With limited mountain bike experience I never turn down an opportunity to learn new skills. So when I saw there was going to be a women’s mountain bike clinic in Nevada City I quickly signed-up.
The 2-day clinic, hosted by Youth Bicyclists of of Nevada City, was taught by Paige Ramsey (Specialized Academy at The Northstar Bike Park) with Asa Shoemaker (Bicycle skills coach and TBF Racing MTB coach) and Yvette Crockell (Head coach for the Broncos Mountain Bike Team) on board as assistant coaches. These ladies did an amazing job teaching us an array of skills that included front and back wheel lifts, body position, bike body separation, cornering and roll down lunge. It was the perfect blend of teaching and practice time. Each day ended with a ride that allowed us to put our new skills into action or at least try!
To say I conquered everything I was taught would be a lie but I did walk away proud for tackling things I wouldn’t have even considered trying just days earlier. And for the things I haven’t mastered yet it is at least comforting to have a better understanding of what I should be doing…or better yet shouldn’t be doing.
As I reflect on the weekend lots of things stand out as memorable but I think one of my favorites was when Paige told me – “You didn’t do anything you were supposed to do and you still survived.”
Looking forward to many more fun days in the dirt and looking forward to the day when I can look back and say “I can’t believe I couldn’t do that!”
Happy riding and hope to see you all on the trails.
Stephanie
Twitter: @stephanie_artis
Instagram: @stephanieartis
To ride, run, paddle or tri with Freeplay in 2017 visit www.teamfreeplay.com
All age groups and levels of athletes are welcome to apply for our club team!
Photo by Mike Oritz
