Wobbegong
Well-Known Member
Slow for some, fast for others. Fast this year, slow next year..... It doesn't matter, its all relative.
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- Thread starter Norm
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Slow for some, fast for others. Fast this year, slow next year..... It doesn't matter, its all relative.
don't hang your Hat on that small detail, I have absolutely crushed some rides in the past to only find my average was 14 to 15. Elevation certainly plays a bigger role along with distance. I would bet Norm is referring to his typical 1hr sprint around the swamp.
Again Norm love your writing I bet Utah got a call during that Bike rack ordeal
Mountain Bike Mike
Well-Known Member
Seriously? if you're really being serious about being crushed, stop!
rick81721
Lothar
I just got back from Halters after selling back all my bikes and gear. What did I miss?
I often wonder how people ride so slow but this is just relative to ones self as a pro cyclist wonders how I personally can ride as slow as I do. I don't think this is the sign of a bad cyclist, just a slow one
. Fast does not equal good and slow does not equal bad. Bad is related to your skills so it is an option to be both fast/bad, slow/good fast/good, slow/bad. Like Macaskill is insanely good at bike control, but that doesn't mean he is fast on a bike (I am pretty sure he isn't 14mph slow though) but who cares when you have skills that literally pay the bills.Really, in the end, who cares as long as you are getting out of it what you are looking to get, whatever that is.
So norm, for your endless being good at most things, Please buy yourself a skateboard and video your progress learning that. There are so many how to videos on YouTube that your should pick up tricks quickly. I expect a kick flip within 2 weeks.
Pearl
THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING
I just got back from Halters after selling back all my bikes and gear. What did I miss?
the Notorious P.E.A.R.L. avatar has sunk in.
Things on the internet aren't always what they seem
Be careful using wives when you meant wife's - that kinda slip can lead to a pummeling.
Turning posts around on themselves is an art
and you caught at least two fish with one post.
--
edit: seems you caught another one while i was writing.
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See there is no book for this, you will not be born knowing it...it just comes from experience....or at least it used to...now it comes from youtube.
I always felt like I was the same, I naturally suck at everything. Math, god I was so bad at math in high school I actually failed basic algebra twice...mainly bc I just wanted to drive my car around and never studied..but when i applied myself, I was able to pass all 4 levels of calc I had to take in college. But it was hard and required a shit ton of study time. Biking...but really is anyone good at biking in the physical sense when they start? Perhaps, but I cant think of anyone off the top of my head.
Juggernaut
Master of the Metaphor
I just got back from Halters after selling back all my bikes and gear. What did I miss?
Rick is on fire today.
Arwen's Mom
Mother of Dragons, Breaker of Chains
Motivation: (from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/motivation)
: the act or process of giving someone a reason for doing something : the act or process of motivating someone
: the condition of being eager to act or work : the condition of being motivated
: a force or influence that causes someone to do something
I would think that most of us think of motivation as the reason/force/influence that gets us to do something we probably dont feel like doing at the moment.
I was loving this thread and wanted to write a long thing about what motivates me, but when I thought about the possible negative responses, I was de-motivated.
Then I felt, "well, someone may like to hear it" so got all prepared, and then read what Norm said about 14mph being "slow" and I got REAL bummed out. Damn.
Then I went for a ride and started thinking about some of the people I ride with (you know who you are). We are an eclectic group of riders. But together we all encourage each other and have a fun time.
I started to think about what REALLY motivates me, and realized that most (not all) of the time its being needed in some way. In other words, what really motivates me is when I motivate others (like the day someone said, "come ride" and I wasnt feeling it, then they mentioned "do some TM at 6M" and I was still feeling "eh" then dear Mr AM said "you need to go and make sure he doesnt over do it since he is still healing" and that made me go, feeling I was "needed" in some small way.
I can also be motivated out of a sense of competition. Like the yearly winter online race things that Dave does (which BTW I will NOT be participated in this year as I just hate the fact there is so much angst there).
Fitness, while being some part of my motivation, isnt really enough to get me to ride. If fitness was a motivator, I would do more upper body exercising. Fun is a stronger motivator, as I love to play and riding is a huge playtime for me.
