Injured and riding better than ever

Hi Lee,

Great book, great website! I’d heard good things about MMBS (and conveniently you released v2 at just the right time) but I’ve learnt more and been far more amused by the writing than I expected. Still a ton to learn, I’ll update you in a couple of decades if I have everything nailed by then.

Anyway, exactly three months ago I broke my ankle on the bike (no rad tale, just a bad mix of ice and eventual complacency), had to be pinned back together and started riding again last week. I still have restricted movement and strength in the ankle (quite a lot of healing to do yet) so I’m having to ride all the downhills much more slowly and avoid any drops higher than about 8″ as it can’t handle the dynamic loading. However I have found an upside of great awesomeness — the combination of riding slower (=more thinking time) and having to avoid shocks means that I’ve finally started to pump the trail effectively. It’s quite amazing how pumping smooths out the trail, as the complaints from the ankle prove when I get out of sync with the terrain. I can’t wait to get back to full speed armed with this new weapon in my flow armoury!

Braaap regards,

Alex

P.S. I’ve started trying to get some local momentum to build a pump track – I think it’s going to take a while…

Hey Alex,

Right on! It’s amazing what some patience and shifted awareness will do for your riding (or any other skill, I suppose).

Being hurt definitely forces you to focus on clean technique. Warning: Be careful! Don’t hurt yourself worse!

My Light Hands/Heavy feet doctrine began while I was finishing MMBSi — and supposedly healing from a broken collarbone. Turns out that clavicle is still broken. Heavy Feet/Light hands must work!

Crazy: You should see Jerad Fischer ride. He has a severely broken ankle that will be amputated (for real) in about a week, yet he can dirt jump like a mofo. He says he’s smoother than ever. He has to be.

When you’re smooth AND strong, it’s gonna be GAME ON.

Yours in braaap,

— Lee

Know more. Have more fun!

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