New Guy

Hi, after friends invited me to ride mtn bikes in Lake Havasu this past summer I went out and bought a real mtn bike, used, 2014 Santa Cruz Bronson C. I’ve been enjoying this new activity ever since averaging 25 miles a week. I had a cheap bike before and when I showed up with it in Havasu my friends wouldn’t let me ride it. Unsafe I guess. That day they loaned me a Scott’s hard tail with 3.0 tires. I’ve been riding Carbon Canyon and New Port Beach areas.

 

Off to a good start, Steve!

 

Hey @Steve Boudreaux !
Way to go bud!
Welcome to imtbtrails. Well you came to the right place, a very diverse group of members here all over So Cal.

Like we always say... Ride Lots and Post Lots!
Hope to see you on the trails!

Mikie of Frazier Park

 

We don't even get to play the A.V.A.T.A.R. game with him!!!

 

That's pretty cool that your friends made you switch bikes... I may have taken the "Go ahead, you'll be fine..." approach.

Seriously, though... Glad you found your way here.

I'm in RSM and ride a lot in the Santa Anas. We post up groups rides pretty often... Some mellow, some death marches. Feel free to jump in when you want to get outside your location stuff and see some new things.

 

Welcome aboard. Ride lots and write lots about riding lots.

Check out the "Ride Reports" section. Lots of good info there.

 

Welcome, SB. You have some decent friends! And a cool bike (I had one for years, loved it). Wride land rite lots...we appreciate all manner of dirt-born pedal bikes and the wacky places people take them. Cheers!

 

Welcome Steve!

 

Welcome. And, post up when and where you gonna ride or if you’re looking for a ride.

 

Welcome.

Some fun trails in havasu. I have been out there riding a few times and did a 6 hour race once.

 

Welcome!!!

 

Welcome from another Steve!!
Steves = Steves + 2

 

Thank you all. I have questions about upgrading my bike ( hubs and rims ) for the appropriate thread locations in this forum. My last ride was 20.6 miles at Carbon Canyon. I’m looking for 25 miles as a goal. I see some guys doing 50 miles. Man I don’t know how... elevation and all. Youngsters must be- Regardless I really enjoy this new activity.

 

If you're doing 20 miles after just jumping into it, I think you'll do just fine...

 

Like anything else - the more consistently you do it, the more you want to. Or as some bike riding dude once said: "It never gets easier. You just go faster."

 

Well No.. my first ride ( by myself ) was from Carbon Canyon to 4 corners and back. On Strava I named my ride Rocky Balboa because I thought this was a huge achievement. Now it’s a non starter. I’m not a black diamond type guy at this age either. I rode the Luge recently out of Cooks corner. 6 miles of uphill with 1 Mile decent. I got a flat, my first flat btw and had to install a new tube leaning into brush doing so. The upside ? Every rider that came by stopped and offered help. Every rider. Cool peeps. So far I enjoy pushing my own personal limits.

 

New hubs and rims? Lets get you set up tubeless too so that you can say goodbye to flats (for the most part).

 

Welcome @Steve Boudreaux! Pleased to have you climb aboard the best little mtb forum west of the Pecos. And we're probably better than those East of the Pecos too. Where the hell is the Pecos?

Ride a lot, write a lot. Mileage is cool, but altitude gained is the coolest factor here! Me, I abhor climbing, but do it 'cuz it feels good to stop. The climbing HAS to lead to some great DH! I'm OK with a 45 minute climb to get to a 4-minute quality DH.

 

You'd probably call me one of those "high mileage" guys, but it wasn't too long ago that I couldn't get past the 5-7 mile hurdle, with very little climbing. Slowly but surely, I went farther and farther... Now I like to see others get out there and push past the comfort zone.

 

Big Ride/Mileage/Elevation pusherman here.

It is all steps. Get comfortable with 20 miles, then push a little bit and get comfortable with 25 miles, rinse and repeat. Setting a goal will make it easier to push through. Just remember, your body can do way more than your mind thinks it can.

 

Hey, @Steve Boudreaux, you may as well go for 50 mi, cuz 25 will fall in, like, two rides from now. Or just count hours, cuz some XX milers will feel like double that. Being able to ride all day is a worthy goal and a great safety feature. Gains will come fast early on, but don't be discouraged when they slow – they will still happen, and you really have no idea what you are capable of. Thrill of the unknown...

RE: "Youngsters," and "at this age"... You better ditch that sh!t post-haste. Age ≠ fitness/skill/sack.