Feeling like I am pushing it to do 14 and that is still slow made me booboo faced for a few rides. It doesnt give me incentive to try harder. Being told I am slow almost makes me want to give up. I relate here to what Norm said about being good at many things but not being great at any one thing. I try and try and can never seem to achieve the level I long for (maybe I should have stuck to ONE thing and not spent time on many things?)
Negative reinforcement doesnt help me. But positive reinforcement does, but let me stress here SINCERE positive reinforcement. The past few times I have ridden, I was just incredibly thankful that I am ABLE to ride. Slow or not. At my current fitness level, age, and weight the fact I am riding at all is good. I am also thankful for my riding buddies, that like riding with me, even if I am not "fast enough". I give/do the best I can, and that is what is important. That I do the best I can and try to improve each time, but if 14 is all I can give, its the same as your 20 and no one is better or worse and no one should be looked down on because they cant give/do as much as you. We were ALL beginners at some point.
So what was the point to this? Not really sure. Other than every one is motivated by something different (duh) but I think one of the best ways to BE motivated is to motivate others, and dont be negative about other people being slower or not being able to do what you do.
Just be thankful they ride.
: the act or process of giving someone a reason for doing something : the act or process of motivating someone
: the condition of being eager to act or work : the condition of being motivated
: a force or influence that causes someone to do something
I would think that most of us think of motivation as the reason/force/influence that gets us to do something we probably dont feel like doing at the moment.
I was loving this thread and wanted to write a long thing about what motivates me, but when I thought about the possible negative responses, I was de-motivated.
Then I felt, "well, someone may like to hear it" so got all prepared, and then read what Norm said about 14mph being "slow" and I got REAL bummed out. Damn.
Then I went for a ride and started thinking about some of the people I ride with (you know who you are). We are an eclectic group of riders. But together we all encourage each other and have a fun time.
I started to think about what REALLY motivates me, and realized that most (not all) of the time its being needed in some way. In other words, what really motivates me is when I motivate others (like the day someone said, "come ride" and I wasnt feeling it, then they mentioned "do some TM at 6M" and I was still feeling "eh" then dear Mr AM said "you need to go and make sure he doesnt over do it since he is still healing" and that made me go, feeling I was "needed" in some small way.
I can also be motivated out of a sense of competition. Like the yearly winter online race things that Dave does (which BTW I will NOT be participated in this year as I just hate the fact there is so much angst there).
Fitness, while being some part of my motivation, isnt really enough to get me to ride. If fitness was a motivator, I would do more upper body exercising. Fun is a stronger motivator, as I love to play and riding is a huge playtime for me.
Feeling like I am pushing it to do 14 and that is still slow made me booboo faced for a few rides. It doesnt give me incentive to try harder. Being told I am slow almost makes me want to give up. I relate here to what Norm said about being good at many things but not being great at any one thing. I try and try and can never seem to achieve the level I long for (maybe I should have stuck to ONE thing and not spent time on many things?)
Negative reinforcement doesnt help me. But positive reinforcement does, but let me stress here SINCERE positive reinforcement. The past few times I have ridden, I was just incredibly thankful that I am ABLE to ride. Slow or not. At my current fitness level, age, and weight the fact I am riding at all is good. I am also thankful for my riding buddies, that like riding with me, even if I am not "fast enough". I give/do the best I can, and that is what is important. That I do the best I can and try to improve each time, but if 14 is all I can give, its the same as your 20 and no one is better or worse and no one should be looked down on because they cant give/do as much as you. We were ALL beginners at some point.
So what was the point to this? Not really sure. Other than every one is motivated by something different (duh) but I think one of the best ways to BE motivated is to motivate others, and dont be negative about other people being slower or not being able to do what you do.
Just be thankful they ride.
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Thanksgiving
I am thankful for good health throughout my family and friends.
I am thankful to be a free man in this wonderful country we live in.
I am thankful for all of you and the gazillions of hours I spend reading your writings to keep a spark of everything to do with the world of bikes.
God bless and Happy Thanksgiving!
I am thankful for good health throughout my family and friends.
I am thankful to be a free man in this wonderful country we live in.
I am thankful for all of you and the gazillions of hours I spend reading your writings to keep a spark of everything to do with the world of bikes.
God bless and Happy Thanksgiving!
Take 10 minutes and watch this TED talk.
Thinking of your life, and balance? What actually matters?
