The Cons of Being Pro

I completely agree but I really dislike it when someone tells me that I am getting old. No, I am not getting old, I am becoming more responsible, for all the points that Ryan notes in his article.

I have come to understand that there are consequences with each and every action. How do I manage those consequences? Do the stuff that I am comfortable with, the rest can be left for someone else.

We are coming to a time when the fall out from all these "Extreme" sports are going to come to head. The injuries of years past will start to creep up and there are going to be complications from them.

We seldom look to future and are bent on "living in the present". What will the legacy of our event be in the future? Broken "old" people… or a rich history knowing that the right steps were taken… and that while some accidents do happen… we managed the risk properly.

Unfortunately the "Professional Sports World" doesn't see it that way, and neither do sponsors.

I wouldn't take the 'old' thing too literally, more like older and wiser, and "I want to ride tomorrow, and the day after that"…and frankly taking risks that jeopardize riding whenever I want become less and less desirable. And I'd say we're still having fun no matter what!

On the whole 'getting older' topic, it drives me nuts. I personally feel more confident and stronger on my bike at 31 than I did at 21. This is because of a healthier lifestyle, time in the gym and 'deliberate practice'. What's 'deliberate practice' you ask? Read 'Talent is overrated' and you'll get a better understanding of why Vic can shred burke at 70+ years old and why Steve Peat is pushing 40 and is still racing the world cup.

I wouldn't take the 'old' thing too literally, more like older and wiser, and "I want to ride tomorrow, and the day after that"…and frankly taking risks that jeopardize riding whenever I want become less and less desirable. And I'd say we're still having fun no matter what!

Exactly.

On the whole 'getting older' topic, it drives me nuts. I personally feel more confident and stronger on my bike at 31 than I did at 21. This is because of a healthier lifestyle, time in the gym and 'deliberate practice'. What's 'deliberate practice' you ask? Read 'Talent is overrated' and you'll get a better understanding of why Vic can shred burke at 70+ years old and why Steve Peat is pushing 40 and is still racing the world cup.

The older thing isn't a literal statement. I'm more comfortable on a bike now than ever, but my priorities have changed, and I much prefer a long adventure that will take me somewhere amazing, get me in shape and keep me on the bike for hours at a time, rather than a short fast high speed blast down a jump trail. It all goes back to Dan's coffee analogy really. While I still like some jumps every now and then, I have more patience, and prefer the reward from hard work much more than the 'twitch' reward I used to crave.

Fascinating insight. Personally I think I raced road and XC for respect and acceptance by others that I was a worthy person. These days I ride alone 99% of the time and only show off to my dog. And he doesn't care. I used to take risks racing that I wouldn't training. And I am by nature risk averse. I have no problem walking stuff or skiing another way these days. There was a time though where I would do it because of peer pressure.

I think of other athletes like Lancy Pants Armstrong. And there are many athletes like him with a burning need to crush opponents. Why? Personality defect? Lousy childhood? Who knows. Last night there was a documentary on the life of Johnny Carson. A lot of his drive may have stemmed for the fact that his mother rarely praised him for anything. Yet when she died, they found a box in her cupboard full of newspaper clippings of Carson. Clearly she was proud but never let him know. He kept that box in his room until he passed away. One of the things Carson said was that he performed because he was shy. He could be someone else when he performed. Yet there are other entertainers, Jonathon Winters and Robin Williams come to mind that are rarely themselves. Winters spent time in mental institutions I think.

Yet for some the sport or entertainment "job" is just that, a job. Much healthier I think to look at it that way. Then look at how some people work at so called regular jobs. Those hyper aggressive business people that seem to have the same need to prove their worth. They have to win at all costs. Not healthy. I know a lot of lawyers for example that get paid a lot of money. It's not the amount off money they get that is really important to them, but the amount relative to the other lawyers that is.

Getting older…

I just recently reached this point. It's an uncomfortabl change at first when you realized that some stunts aren't worth the consequnces. Almost paralized myself last year falling off a log 8 feet in the air and that really made me look at what I'm ridding. The 20 min high is not worth missing weeks of work and thousands in lost wages and not being able to ride the next week. It's a very odd transition. I couldn't imagine what goes through the riders minds at something like crankworks.

