Oh…So, You're Better Than Me? Here's Your Cookie.

27 Feb 2014

By Natty G.

Natty’s Chafe:

Oh… So, You’re Better Than Me? Here’s Your Cookie.

Most lift access bike parks magically turn in to white wonderlands during the winter months, and mountain biking is but a distant memory. Hopefully, only good memories go into my long-term memory bank. For the most part, all my cuts, scratches, bruises, and broken bones are all forgotten. The dings in my frame from rocks that shot up, and made me nearly loose my $h*t, are gone. The memories that remain, reside in the deepest parts of my soul; heartache over that one jump that I did not clear or my favorite trail with a new feature that I never had a chance to hit. I close my eyes at night and dream of Misty Mountain Pizza and Mogul’s gluten free muffins and blame them for making me gain 10 pounds every summer. Lastly, the haunting memories of poor trail etiquette ring the loudest in my ears.

Along side these good and bad memories, that I like to dig up from time to time, is the memory of all the men. Yes, men, lots of men at Whistler Bike Park, living-it-up in their testosterone rich blood. Going all out, showing off every trick in their hot colored kits, and cutting me off before I even get a chance to roll down the hill. This is a common complaint from many expert level female riders. I hate to generalize because I’m sure there are plenty of men and women out there who know better than to underestimate the speed of a well-seasoned female rider. This rant goes out to all those monkey-crazed individuals, who just simply make the assumption that they are faster than everyone else on the mountain. Listen up! Maybe you are a faster than me, but you gotta use your words. A simple “are you going to go?” or “do you mind” or a simple gesture, would suffice. What has happened to people who don’t know how to communicate simple words anymore?

I guess the real question is, why do some people just ignore simple trail etiquette? Just because you are at a bike-park doesn’t mean that you should ride like no one else is around. Yes, there are no hikers on the track and there is no uphill riding allowed. But, there are still going to be newbies, children, and yes, people who are slower than you. I like to close my eyes at night feeling like I am a respectful grown ass woman, so, I don’t pass people in the air, I pullover (when it is safe) if someone is behind me and I speak up when I want to pass someone. Also, I don’t roll up and shoot down a trail in front of someone getting ready to drop-in just because I want to race against Strava.

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