Perhaps it is the way I'm wired, but the success of another individual has never been a de-motivator. never has there been a 'no matter how hard i work' throw in the towel moment - perhaps never win, but I (we) can be better than the day/week/year before. That's a win.
------------------------------- My usual rambling below here.
What motivates or inspires? there is a difference.
When trying to accomplish something, having a clear vision of the goal is a must. The team or individual then gets to choose a path from experience. Many people sit at their desk, or walk around a job site not doing anything, because they don't have the vision, and/or the experience. If the leader isn't leading, this zombie never accomplishes anything.....never wakes up.
take 5 minutes today, and write down some things you'd like to accomplish. Then write down what you want to do tomorrow to get there - put them in an order of importance (you define it). The last thing that must be accomplished tomorrow is a plan for the next day.........
Manage your life, because nobody else is going to do it.
Thinking of your life, and balance? What actually matters?
Perhaps it is the way I'm wired, but the success of another individual has never been a de-motivator. never has there been a 'no matter how hard i work' throw in the towel moment - perhaps never win, but I (we) can be better than the day/week/year before. That's a win.
------------------------------- My usual rambling below here.
What motivates or inspires? there is a difference.
When trying to accomplish something, having a clear vision of the goal is a must. The team or individual then gets to choose a path from experience. Many people sit at their desk, or walk around a job site not doing anything, because they don't have the vision, and/or the experience. If the leader isn't leading, this zombie never accomplishes anything.....never wakes up.
take 5 minutes today, and write down some things you'd like to accomplish. Then write down what you want to do tomorrow to get there - put them in an order of importance (you define it). The last thing that must be accomplished tomorrow is a plan for the next day.........
Manage your life, because nobody else is going to do it.
rocknrollgirl
Well-Known Member
I am in the house on crutches right now and it SUCKS, so you should all go out and ride and have fun no matter how fast or slow. Go have fun people....right now...don't make me hit you with the crutches...because i am cranky I can't ride or run and I will hop over there and and remind you that riding is awesome.
Seriously I am very thankful not to be seriously ill or more seriously sidelined, but I still want to go outside and ride.....so get MOTIVATED and go ride.
And I would like to manage down the stairs on my crutches, it scares the crap out of me.
Seriously I am very thankful not to be seriously ill or more seriously sidelined, but I still want to go outside and ride.....so get MOTIVATED and go ride.
And I would like to manage down the stairs on my crutches, it scares the crap out of me.
I have a confession to make. I've always hated the expression HTFU. I think that's what people say when they do something they think is hard and they want everyone to know how awesome they are. Here is what I also think. We, as a group, pretty much ride around in the kind of clothes that the Wonder Twins would wear. There is absolutely no room for any of us to say we are hard, and that others are soft. We pretty much round out the harder shell of the soft class of people in the world. Sure, there are some people here that may not fit this exactly. But by and large, we're not especially hard just because we ride in the rain for an hour.
That guy who goes and collects garbage in the crappy weather every day at 5:00am. For a living. That guy - well that guy is hard. He can say to his kid, when he comes home at night, to HTFU. He can tell his buddies they need to toughen up when they're all standing around drinking beer. He's earned that right.
Just wanted to get that out there first & foremost.
Riding in the elements is just something you do. You can talk about drive & motivation, why you do it, why you love it. The point is that you do it. You go out and ride your bike, or don't ride your bike but I presume that since you're on the site reading this you're a biker.
Ok I have to stop this. I feel like I had a point when I wrote this in my notebook, but as usual I wrote just a small few notes and as time goes on the mood has passed, and I don't know what I was thinking at the time. I know I wanted to bring up the HTFU mantra and how I think it is a joke. I also take any opportunity I can to talk about the Wonder Twins. I have this vision of next year, Halloween, where Zac & Julia are the Wonder Twins and Simon plays Gleek. How awesome would that be?
Rick (I think it was) had asked some questions about riding in the elements and as usual I'm way behind on any sort of reply. But since he may or may not still be reading, here goes. First off, as noted above, I don't particularly think any one of us is harder or tougher than the other just because we ride in something another person doesn't. Recall a few years back when I rode through the winter, pre-dawn, every day. Recall also a few years back I ran away to Asia for the winter because I wanted to get away. In the first case, I never felt tougher than anyone. I was just riding my bike. Maybe once in a while I felt badass but I think just as often I felt like an idiot. Why am I doing this again? The fact I was podcasting was icing on the Idiot Cake.
