The Daily Good News
Its good news. Mulga Bill sends best wishes.
hahaha
Yeah Facto, it's obviously not possible for the written word to ring in my ears, but your original warning was as good as. However, I won't be selling my bike, or if I do it'll be to upgrade to a 29er for added rollover capability through steep, tech sections.
Realistically, I reckon I'll leave those kinda sections alone, plus a few other features that skew the risk vs reward ratio. More than anything I realise that I've got to rewire thirty-something years of surf programming. You can't pull into closeouts on the mountain, you can't gamble on 'maybe' making a section. Thirty-something years of surfing has taught me how to hold my breath, cop a lip, or how to starfish across a shallow reef when things go wrong, yet when things go wrong on the bike there's no soft exit, so it's 100% commitment or don't even bother.
Before I stacked it on Sunday I'd spent that morning and all Saturday with the Boy building up a solid table top in the bush near our joint. Maybe four foot high by ten foot long, links up a section of track with a hip at the top and a ladder drop below it. Beautiful bush, temperate rainforest with a complete canopy like you're inside a cathedral.
He came back on late Sunday arvo and said it was a good jump. Me, I'm gonna leave it alone for a while.
EDIT: Thanks again H2O!
Lucky, mate dislocated his foot a few months into mountain biking, was at a 90 degrees to where it should point, still not right two years in
So good that you’re spending time with the lad and even better that he wants to hang out.
At one stage years ago you’d see groups of kids riding around town with picks and shovels on their way to building ramps and bike tracks which I thought was the best thing ever. The council even dumped soil in a few parks so the kids could make their own ramps.
Still awaiting the return of some of my gear after my son and his mates helped themselves to the shed one day
Good effort with the jump. Would have been a nice project. Beautiful looking location.
The tree on the left looks like a widow maker. Touch wood.
Stu, glad to hear you’re all good. Lucky!
Mate of mine broke his neck about 2016, solo MTBing down near Bega, NSW. He was in his final stages of training in his mid-life career shift from army officer to Doctor. He’s a big unit. Went over the handlebars, landed on his head and knew something was up immediately - mechanism of injury and immediate symptoms. He had his phone in his backpack and spent more than an hour gradually shifting position to take it off, open it up, get his phone out and call for help. Long recovery but he’s 100% now.
Thanks Etarip.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/nov/25/shivering-dublin-bay-swimm...
Let the scrotums tighten! I love this.
Post operative recovery time and drugs can be blamed.
PS: Has anyone ever actually made it right through Ulysses?
Apart from the usual bumps and scratches here's a list of injuries my mates have sustained while mtbing: broken ribs, a broken collar bone, a cracked hip bone and a dislocated foot. I've been lucky so far with only a few cuts and bruises and a badly jarred knee that refuses to come good. I've gone over the handlebars only the once but on a narrow foot bridge crossing the Yarra River. Luckily I managed to grab hold of the hand rail otherwise it would have an inglorious 10 metre drop into the water!
The thing about all those injuries my mates have sustained, all at low speed 100% splat no slide.
I raced Downhill mountain bikes for a few years. I know one quadriplegic and one paraplegic from racing. Seen broken femurs, knees, arms and some really bad concussions ( my wife).
Like skateboarding if you’re in your late twenties to early thirties or older and just starting out. Quit now!
My brother and nephew are both mad keen downhill bikers... They're crazy! Though Luke (brother) comes from an extensive wakeboard history - with plenty of scary accidents - which probably made his transition into biking easier.
@Soggydog,
I also raced through the early to mid-nineties. Gave it up after a few bad crashes, one at Thredbo, December 1997, which I walked away from but totalled my bike, and then a broken collarbone a few months later. Had many other cuts and scrapes along the way. Like a footy player, for a few years there I always had a bandage somewhere on my body or carried a limp.
Don't have many photos from that time but here's one racing at Yarramundi in '96 - so I was 24. Narrow bars and no goggles!
If I think back, it wasn't only the injuries but the imposition mountain biking had on my life. I've never been a particularly moderate person, so when I do something it's all or nothing, and that meant there wasn't room for downhilling and surfing. I had to make a choice.
My bikes and gear got stolen in either '98 or '99 and I didn't even report it to the cops. That was it.
I recall a few years later hearing about Johnny Waddell's crash and thinking it was all getting crazy. That was when FMX was really starting to influence MTB and waterbars weren't enough, proper jumps were getting built and sculpted into runs.
These days it's totally off the chain what they do. They're lucky if a big crash is only a season ender.
I've followed my eldest boy back into it and he loves slopestyle and downhill. I keep mentioning XC because he has impressive endurance, but he's young and just wants to jump and go fast. We'll see where it leads.
