| Move over alcohol and nicotine, mountain | | | | amalgamation of extreme maneuvers from BMX |
| biking is taking over my list of vices. | | | | and long rides of road biking. |
| Looking for a thrill? Out of shape? I | | | | |
| recommend mountain biking for weight loss and | | | | Back to my life story, I graduated college, |
| fun. | | | | picked up and moved to California. This |
| | | | state is absolutely beautiful. Last weekend, |
| I'm at a point in my life where I'm ready to | | | | my girlfriend and I drove out of the city and |
| cut down on partying. I don't want to | | | | spent a few hours exploring and admiring the |
| officially hang up my "cutting loose" habits, | | | | west coast's landscape. We hiked through a |
| but I can only take so many yawn-filled | | | | state park, which was awesome-but I'm not |
| mornings of bloodshot eyes and crooked | | | | much of a hiker. I need something to get my |
| smiles. I am ready to put those nights of | | | | heart pumping. We did discover a ton of |
| loud clubs and expensive bar tabs behind me. | | | | mountain bike trails that the state park |
| Why the sudden lifestyle change you might | | | | offered. And that's when it hit me. |
| ask? The answer-mountain biking. I think | | | | Mountain biking looks like a blast! These |
| taking up this sport will jump start my | | | | guys flew past us on these gnarly mountain |
| active, healthy lifestyle. | | | | bikes, equipped with full suspension and |
| | | | rugged tires. The east coast didn't offer |
| Growing up, I have always been into bikes. | | | | trails like the west coast, which is probably |
| It all started when I was six. My parents | | | | why I never got into the sport. Now that I |
| tried teaching me to ride a bike in a big | | | | have all this terrain, I want to take full |
| field near our house-not the best idea. Have | | | | advantage. |
| you ever tried riding through a field, let | | | | |
| alone on a child's bike with small wheels? | | | | So I started looking into bikes and am dieing |
| It's nearly impossible. Every bump, rock, | | | | to get one, but I ran into two problems. The |
| and stick bounced me off the bike and landed | | | | bikes are very expensive and I drive a small |
| my butt on the ground. My parents' rationale | | | | Subaru whose seats don't fold down. Plus, I |
| was that falling in a field would be better | | | | wouldn't want dirty, muddy tires all over my |
| than hitting the unforgiving pavement, which | | | | interior. I talked with a coworker who |
| makes sense. But it is also nearly | | | | mountain bikes and he offered to lend me his |
| impossible to ride on this terrain, | | | | old bike until I get my own. Great! But I |
| especially when first learning. | | | | need to get to the trails. My car doesn't |
| | | | have a roof rack, so I looked for bike racks |
| So one afternoon, I took off my training | | | | that mount to your trunk on the internet. If |
| wheels and brought my bike into the driveway. | | | | I can find a rack that mounts easily, I'm |
| I sat down on the seat, put my one foot on a | | | | sure I will have no problem getting to the |
| pedal, pushed off and started riding. And as | | | | trails a few days a week and getting some |
| they say, the rest is history. I got older | | | | exercise. |
| and picked up BMX; bunny hopping curbs and | | | | |
| cruising around on pegs. When I hit college, | | | | I ended up getting a Thule rack. Thule makes |
| I was over my dirt jumping phase, and got a | | | | hitch bike racks, trunk racks, and roof racks |
| road bike-pedaling for miles at a time. So | | | | for every type of vehicle. I have since been |
| it's no surprise that mountain biking caught | | | | hitting the trails every day after work and |
| my eye-- which is a sort of hybrid | | | | feel better than ever. |