THE PSYCHOLOGY BEHIND MOUNTAIN BIKING

Source: FlowMountainBike.

By Gundhramns Hammer
October 9, 2014
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Mountain biking is one of those sports that has been sold on TV and other media to the masses as something quite special and, in some circles it is, that if you do not practise it you will not "realise" your full potential as a human being.  

Since global oligarchs and their social engineers tell people what to do, what to eat, what to screw, etc., any sport activities or recreational sports are bound to become a useful tool for their particular agenda: Controlling the masses of human slaves.

Apart from the fact that those people who are on the bike seat rushing downhill probably get a big kick - the adrenaline rush or adrenaline addiction - out of it, we can still pose a few questions on this risky/dangerous mountain beating:

• Have you ever wondered what is behind mountain biking? 
• What makes them tick? 
• When compared to other outdoor sports, what kind of environmental impact has off-road biking on the land and wildlife?
• Do these bike addicts really care about Nature? 
• What kind of message are these bikers transmitting to other people around them with those thick and knobby tires and tough frames of their bikes? 
• Are they narcissists? 
• Do they suffer from "Monomania" Syndrome or "Cognitive Dissonance"? 
• Are they bad role modelling for kids?
• Etc.

The following article on the psychology of mountain biking will basically answer the above questions. Here it is:

The Psychology of Mountain Biking by Dr. Michael J. Vandeman (2000). 

Here is an example of an extreme mountain biker (Video 1):

Video 1. The Ridge: Extreme mountain beating.

For more information on the environmental impacts of mountain biking on soils, vegetation, wildlife and water, which it does have just like any other outdoor sport, consult the papers provided in the references section below. 

Anyway, we shall not get in deep waters here. 

To get the gist out of your own life, to each his own. You are the boss. 

But are you really?

Whilst on this, let us leave one point clear: 

We do NOT advise nor encourage anyone to attempt any dangerous bike pirouettes. We are NOT responsible should anyone out there try to do what you have just seen done on the above clip (Video 1).


References

Pickering C.M., Hill W., Newsome D. & Leung Y.-F. (2010). Comparing hiking, mountain biking and horse riding impacts on vegetation and soils in Australia and the United States of America. J. Environ. Manag., 91: 551-562.

Quinn M. & Chernoff G. (2010). Mountaing Biking: A Review of the Ecological Effects. A Literature Review for Parks Canada - National Office (Visitor Experience Branch). Final Report. Mistakis Institute, Mount Royal University, Calgary, Alberta, Canada. 42 p.

Rinehart R.E. & Sydnor S. (Eds.) (2003). To the Extreme: Alternative Sports, Inside and Out. State University of New York, Albany, NY, USA. 436 p.

Weber P. (Ed.) (2007). Managing Mountain Biking: IMBA´S Guide to Providing Great Riding. International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA), Boulder, CO, USA. 256 p.