By James Durand
I had a nice Cumberland adventure last weekend.
I don’t get down to Cumby very often, but the conditions right now are spectacular. All hero dirt and the trails are riding perfectly.
So, I loaded up my kids and off we went. Chenoa and a friend took the little ones for a smaller loop, but I figured Rhyley could handle the climbing trail and some blue descents for a reward.
It took some persuading to get her head wrapped around a big climb, but I managed to convince her.
We headed up and I was pleasantly surprised for the first few switch backs. She chose a good gear, she looked through the corners, and had pretty solid technique. Then she ran out of breath and started feeling the leg burn a bit.
“Dad, this is hard, let’s rest”.
“No Rhyley, we just started, gear down, spin faster, and it will feel easier.”
So we grunted it out to the first crossing and rested for a few minutes. After that we stopped more regularly on our way to the next crossing.
The last section we stopped at every second switch back. I wanted to push her harder, but relaxed and let the ride happen at her pace. We eventually got to the top of our ride and had one final rest before we headed down.
It was more resting and complaining than I’d hoped for, but the tiny little red head made it all the way up under her own power, and after a few feet of DH, she was smiling again. (she might get that from her Dad)
I don’t remember anything being easy the first time I did it, and I’m trying to teach my kids that if you work hard and keep at it, everything gets easier.
Considering this falls under the “easier said than done” category, this might be a tough lesson to get across.
Apparently the one thing harder than riding up a big hill, is convincing kids to ride up a big hill.
I’m James Durand and I’m Goin’ Ridin’…