"I can recall those early race memories with a warm heart and excitement because I remember how excited I was to learn from every race, to be excited about the possibilities or being better or learning something new. I remember being the newbie triathlete and didn’t care about rankings or qualifying but only in asking myself “did I give my best effort and what did I learn?” and being content with that."
Considering that I've been training for and racing long-distance triathlon events for nearly 16 years, I miss the moments of learning something new. Although I always keep an open mind and I am willing to try new things to help me improve, there's something incredibly special about doing something for the first time.
Over the past few months, I've found myself cultivating a beginner's mind through the sport of mountain biking. Mountain biking is an invigorating sport. It requires you to think, respond and act quickly. Each ride provides an adrenaline rush, beautiful views in nature and unpredictable terrain. But you also need a great set of skills to be able to get over obstacles and to keep yourself safe.
For my first ride, Karel took me to the trails at Furman University for a very gentle introduction into mountain biking. Experiencing a suspension on a bike was very new to me. I had no idea what it felt like to ride over bumpy terrain until this first mountain bike ride. For my second ride, Karel took me to Dupont to ride on real mountain bike trails. It was another lesson of firsts as Karel taught me how to navigate over roots, rocks and gravel. There were a lot of features that I had to unclip and walk over as I lacked the skills to get over them safely. But as the ride went on, Karel would stop and he would discuss the right line (and skills) needed to get over the technical elements. I kept an open mind and I didn't let fear or frustration get the best of me.
Since then, most of my riding has been at Pleasant Ridge. The trails are hilly and technical but there are several options that I can choose from - and the 5-7 mile loop changes directions each month (and there are a few different loop options) so every ride requires a new set of skills that I am forced to learn in the moment. But Karel continues to walk me through each obstacle or gives me the cues as we are riding. Sometimes I get scared, sometimes I go for it and hope for the best. I tried one hill with a lot of rocks and roots and I found myself on my back, sliding down the hill as I wasn't able to unclip in time on my non-dominate leg. But as the ride went on, I got better. This past weekend we went back to Dupont and I found myself able to go over most of the obstacles. There were several that I had to walk over, a few that I tried and had to unclip to avoid falling and I even experienced going up and down on my first "rock garden." And today, I went on a new route at Pleasant Ridge and struggled on almost every rock obstacle.
Learning how to mountain bike is a new sport for me. While I know how to ride a triathlon and road bike, I started mountain biking as a pure beginner. Although there are moments of failure, self-doubt and frustration, I refuse to give up. I want to get better. But these uncomfortable experiences actually make the whole learning process so much more fun. Even when something feels familiar, having no expertise, experience or opinions is incredibly fresh and exciting.
Whether you are an experienced athlete or new to a sport, consider the following benefits of training with a beginner's mindset:
- Stay open, curious and looking for ways to improve.
- Stay humble. Use your experience to help, teach or to inspire others.
- Look for new ways to challenge yourself.
- Work with someone better and more experienced than you to grow and to improve.
- Try something completely new.
- Teach what you have learned to someone else.
- Be willing to change, even if it feels uncomfortable.
- Don't be afraid to fail.