Mountain Bikers Don't Like to Stop!

On Thu, 07 Jun 2007 19:03:28 -0600, Shawn
wrote:

Bill wrote:

snip

yesterday I saw a guy holding a track stand at a red
light. Dang showoff.

Not showing off, just too lazy to put a foot down :-)

No, I think it's an image thing. It's not macho to do what's easy and
natural (and safer), just put your foot down.

Shawn
--
I am working on creating wildlife habitat that is off-limits to
humans ("pure habitat"). Want to help? (I spent the previous 8
years fighting auto dependence and road construction.)

Please don't put a cell phone next to any part of your body that you are fond of!

http://home.pacbell.net/mjvande

On Thu, 07 Jun 2007 19:32:28 -0700, Olebiker wrote:

On Jun 7, 8:14 pm, Mike Vandeman wrote:
I understand. They "enjoy nature" by not really seeing any of it.
Weird.

I believe you are confusing nature with wildlife. They are out there
to enjoy the challenging landscape created by the hills, rocks, and
trees. That's the nature they are enjoying.

Right: the challenge, period. Not anything that lives there and
depends on the habitat. We are saying the same thing. You can't
appreciate anything while you are trying to control your bike.

Dick Durbin
--
I am working on creating wildlife habitat that is off-limits to
humans ("pure habitat"). Want to help? (I spent the previous 8
years fighting auto dependence and road construction.)

Please don't put a cell phone next to any part of your body that you are fond of!

http://home.pacbell.net/mjvande

On Thu, 07 Jun 2007 19:34:43 -0700, Olebiker wrote:

On Jun 7, 3:06 pm, Bill wrote:
That's the kind of idiot that gives them all a bad name.
If he wants challenge maybe somebody could make a course on private
property. I go out to get away from both SUVs and people and actually
watch or interact with the wildlife. If some kid comes up there and
blows my trip there could be blood on the trail. I'm normally passive
but react rather badly to a$$holes.
Bill Baka

So what gives you exclusive right to a trail? Do you own the land?

We ALL have the duty to fight idiocy. It's survival of the fittest.

Dick Durbin
--
I am working on creating wildlife habitat that is off-limits to
humans ("pure habitat"). Want to help? (I spent the previous 8
years fighting auto dependence and road construction.)

Please don't put a cell phone next to any part of your body that you are fond of!

http://home.pacbell.net/mjvande

On Jun 8, 11:27 am, Mike Vandeman wrote:
Right: the challenge, period. Not anything that lives there and
depends on the habitat. We are saying the same thing. You can't
appreciate anything while you are trying to control your bike.

Just because they go to the woods for something different than you
doesn't make your way any more legal or honorable.

On Fri, 08 Jun 2007 11:02:20 -0700, Olebiker wrote:

On Jun 8, 11:27 am, Mike Vandeman wrote:
Right: the challenge, period. Not anything that lives there and
depends on the habitat. We are saying the same thing. You can't
appreciate anything while you are trying to control your bike.

Just because they go to the woods for something different than you
doesn't make your way any more legal or honorable.

No, and I have never claimed that. What I DO claim is that mountain
biking is far more harmful than hiking, which is true. Also that
mountain bikers LIE about why they are there. They claim to care about
the environment, but speed by it so fast that they don't even see it.
Look at any mountain bikiing video, if you don't believe me. And look
at the Subject of this thread! DUH!
--
I am working on creating wildlife habitat that is off-limits to
humans ("pure habitat"). Want to help? (I spent the previous 8
years fighting auto dependence and road construction.)

Please don't put a cell phone next to any part of your body that you are fond of!

http://home.pacbell.net/mjvande

Mike Vandeman wrote:
On Fri, 08 Jun 2007 01:05:23 GMT, Bill wrote:

Now you know what it's like to be a hiker around mountain bikers.
I think we have a definition discrepancy.

You seem to be assuming that I am talking about bad behavior. That's
why mountain bikers continue to fail to get it. It's the presence of
bicycles we object to. When I am in a natural setting, I don't want to
see ANYTHING that reminds me of the city, since that's what I am
trying to get AWAY from. DUH!

