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Putting out the welcome mat for out-of-towners
By Sarah Hansing
For all of the sort of smug satisfaction I have gotten from showing visiting friends the ālocals onlyā side of things, I had the tables turned on me this past week.
I was treated to the Sydney ālocals onlyā secret trail by a new friend.
Honestly, he had no real reason to do such a thing, or to be so cool about doing it. There was no bragging, no bravado. He didnāt try to rip my legs off, or show me just how much better he knew the lines, or how much faster he could go on the (super rad) super twisty single track.
He didnāt have to show me the secret way in, or the best way to get up-n-over the gate that may or may not have been on private property, and may or may not have wound through the Australian woods into some of the sickest, swoopiest, berm-iest mountain biking this side of the ocean.
But he did.
He was gracious and unassuming, checking to see that I wasnāt too far off the back or at least that I hadnāt died going off one of the narrow log rides (which I wouldnāt have probably gone on, had I not just been blindly following. Itās amazing what you can do when youāre just watching the right line and not worrying about the potential for gravity-induced accidents, isnāt it?)
I crashed once.
I laughed a lot.
I had a blast.
And I was extremely grateful to have been taken under the wing of a ālocalā who was kind enough to show me somewhere that I never could have found on my own.
The Narnia of Singletrack, so to speak, wouldāve remained forever a secret wonderland were it not for the kindness of a local.
The lesson I learned?
I suppose itās pretty obvious.
Making people feel welcome on your home turf is part of what mountain biking is all about. So be a good host. The dirt is for everyone, after all, and itās even more fun when itās shared.
āFat Tire Tuesday columnist Sarah HansingĀ has been slinging wrenches as a pro bike mechanic for 15 years (with the exception of a one year stint working for Trek Bicycles in Wisconsin.)Ā Epicenter Cycling scooped her up as their lead mechanic and the shop’s crewĀ plans to ākeep her forever. Sarah loves riding singletārack, wrenchingĀ on bikes, and hanging out with her jerk-face but adorable cat Harlan. (Who is a jerk.)