People say they will ride in the rain or the dark, but not both. I ask: why not? If you dress well enough for it, just 10 pedal strokes in and it won't be that bad. Or it will be awful. Either way it will be over in an hour or so. You'll be back in the warm house in the warm shower, and before long you'll just be collecting your kudos on Strava for getting out there.
That's all that matters, getting out there. I have ridden in the worst of the weather and I have stayed inside in weather that is not particularly awful. In neither case does it matter, I was riding because [insert motivational post here or use Clark's]. So I rode. I don't have anything to prove to anyone, other than maybe myself but since I'm an idiot half the time does that really carry any weight?
As for tires, I ride what's on my bike. As for the bike, sometimes I take the MTB instead of the road bike. Sometimes I'll take the cross bike and not the road bike because of the weather. But really it doesn't matter. Ride what gets you out there. That's really all.
Or not. If you don't want to ride then don't ride. Run. Or go to the gym. Or do something. I discourage quitting entirely, in terms of fitness. Climb, throw cinder blocks, do something. Be the ball. Rather, form of, a ball. Wait, it was always water & an animal. Form of, an ice ball. Form of, a unicorn.
WONDER TWIN POWERS...ACTIVATE!
That guy who goes and collects garbage in the crappy weather every day at 5:00am. For a living. That guy - well that guy is hard. He can say to his kid, when he comes home at night, to HTFU. He can tell his buddies they need to toughen up when they're all standing around drinking beer. He's earned that right.
Just wanted to get that out there first & foremost.
Riding in the elements is just something you do. You can talk about drive & motivation, why you do it, why you love it. The point is that you do it. You go out and ride your bike, or don't ride your bike but I presume that since you're on the site reading this you're a biker.
Ok I have to stop this. I feel like I had a point when I wrote this in my notebook, but as usual I wrote just a small few notes and as time goes on the mood has passed, and I don't know what I was thinking at the time. I know I wanted to bring up the HTFU mantra and how I think it is a joke. I also take any opportunity I can to talk about the Wonder Twins. I have this vision of next year, Halloween, where Zac & Julia are the Wonder Twins and Simon plays Gleek. How awesome would that be?
Rick (I think it was) had asked some questions about riding in the elements and as usual I'm way behind on any sort of reply. But since he may or may not still be reading, here goes. First off, as noted above, I don't particularly think any one of us is harder or tougher than the other just because we ride in something another person doesn't. Recall a few years back when I rode through the winter, pre-dawn, every day. Recall also a few years back I ran away to Asia for the winter because I wanted to get away. In the first case, I never felt tougher than anyone. I was just riding my bike. Maybe once in a while I felt badass but I think just as often I felt like an idiot. Why am I doing this again? The fact I was podcasting was icing on the Idiot Cake.
People say they will ride in the rain or the dark, but not both. I ask: why not? If you dress well enough for it, just 10 pedal strokes in and it won't be that bad. Or it will be awful. Either way it will be over in an hour or so. You'll be back in the warm house in the warm shower, and before long you'll just be collecting your kudos on Strava for getting out there.
That's all that matters, getting out there. I have ridden in the worst of the weather and I have stayed inside in weather that is not particularly awful. In neither case does it matter, I was riding because [insert motivational post here or use Clark's]. So I rode. I don't have anything to prove to anyone, other than maybe myself but since I'm an idiot half the time does that really carry any weight?
As for tires, I ride what's on my bike. As for the bike, sometimes I take the MTB instead of the road bike. Sometimes I'll take the cross bike and not the road bike because of the weather. But really it doesn't matter. Ride what gets you out there. That's really all.
Or not. If you don't want to ride then don't ride. Run. Or go to the gym. Or do something. I discourage quitting entirely, in terms of fitness. Climb, throw cinder blocks, do something. Be the ball. Rather, form of, a ball. Wait, it was always water & an animal. Form of, an ice ball. Form of, a unicorn.
WONDER TWIN POWERS...ACTIVATE!
