Bike
Bike
5 reasons why you need to go for a bike ride, now
Turn off the computer or put down your phone and go for a spin. After reading this first, obviously.
If you're reading this then chances are that you're not currently on a bike ride. But you should be, or have one planned for later. Even if it's just a quick spin.
Here are five essential tips to help convince you of this salient fact:
1. Why wouldn’t you? Seriously.
Table over the hip.
© Ian Collins/Red Bull Content Pool
Take a couple of seconds to run your plans for the rest of the day through this handy equation: time to get there, plus ride, plus time to get home again, equals ride!
If there’s even the slightest potential to get a pedal in then you really ought to pursue it. It can be all too easy to get into the rhythm of not riding but within five turns of the cranks you’ll have forgotten what that felt like.
What makes you a better rider? Bike time. So go and get some.
2. The weather could always get worse.
The air thins out as Tim nears the icy summit
© Brian Nevins/Red Bull Content Pool
Unless you can, hand on heart, say that you’ve just looked out of the window and a cow has whistled passed a la the film Twister then, in theory, the weather could always get worse.
You might have to pull a few layers on, but that'll just make you appreciate the t-shirt and shorts days when they finally arrive all the more.
Skin is waterproof and all that, get outside!
3. Your bike is currently up to date.
Danny Hart’s 2016 Mondraker Summum
© Bartek Woliński/Red Bull Content Pool
The last couple of years have felt like a never-ending conveyor belt of mountain bike standards. Buying or building a new bike can feel like that old TV game show when a conveyor belt of stuff whizzes passed and a sweaty contestant has to somehow memorise it all.
"Boost front hub"
"Metric shock"
"Coil not air"
"Cuddly toy"
*Audience applauds*
In this game, it seems you have a very small window wherein your bike is current and relevant enough for you to even contemplate sneaking a picture of it on to Instagram.
In fact, by the time you’ve finished reading this list it might well be out of date again so just go now. GO!
4. It makes financial sense. Sort of.
Marco Fontana takes on liquid
© Bartek Wolinski/Red Bull Content Pool
If you're as into bikes as we suspect that you might be then it's very possible that your two-wheeled pride and joy has cost you a coin or twelve. Why would you spend that kind of cash and not take advantage of it?
As we've already outlined above, it might only be 'current' for a few more hours too, so to make the most out of it, hadn't you better go and throw a leg over it?
In some groups of riding buddies extensive winter riding is even frowned upon as ‘sneaky practice’. Ignore that, it's an investment. And anyway, you won’t be able to hear them when you're wheel-spinning lumps of earth down their throats come the spring.
5. It’s supposedly good for you, isn’t it?
Rémi Thirion and Claudio Caluori taking advice
© Bartek Woliński/Red Bull Content Pool
Amidst all the gnarcore, super-sick scrubbing and shredding worthy of high-fiving the very skin right off your palms over it can be easy to forget that riding a bike is actually good for you.
OK, OK, that’s not what it’s about. It’s about ‘feeding the stoke’ and ‘riding the dream’ and ‘today’s office’ social media posts, but, riding your bike is actually exercise.
Exercise releases endorphins. Endorphins have an almost morphine-like effect amongst your synapses which makes you feel pretty damn good.
Burns fat... Good for you... Makes you feel good? Not a bad deal.
Go ride.
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