Thinking of something a rider I know Team Colin said earlier said which reminds me truly what I miss about mtb and endurance sport. Which isn't the racing. It is the lost concept of the group ride or training group ride.
Now days riders and endurance athletes talk of races as spending time with their community. Which seems strange to me as to me races while nice to be with others. Reality is a race is really about as the great Tom Warren pointed out seeing where you stand. As I wrote about before a race is like taking an exam. An exam to see how training has progressed. Community was less about racing and more about something else. What is that you ask?
What we used to call it the Tuesday night group run and the Sunday group ride or whatever other day. of the week the group training was on. There was no internet post of dates and times followed with the usual people saying wanted it on a different day and what not. It was simple You wanted to say do a mountain bike training ride with others? You showed up at a certain location at a certain time and day. That was it. Nothing else other than day and time if you wanted to ride or run with members of your community.
Now days unless it is posted on social media there seems to be next to no group rides like that anymore. It wasn't just the training but the social aspect of being with your community with zero race day stress and such. And sadly now days as I saw a friend commented on their blog it has become races that is where so many times in the last few years have observed this sense of community. After the last two years of isolation it isn't the racing I miss as the sense of community it is the old fashioned group ride. Rides like those organized by one of the Don Rats Marshall aka Mad Mon who back in 2006 and 2007 organized the Saturday and Sunday Don Ride. You met at the Loblaws on Redway Trail head at noon and rode as a group which led to a good workout while riding with others.
And to be honest the last two years with minimal racing due to restrictions it was very revealing what I actually miss. While racing is nice but I don't miss it that much as many would think as lots of riding and exploring have revealed. What I miss is the group rides on a Sunday or weekday that provided a not only a good training session but that community with no extras. Other than showing up with myself and what ever gear was needed for the group ride or training there wasn't any extra costs aside from getting there. There was no busy getting ready to race and such distraction of gathering with your community on a Sunday.
And while the group ride was challenging there was lots of chances to just cruise. Using the old Saturday and Sunday Don Rats ride as an example yes at times the ride was challenging and at times easy but in the end we got a workout. A Don rats ride would stop to ride a few times the VOLTR log and ladder bridge and whatever section we wanted to try again, attempts to clean a steep climb or see how high we got this time before having to push the bike, and there was spots like the Doobatorium where we would stop and just relax enjoying being out with others who rode bikes in the woods. It was a community of riders who just wanted to ride.
And it is easy to dismiss the effects of group rides . But if group rides aka group training didn't work. How do you explain Kenyan runners doing well for decades? Because they do their version of the group training ride. Group rides or Group training work both for training but also that community people look for at races now days. It was the mtb group ride where one also learned how to climb, to hop a log, or to finally ride that section that you had a mental block about.
And looking back now even though got to do some exams last fall to test out how things where effected long term PTSI, depression, and anxiety if raced. And while as a rider I know said going to a race was being with his community. Reality now is that in fact I miss simple group rides that started at a specific day and time at a certain location like a coffee shop or just a spot like the Brickworks. That to me is the idea of mountain bike community and what I miss.
Bring back the old group ride where it wasn't a hammer fest. You rode with those who like doing it and you had fun. You stopped to drink a beverage while at the Doobutorium and talked about bike stuff. Let's have more of the group ride community then the racing idea of community because that is what we need more of.
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