​How is your mental well-being? You can answer that at the end of this post if you like. Reflect a little after reading this but in the meantime ask yourself if you have ever left home to take part in your chosen activity, whether a walk, surf, or bike ride and forgotten an essential piece of kit.
For the purpose of this post I’ll focus on Mountain Biking, one of my major passions. How many of us have left home for a long ride without a simple multi tool, tyre levers, maybe a spare tube and no patches, or even a pump? Ten minutes out and you remember you left an essential part of your kit on the kitchen table. One of these forgotten gems could result in an unwelcome negative mindset for the entirety of the ride. The answer I’m sure is yes, we’ve arguably all done it. Did you feel a little anxious, maybe a little vulnerable so far from home without your back-up tube, your safety net?  Did the ‘What if?’ scenarios begin running through your mind. If you’re riding with mates, they’ll bail you out by offering up a spare tube, or offer a helping hand, someone will have a tool. If you’re riding solo, then the mobile phone is always at hand for a pick up. But what if we’ve forgotten that too, hardly likely though,  how will you capture that ‘selfie’ Insta banger, or monitor your Strava records. But what if? 

A basic bicycle tool kit takes away the smallest of negative emotions linked to our bikes going wrong, and subsequent emotions that can potentially ruin our happy go lucky ride, or adventure into the wilderness far from home. That tool kit is such a mental security blanket that allows us to happily ride further  with no unnecessary negative thoughts related to mechanicals, and helps us avoid those demons like fear, anxiety, stress, anger or frustration.

If we leave home without this multi tool, this great little invention, then arguably we might feel a little annoyed with ourselves. A spare tube might make us ride a little more conservatively, and not ride to our full potential for fear of puncture, even change our route, cutting our ride short. If we leave home without a snack, which is easily don, especially when rushing out the door to meet mates, we know we will soon be hitting a wall. Starving, with energy levels depleted, and a good ride cut short because the  energy from a snack is both as much physical as it is mental. A handful of Haribo can make anyone smile.

Here’s the question that I’d asked myself, and one of the inspirations behind this post. Why then do so many riders leave home without a tool kit for their minds? 

Why do riders hit the bike parks or trails over and over again, knowing that yet again confidence is lacking and knowing they will avoid certain features? Why avoid entering competitions because of a low self belief in riding abilities, that fear of consequence, worried what others might think, the belief you might make a fool of yourself? 

We have this built-in emotional state that seems to relish the crumbling of a normal human being into a bag of anxiety or nerves, weighed down with an overwhelming pressure that we place upon ourselves, or let others place upon us. This same emotion encourages us to swerve right and take the chicken run to avoid the feature we so desperately wish to conquer. We avoid the line we know is sketchy but faster, or the gap jump we wanted to clear, or the drop we wanted to send;  Defeating us again and again. We convince ourselves that next time will be different, we say to ourselves ‘today’s the day’, this is the run, this is it – NAH, NAH…NO....BRAKE... SWERVE….Chicken Run, Safety, Bugger. 

Then we let the frustration attack us. Disappointed in ourselves that we ‘failed’ again, and chances are we will repeat this action in the near future, unless we change something. 
We spend thousands on our bikes, our dream bikes. We endlessly upgrade according to reviews and influencer recommendations, and we’re suckers for colour matching, or tech like coil springs versus air shock, wheel size, carbon vs aluminium, so we try them all. Bars, brakes, pedals, grips, stems, the list goes on, the joy of riding bikes - customisation. We invest so much in our toys.

We upgrade and head out without thinking. Our  dream rigs are built to improve our performance, trend after trend we take it all on board, buying into a very quick feel good factor that might last thirty seconds, until we realise that we still can’t corner properly, or clear the jump. 

We might have visions of being like the professionals, freeriding our local spot like Brendog, shredding a trail like Sam Hill, ‘Flat out Feet Out’, whipping like Kade Edwards, or is that just me?  Let's face 99.9%  of people reading this are not even close, but we can dream, or we could visualise. 

The influencers are there to inspire. Promotions are constantly being sent our way, whether YouTube, online magazines, social media and thankfully still in glorious print. The images and influences play on our minds, the brands have us over a barrel, but that’s OK, because it’s our passion. I have been the same sucker for a decent advert since I got my first pair of Vans in 1981 and still buy them today. 

So we arrive at this point, fully inspired, we have our dream bike, we’re kitted out in the finest apparel from your chosen brand, wearing our super light, new crash helmet, we are generally looking on point. 

I’ll stop right there, as I think you get the picture.   
Here’s the Questions. 

How many of us invest anywhere close to this or any amount of time, finance and energy on upgrading our minds, and our own positive mental well-being? How many of us have invested a fraction of time or purchase costs on developing our confidence, or our self-belief, or ways to overcome peer pressure with a little more personal assertiveness? How many have taken the time, not money,  to invest in building a positive set of tools for your Mind so you don’t take the ‘Chicken Run’.

