Mountain Biking: Keeping the Fun Side Alive!

Let us face it, most of us have the best intentions when we start mountain biking. And during the first few months of riding, the enthusiasm is high. You even tell to yourself, "this time I am serious and will not quit." You ride for hours several times a week; shop sets of bike gears; upgrade the parts of your bike; or even buy a new bike. But just like other leisure and sport, your interest may begin to go down because you begin to create excuses for yourself such as you are busy with your work or you are tired and you cannot ride even on weekends. Once you start feeling this way, everything is downhill unless you do something about it. Do you want to know how to keep interested on mountain biking? Read on…

Prioritize.
The best way to quit mountain biking is create excuses such as lack of time and doing other much important things. While you really have to work or to do some important stuff in your life, it is really not an excuse to skip. How come you are able to do things other than biking? Think of it this way, if you put mountain biking on the top of your "things-to-do," would you still have the reason to skip? Learn to prioritize.

Do not ride too much.
Many mountain bikers who have decided to sit on the couch and watch tv instead of ride their bike have reasoned that they have lost interest in it. This is probably because they ride too much during the first weeks and get tired immediately. What you should do is to make a schedule at least once a week but not more than 5 times a week.  

Do not buy upgrades all at the same time. 
Many beginners are very enthusiastic about their newly-found hobby that they spend big amount of money to buy everything to make their bike the best. While there is nothing wrong with this, the tendency is to become a victim of their own obsession and losing interest right after because there is nothing more to do. Why not buy a bike and upgrade one part of the bike, enjoy it for a while before you buy another upgrade. This way, you always have something to look forward to and keep your anticipation and interest high. 

Get a riding buddy/join a group of rider
Riding alone is good but riding with someone is better. If you know that someone is waiting for you on the trial, you will likely not skip. Or if your group have a scheduled time and day to ride together, you are more likely to be there. 

Music
If you are getting tired of hearing nothing but the sound of your own breathing, then why not bring your MP3 player and play some music while you navigate through the mountain? Music keeps you entertained during long hours of driving. It does the same thing when mountain biking.

Ride on different trails
You will certainly get bored and lose interest if you ride on the same trail over and over again. Find other places to ride. Take this time to explore other areas you haven't been to. Ride on at least 4 or 5 trails a month, one trail each week. If it is not possible to have many trails, change your riding route regularly and present yourself with new challenges. 
