flyers whenever we have the time, and once the initial car park chinwagging has finished the group ride a decent, natural off road route.

Some might be on XC race bikes, others on knackered MTB’s from the 90’s – and even a few on DH bikes head out too. There’s a variety of kit from head-to-toe in Troy Lee Designs, to bike shop bargain bin kit or jeans and t-shirts. But no-one really cares who is riding what, what they look like and how good they are.

As soon as they hit the single track it’s all laughs and cheers. And all on the same level.

If mechanicals happen they all pitch in – or laugh at the victim – and they will always help lesser riders to improve their skills.

They have the right idea.

We went to Alp d’Huez earlier this year (you’ll be able to read about it soon) and rode some of the best trails ever. Once our bikes were set up, we never thought about them again – it was all about the riding. A double edged sword, though, definitely. You certainly couldn’t have ridden most the trails we did without expensive suspension and pricey, powerful disc brakes. Decent kit and bikes are essential when the terrain gets serious. But there’s no way Cal was thinking about how cool his Evil bike was when he hit this turn – all he was thinking was how hard he could smash in to the turn and fire a big old dust explosion like this.

Don’t forget to have fun!

Earlier this year I took part in a fun event that put things in perspective a little.

We were given a £25 budget to buy and customise a bike, for an off road ride – the only essential thing was the bikes had to be funny.

I bought this bike for £20 from someone in the pub who I didn’t know. And I’d not seen the bike. The handlebars were from my nephew’s old BMX; the cardboard and spraypaint were laying around in my garage and the office chair from which I made the dropper post came out of a skip. Yes, a home made dropper post, held on with jubilee clips. I’m not sure if I laughed more building the bike, or riding it.

We rode a pretty hilly route in North Devon on the bikes, with some basic off-road.  When I say basic – I mean by today’s standards.

Trails you wouldn’t think twice about on a half decent mountain bike became as terrifying as world cup down hill tracks – even basic rooty sections were a major hazard.

Just holding on was serious work – a slightly rough track induced hand ache and arm pump like a few days on Portes Du Soleil’s finest braking bumps.

And keeping feet on tiny, slippy plastic pedals is impossible. Believe me.
I nearly crashed several times throughout the day – but have honestly not laughed as much on a single day in my entire life. It was genuinely one of the best days out on a bike I’ve ever had – and really brought me back in to check. It’s easy to have fun!

One of the riders came in to mountain biking when disc brakes already existed, so missed out on the terrifying era. He asked if this was what mountain biking used to be like – and it was!

Those that have ridden since the early days will remember just how hard it was trying to ride even a basic section of trail when mud or wet roots were involved. To appreciate just how far we’ve come – you should all take a step back. Just for the craic.

This Rocky Mountain Sherpa classic may look retro cool, but do you remember the feeling of reaching for a handful of brake when you needed it and absolutely nothing happened? Or perhaps the constant shin smashing from feet that slipped off the pedals constantly? Or the death-grip on the bars when things got rough and the hands that felt like you’d been using a pneumatic drill afterwards?

These days it can be easy to get caught up in the technology whirlwind, but remember the end result is always about having fun out in the woods.

By all means kit your bike out with the best possible components and love doing so – but don’t think it will change the camaraderie of a session with your mates.

Don’t get us wrong – we are fanatical about kit. Especially no-holds-barred high end kit that is the best available – like this Intense M16 Carbon which is so good looking we still can’t stop thinking about it since seeing it at Eurobike. We spend all day and all night dreaming about the next thing we want to ride – but we’re glad it all goes out the window once rubber meets dirt. And that’s how it should be.

On a recent ride with the Folly Flyers, one chap riding a creaky old Orange had just as much fun as the guy on the brand new Santa Cruz Bronson with every possible colour co-ordinated bell and whistle.

It made absolutely no difference once they were battling for position on the trails and hurling abuse at each other. The grins, laughter and near crashes were all the same – and that really is the essence of mountain biking.

Don’t forget it!

Have you ever hit the trails on novelty bikes, or perhaps kitted yourself out with retro bikes?

Let us know in the comments below!

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