Ryan may be a good person to reach kids who are sacrificing their brains through recurrent concussions in mad pursuit of their athletic goals, if only people "supporting" them would let them hear it.

Getting older…

I just recently reached this point. It's an uncomfortabl change at first when you realized that some stunts aren't worth the consequnces. Almost paralized myself last year falling off a log 8 feet in the air and that really made me look at what I'm ridding. The 20 min high is not worth missing weeks of work and thousands in lost wages and not being able to ride the next week. It's a very odd transition. I couldn't imagine what goes through the riders minds at something like crankworks.

Yes. But in a sense it is comforting to realize that you don't need to risk it anymore. And it may cause you to look at other things too.

The older thing isn't a literal statement. I'm more comfortable on a bike now than ever, but my priorities have changed, and I much prefer a long adventure that will take me somewhere amazing, get me in shape and keep me on the bike for hours at a time, rather than a short fast high speed blast down a jump trail. It all goes back to Dan's coffee analogy really. While I still like some jumps every now and then, I have more patience, and prefer the reward from hard work much more than the 'twitch' reward I used to crave.

The sad part is that going huge doesn't really seem to matter anymore anyway. Riders with 'steez' are the ones that get noticed now. I recently bought an AM bike and I love it. I still love smashing my dh bike and taking risks, or what I like to call 'business days' but it is nice to have relaxing fun rides as well. It's crazy how different the 2 worlds of XC and DH are and yet are similar at the same time.

That was a great read. Thank you Ryan for your honesty and insight. It digs a bit into my field, psychology, and I'm always thrilled to see Biking and Psychology discussed together. I wish there was more info out there of a similar nature and hope to contribute to that myself when I have bit more time. I'm also enjoying the aging rider debate. I'm 31 and two of the many changes I've noticed with age are 1) My planning seems a bit clearer. I can look at something and with more ease determine what the outcome may be. I'm sure this is partly related to experience but likely a bigger side effect of a maturing prefrontal cortex (fully matures at around 26) in the brain. This is a part critical in planning functions. I'm way better now at looking down the trail and planning based on more accurately perceived outcomes. Some may call it "softening with age" but I'd like to hide behind the guise of assuming its that I'm more aware of the consequences and 2) would be that I have a daughter now and an injury dramatically decreases the fun I can have with her both now and potentially in the future. I think of her a lot as I'm deciding whether or not to stretch my comfort zone on a particular stunt or feature.
Thanks again Ryan for the great read.

Powerful self insight and honesty with a lot for us mortals to learn from. Well done, Ryan.

Ryan - thank you for your insight and honesty in communicating the cons of being a pro. I can relate to many of your observations as a very amateur MTB endurance rider but find them very useful in helping me be a better coach and father.
NSMB - thank you for promoting great articles like this one, the road biking and turning with a laser. Kudos!

Getting older…

I just recently reached this point. It's an uncomfortabl change at first when you realized that some stunts aren't worth the consequnces. Almost paralized myself last year falling off a log 8 feet in the air and that really made me look at what I'm ridding. The 20 min high is not worth missing weeks of work and thousands in lost wages and not being able to ride the next week. It's a very odd transition. I couldn't imagine what goes through the riders minds at something like crankworks.

since giving up the "freeride" game, these days I am more than happy riding sweet cross-country trails on my 29er hardtail, getting the aerobic burn powering up the hills, going flat out on the singletrack, and descending aggressively but not bothered about sending the stunts and getting air

nothing left to "prove", settled back into the trail riding and also riding some road and BMX in the local skatepark and BMX tracks

its all gone full circle, because I got into mountain biking in the mid 80s after BMX racing / freestyle; then rode and raced MTB XC at National level before moving into DH racing (thanks to a team mate in the UK called Jason McRoy and a certain amateur rider Mr. Steve Peat..) and then FR after the DH racing was done..

its learning to find a peace after the adrenalin overload of DH and FR that takes some rebalancing, I'm more than happy just riding in the woodlands, usually by myself as its my own time

the more people realize mtb is not serious business, and that it's all about trail riding, the more accessible/healthy the sport becomes.

Great article, the insights described are very much akin to the process of maturing and gaining wisdom as one ages.