Differences? This time 'round I'm paying far more attention to my surroundings while on the bike. I can pop out the back and ride for hours amongst native bush, alternating between dry schlerophyll and rainforest, and mixes of the two. Whenever I stop and point out a particular species of tree my son looks at me like I'm a street preacher.
It's also an amazing place to be a mountain biker; one kilometre to the east of our house is the coast, one kilometre to the west is an escarpment 400 metres high that runs for a 100 kms and has a network of trails crossing it.
This year, as the COVID crowds drove me mad I could go up onto the escarpment and ride solo or with friends, snatching views of the point and the beaches down below, knowing it was crowded, and return home totally energised.
Just gotta control that rush of blood when the trail tilts down or a good jump appears. Ain't 24 anymore.
Johnny Waddell's crash - five months in hospital and had to learn how to use his body again from scratch.
Fuck that.
Stu, a while back you were saying to me with regard to white water kayaking, just charge that rapid, just go for it.
I'd rather be conservative with pushing the limits and be able to still function and go to work tomorrow.
crashing is for kids.
When I was learning to snowboard many moons ago a mentor of mine said if you're not crashing you're not trying hard enough.
zen, you had the same coach as evel knievel?
Dunno about that Chook, but he certainly had an evel glint in his eye.
Stu, regards you pointing out plant and animal species to your son- keep at it. Even though it probs bores the shit out of him now, one day he'll thank you for it while he's boring the shit out of his son. I loved my dad for that very same thing. It's priceless.
Stu no doubt you have seen this vid and are probably chaffing at the bit to have a go ....just make sure your ambulance cover is up to date....good luck!
&ab_channel=ExtremeTricks Faark Simba- I lost count of how many times I said Faaark. Especially the last two runs. Man, that is just balls out.
Nice one(s), Simba. I hadn't seen it before.
When I watch downhill vids with my son he inevitably chooses clips from Whistler, and most of the time it's Dirt Merchant or A-Line - arguably the most famous jump line in the world, at least with how it's entered the MTB vernacular.
This vid has Dirt Merchant leading into the lower section of A-Line.
If you think it looks easy, just remember Russki kooks from St Petersburg think Teahupoo looks a breeze.
EDIT: And yeah Zen, I've got no qualms about being 'that' kind of Dad.
Sick.
Wish I knew how to post photos Stu I got a couple from WA races and a few from the great white north, we loved it. The crew, the race day the prep. I had a real understanding wife who never really kicked up too much fuss when I was re-building my bike in the lounge room prior to a race weekend.
The expense and more so the lack of trail development in WA made me lose interest. I’m just glad I got out in one piece.
I lived on a mountain in Jasper National Park, 1800km of gazetted trails. I miss that part and the crew the most.
Dirt merchant is a sick trail!! I’d shit myself at teahopoo but could shred the fuck out of dirt merchant........once upon a time.
Oh yeah Stu, full face helmet and a leatte brace (neck) for the son?
Nope. Doesn't look easy.
is MTB footage like that considered fun to watch?
kind of made me feel queasy.
Try this for the photos Soggy
Stunet if you havent already watch return to earth the latest anthill production with your son. Has this section with a crew of 10 to 15 year olds absolutely sending it at Whistler. Also has a section somewhere in the hills on Oahu with a who’s who of the mtb world going nuts. You can download and watch for free on the red bull app.
Stu,gotta say im enjoying these vids and liked the way he was following the bike in front so you could see the jumps and get a better perspective of how fast and dangerous it is....only thing i can compare to mtb riding is when i was a kid and going down 'rolly polly' hill in the wet and breaking on the grass but just sliding so trying to turn the bike but the goose neck wasnt tight enough haha and handle bars turned but not the bike....shame there was a knee high fence at the bottom....and the other later on in life riding home with a six pack doing reos on the embankment of the road only to have the handle bar snap off...but wasn't all bad, 6 pack landed on the grass so only lost one......dam goose necks!
@Steve,
I don't get queasy at all. Anxious, animated, and excited, but not queasy.
Years ago, I read a profile on Ayrton Senna and the writer noticed that whenever Senna watched motor racing, say replays of his races or even just on the news, his fingers would start jumping, and it took a while for the writer to realise he was changing imaginary FI gears (back of the steering wheel) - Senna couldn't passively watch F1, even relaxed in his lounge he involuntarily responded to it.
I'm leagues away from those guys in the vid but similarly can sense every approaching feature and almost feel the weightlessness.
Queasy, nah. Only if they crashed.
@Soggy,
After my two incidents, I've ordered a Leatt collar brace. Gone the rubber one for now, but might step up to the stiffer, hard plastic one. The boy's wearing full face whenever he's riding gravity or jumping but I haven't got a brace for him. I think maybe I should.
