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Black Diamond Spawned from road cycling in the mid 80’s, mountain biking received looks of fear from most bystanders. Here were people on bicycles that had fat tires, many gears, and were able to go off road. As the years progressed and the presence of technology created bicycles that suited everyone’s tastes, riders began to classify the different types of riding: cross-country, freeriding, and downhill. Cross-country and downhill riding is pretty self explanatory to most people, riders or not. Just incase, a simple definition of each should suffice. Few mountain bikers have the time to train the three days a week it takes to be in cross-country shape. Most riders ride on weekends only. Downhill and freeride do not require a high fitness level to enjoy. Because of all the climbing that downhillers do in on a chairlift or in a truck, friends with a disparity of fitness and skill can still ride together. This simply is not possible in a cross-country situation where group rides quickly turn into solo experiences. Madness needs time to take root. Nobody wakes up one morning and decides: “Hey, I’m going to quit bathing, put my belongings into a shopping cart, sleep in alleys and spend the rest of my life yelling psychological advice to passing motorists.” We choose the path of our own destruction, one small step at a time, by making a series of bad judgments.
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