Yes, HTFU is way over used and while I don't think I am tough, just bought the right gear, I think toughness is relative to what you are accustom too. For instance, the average jock football player in highschool can get man hugged by overweight linebackers all day long and can't wait to get back out there where a skinny biker may get beat to shit. Put that same tough football player on a bike in 30's and rain and that guy is going to break faster than a misfit under MattyB.
Take our places of work for example. Any of us who ride all year most certainly have been called "hardcore" or crazy for riding all year round, under the 50 degree minimum that most people seem to hold for outdoor exercise. This is true for your pinnacle of white collar ex-office,my middle class white collar office and Matty and Dustins blue collar workplaces. But come on here and we are just normal. So yes, to the average person, we are probably tougher, but only because we have trained ourselves to be tough at turning our feet in 14" circles in all conditions and terrain. Anything outside and we are just ******* like everyone else.
Take our places of work for example. Any of us who ride all year most certainly have been called "hardcore" or crazy for riding all year round, under the 50 degree minimum that most people seem to hold for outdoor exercise. This is true for your pinnacle of white collar ex-office,my middle class white collar office and Matty and Dustins blue collar workplaces. But come on here and we are just normal. So yes, to the average person, we are probably tougher, but only because we have trained ourselves to be tough at turning our feet in 14" circles in all conditions and terrain. Anything outside and we are just ******* like everyone else.
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RobW
Well-Known Member
Motivation- something that is deep down in every each one of us. There are certain "electronic pulses" that can trigger that feeling of being motivated. It can be anything, not one person is the same. My cousin, "mountain bike mike". He and I are a lot alike, and I constantly bounce ideas off of him. He's generally annoyed at my lack of drive and motivation but what this guy doesn't know is that he is motivating by being an example. So, thanks to the board for motivating that SOB! :
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rick81721
Lothar
I wasn't coming from the hardness/toughness angle of riding in elements - as you and Kevin say with the right gear weather can be pretty much mitigated. Nothing tough about riding in great gear. My question was related to the safety of it. Biking is a relatively dangerous activity - certainly more than the running I mainly did prior to getting bikes. It is rare that a runner will get clocked by a car on the road, and on trails the worst you can do is twist an ankle - a runner isn't likely to slam into a tree at 20+ mph. Most mountain bikers will ride a skinny that is 12 inches off the ground (except me, I'm a chicken), but I doubt many would ride the same skinny if it was 12 feet off the ground. So at what is the tipping point of risk on the road? I would hope people don't ride in dense fog, at what point does heavy rain or rain + darkness make riding on the road too dangerous?
While I am not a huge fan of HTFU, I do believe there is a need for it. Yes I would like to give Ben an atomic wedgie every time he uses this term but in reality it can motivate people.
True once you get into a mindset of getting up early it can be rather routine to wake up at 4am and pound out intervals on the bike in the dark, however that mindset can fade. It usually fades because our motivation dissipates.
Also I would say the garbage man waking up early to go pick up trash is not hard. Basically that is his job, if he wants to keep his house and pay his bills he has to do his job. On the other hand we don't have to ride bikes at 5am, that is a choice, recreation, so in a sense I would say someone is pretty tough if they choose to get up that early in all kinds of weather so they can ride a bike. Now, back to the garbage man, this guy may feel angry, bitter and his persona comes off as a hard person but that is only because he may be frustrated in his job.
When we all first got into cycling, small rides seemed epic. Over time we gain experience and realize our first rides sucked. In a sense we HTFU. I would say there is a balance between this experience we gain and the guy who won't STFU about HTFU.
True once you get into a mindset of getting up early it can be rather routine to wake up at 4am and pound out intervals on the bike in the dark, however that mindset can fade. It usually fades because our motivation dissipates.
Also I would say the garbage man waking up early to go pick up trash is not hard. Basically that is his job, if he wants to keep his house and pay his bills he has to do his job. On the other hand we don't have to ride bikes at 5am, that is a choice, recreation, so in a sense I would say someone is pretty tough if they choose to get up that early in all kinds of weather so they can ride a bike. Now, back to the garbage man, this guy may feel angry, bitter and his persona comes off as a hard person but that is only because he may be frustrated in his job.
When we all first got into cycling, small rides seemed epic. Over time we gain experience and realize our first rides sucked. In a sense we HTFU. I would say there is a balance between this experience we gain and the guy who won't STFU about HTFU.