Why spend thousands on a passion, but spend little or nothing on developing the one thing that is vital to getting the best from our bikes? 

Our mental ability is the most priceless tool we possess, and if we learn to use it wisely, our minds are the most powerful tool on the trail. You can have all the gear that leading brands throw at us, be influenced as much as your brain and wallet can handle, but it’s your mind that will get you to the top of the hill and back down with a bigger smile on your face.  We don’t need to upgrade our minds, we only have the one we were given, default settings and all. Like our bikes, our mind just needs a little tinkering, a dash of trailside maintenance, the odd tweak here and there, servicing once in a while, and if we can spend thirty minutes cleaning our bikes, we can spend ten refreshing our mind. 

Positive mental well-being is the best feeling. The results we can achieve in life are outstanding if we choose to follow the paths that lead us to a simple adage, Positive Thinking Positive Outcome. But does it really work?  Well, the next time you have some spare cash, consider your own mental strength and how an investment in yourself might help. Consider taking part in a relaxation session, and be genuinely honest with your self, did it make you feel different? Did it make you feel positive? I have delivered deep relaxation and visualisation techniques to BMX racers, surfers, gymnasts, motocross riders, parents, kids, and business people  and each one has said, ‘Wow, what just happened?’ All I did was just talk to them quietly, and give them the chance to relax their mind and focus on letting go of any tensions. Throw in some visualisation on an area they’d like to succeed and it becomes the perfect way to tap into the awe inspiring mind of ours and it’s free. A free library of positive experience that can be drawn upon when needed, and if you do try it, you unbox a means to visualise what you’d like to achieve. The question to ask yourself here is: What is your idea of success? If you race, the answer might be to podium, or to top ten, or just enjoy yourself and have fun. If you’re trying that new feature, visualise what you would like the outcome to be. 

In addition to using our free resources within our own head, the best money well spent is a one to one coaching session. Coaching is there for a reason but somehow ego seems to get in the way. Find the right coach and this will give you greater riding ability to a whole new bag of skills, and guess what; those greater skills equal greater confidence, and that confidence can be stored in your free library (your mind) and drawn upon the next time you need it. Coaching and Positivity go hand in hand. 

I had a coaching session two years ago here in Cornwall with elite racer and allround top bloke, Jay Williamson (instagram: @jaywilliamsonmtb) and continue to build upon what he showed me. It was a fantastic day, money well spent and a huge boost to my self belief. We focussed on line choice, body positioning and jumping. Each area we developed has made a huge impact on my riding, yet I know there’s an area that needs attention; my braking skills. Having a tendency to often brake in the turn and not before, I really want to change this as it’s becoming frustrating, and it’s important to recognise this. To develop this will again change my focus and take my riding to another level, boost my confidence, increase my speed and better my experience. 

So on this note, I’m planning a return to see Jay to get this braking issue ‘dialled’, it’s stopping this nearly 53 year old kid cornering fast.  Coaching is not cheap, but it is 100%  worth it and cheaper than wrapping yourself around a tree, damaging your dream bike, denting your ego, and living with endless frustration and a negative mindset. Practice what you’ve been shown, visualise what you want to achieve and this will help your performance out on the trail, racing, or just out playing at the bikepark.  I'll write more about my coaching experience soon but can promise that you'll not regret it. 

In summary, and to anyone that reads this far through what has somehow turned into an essay, whatever sport you do, or business you operate, ask yourself this question... How long do you keep banging your head against a wall before you change? Your most expensive piece of kit will not necessarily get you to the line first, over the greatest hurdle, or achieve your vision of success.  Make sure you leave home with a positive mindset and a bag of belief.  Invest the time and effort into the most valuable piece of kit you have and the rest will follow.  Coaching your mind will cost a fraction or your dream bike, add a little time and effort, and the results will be Mind Blowing. 

Note: For more information on developing a positive Mindset for your sport you can drop me a line if you like. I still do a little coaching and can provide a few tools to get you started. 

Back in 2020, I'm sure we'll all remember that time called 'Lockdown'. For some a time to forget and nothing I can do about that, but for those of us furloughed (i did actually lose my job after 6 months so not all great), hopefully we embraced this time and used it well. I know I did. I began writing more, started a book which I'm determined to finish, riding bikes a ton, surfing loads when things eased, and just enjoyed being outside, a lot, because we are way down West. I recorded this fun little edit with my son Jago in week two. We set up a little bushcraft camp and got down to rekindling some old skills and learning some new ones. After my last post Fuel vs Fun, more of this could be on the cards as we stay closer to home withe the cost of fuel, kind of restricting how far we go and what we can afford. We're not skint, just being careful for now.  Enjoy.