If I see anything man made like another bicycle I know he had to ride
and walk the same painful trail I used to get there. I have only
encountered 1 (yes one) human up there and she was a hiker from Beale
AFB. The point is responsible hiking, biking, or walking.
Bill Baka

Mike Vandeman wrote:

Violence is always close to the surface, isn't it? Do you work for the
military? Corrections? No wonder you need to chill out.

That's why I go up there, to chill out. I used to be a punch first, ask
later type before I got married, side effect of the people I hung out
with. Bicycle riding lets me take out some of that energy on the pedals.
I jumped into a dispute (20++ male trying to drag a girl out of a car)
about a month ago and was hoping he would swing at me so I could get
some ""Exercise"", but when I grabbed him he got real passive in a
hurry. Some other guys came up and nailed him, claiming they saw him hit
her, so I just wound up trying to get everybody to chill out. After she
had driven off I finally went back to my own business, and a younger
gray haired friend standing there in amazement.
You could say I have anger management issues, but in this case she was
literally screaming for help, so I went into "White Knight" mode.
I'm totally mellow unless really provoked.
Bill Baka

Mike Vandeman wrote:
On Thu, 07 Jun 2007 19:03:28 -0600, Shawn
wrote:

Bill wrote:

snip

yesterday I saw a guy holding a track stand at a red
light. Dang showoff.
Not showing off, just too lazy to put a foot down :-)

No, I think it's an image thing. It's not macho to do what's easy and
natural (and safer), just put your foot down.

Shawn

Agreed.
He is the one and only fully decked out roadie I have seen in 30 years
of living here in the sticks.
Bill Baka

Mike Vandeman wrote:
On Fri, 08 Jun 2007 11:02:20 -0700, Olebiker wrote:

On Jun 8, 11:27 am, Mike Vandeman wrote:
Right: the challenge, period. Not anything that lives there and
depends on the habitat. We are saying the same thing. You can't
appreciate anything while you are trying to control your bike.
Just because they go to the woods for something different than you
doesn't make your way any more legal or honorable.

No, and I have never claimed that. What I DO claim is that mountain
biking is far more harmful than hiking, which is true. Also that
mountain bikers LIE about why they are there. They claim to care about
the environment, but speed by it so fast that they don't even see it.
Look at any mountain bikiing video, if you don't believe me. And look
at the Subject of this thread! DUH!

You are aiming at the 18-34 demographic and even the 30+ types usually
aren't doing the stunt kind of crap anymore. There are probably idiots
out there to prove me wrong, but by my 30's I knew that falling in some
places was going to hurt, big time. Aside from that fact you would have
to be referring to a group that rode up there with the bikes in the back
of a pick up. It just does not make sense to do stunt riding alone and
way back in the woods with nobody there in case you break yourself.
I may ride crazy sometimes but not in the middle of nowhere.
Bill Baka

On Jun 7, 1:06 pm, Bill wrote:
Olebiker wrote:
On Jun 7, 10:20 am, Mike Vandeman wrote:
So much for "enjoying nature"! What's the big deal about never
stopping?!

Not stopping, or "dabbing", demonstrates your skill at handling
difficult terrain. It's one way that some riders like to challenge
themselves. When trying to complete a loop without dabbing, the rider
is focused on the terrain and his technique. He does not go out for
one of these rides to watch the wildlife. This is how he enjoys
nature.

That's the kind of idiot that gives them all a bad name.
If he wants challenge maybe somebody could make a course on private
property.

Just rereading the original post by Doc... seems that the person
writing the email is Anne. I know it's the Bay Area and all, but even
there I ran into few "He's" named Anne ... and even fewer who where
riders.

I go out to get away from both SUVs and people and actually
watch or interact with the wildlife.

Funny thing that ol' Doc didn't explain where Seven Springs Loop is.
The loop is in an urban openspace. Surrounded on three sides by Bay
Area Urban Sprawl and on the fourth side by a reservior ...then more
suburbia. Beyond that, the property is mainly made up of long
abandoned orchards and pastures. There is nothing natural about it,
from non-native grasses and trees on up. Add that to the "Trail
System" that is made up of (wide) single-track mixed with old dirt
roads.

If you can mentally block out the sounds of traffic and aircraft and
the sight of McMansions ... you can have a really nice "nature"
experience.

snip

R