@Lomah,
I had a quick squiz then hit pause to save it for Friday night viewing. Looks unreal, thanks for the heads up.
@Simba,
Check the party train in the first two runs here. Keep an eye on the guy in the yellow duds and what he does, especially in the second run when he's directly in front. Note the guy filming hits a tree with his back wheel at 3:45.
Also note it's filmed on GoPro meaning those jumps are way bigger than they appear.
Holy shit that was a buzz......first question, obviously ya gotta have a good bike so what are they worth????????????? and boy must be a lot of injuries......so taking on a run for the first time would be a rush or do ya take it easy?
Snowboarded Whistler/Blackcomb half a dozen times, place is epic. Can't get enough of these MTB vids. Great mate of mine been MTbiking all his life, lives in Vancouver and has a place up at Whistler. His son is 18 and hardcore but him being in his mid-fifties still loves Whistler because there's runs for all levels. Those double blacks that those guys charge are pretty intimidating. When this covid thing ends I'm keen to get there during summer.
I ride a hardtail (Scott Scale) pretty nice bike but kinda regret not getting a full suspension bike. Mine suits my level pretty well, I used to be a bit of a BMX bandit when I was a kid but have nowhere near the courage I used to have now.. I want to invest in a dropper post next just for making adjustments on the go.
Yeah Simba, coin, a lot. I got a second hand dual suspension 160/160 Norco for $1,750 which is the absolute ground floor for enduro/all mountain bikes, while the ceiling...well, there is no ceiling for costs.
It's nutty what people spend, and keep on spending, on their bikes. It's a very different attitude to the simplicity of surfing and one of the things I dislike about it, though I don't have to engage with that side of course. I've got my bike, protective gear, and a bike mechanic mate.
@Zen, my son didn't even know Whistler was a snow resort! Now, in his mind it's a bike park first and people only snowboard there when they can't ride bikes.
Also, it's impressive how he can watch a clip and almost instantly recognise where it is. I recall my parents spinning out when I recognised the location of waves, which to them looked all the same, and now I do the same to him 'cept it's trails.
PS: Get a dropper. Amazing invention.
Although not downhill biking, when Stu says "It's nutty what people spend, and keep on spending, on their bikes", I think he's referring to this gem from The Checkout.
"@Zen, my son didn't even know Whistler was a snow resort! Now, in his mind it's a bike park first and people only snowboard there when they can't ride bikes."
Wow
How good is paint ?
Lipstick for a house.
After a pleasant morning in the brine it’s a fine Friday arvo perched up on a scaffold watching a previously sin- ugly old house come back to life. Every brush stroke protecting and prettying whilst some good tunes pump and the sun shines .
The hard work was pressure washing 20 years of mould off the members , replacing the rot and installing new posts / rafters where the original builder thought cantilevering the last couple of metres of a verandah corner without even joining the rafters was a hell good idea.
Stop to periodically check what the Swellnet crowd have to say and gallop towards a good weekend. Yewww.
Before
After
Shit colour.
Hope that's the undercoat.
You got a thing against white ?
But yeah...undercoat.
Go with the mission brown you reckon ?
White just feels too privileged and brown too exotic.
Reckon you can't go wrong with beige.
bakers white, half strength.
just pulled the scaffolding down today...but forgot to take the protector things off the power lines.
Too privileged ? Is there such a thing ?
I’m currently in the process of building an entire identity constructed around an old Duran Duran video I caught late at night recently.
Too much white is not enough. I’m going full Kanye.
First step was locating the pants and then putting together a wardrobe and then the house. Because.... priorities.
You should get up here. We can sip Singapore Slings on the verandah whilst the coolies work the yard.
Already picked out a starter outfit for you from my collection.
Beige is the colour you paint your house at Mt Druitt.
That way the brown hangman’s noose doesn’t discolour the timber work .
"White just feels too privileged and brown too exotic."
That's pretty funny.
But as a middle class Caucasian male you would say that.
Looks very nice, Blowin. Jealous of tropical Aus gardens.
And I’ve got a thing for hunkering down snug next to a fireplace on a windswept and exposed coastline as the elements assault.
Maybe we should house swap sometime ?
I guess you’d want me to remove the spy cams from the bathroom first ? They seem to be a sticking point for some people. They don’t seem to mind the live streaming GoPro under the glass coffee table though.
Hah, a 50kt southerly has just hit as we speak. You'd be right at home.
were those prices bullshit or real........from Bens post
Blowin I just let my wife design and I stick to the labour
..and by labour I mean the painting. I can’t take credit for the rebuild
Ooh...you’ve got some square meterage ahead of you cobber. Good luck.
Looks nice though.
PS The Mid life cyclist vid above was a pisser.
Dedicated to good news ....