Taking my Dad for his first MTB experience

A while back I set a challenge to my Dad telling him he must do an MTB race with me before he turns 70.  Being an athlete in his younger days focusing on long distance running and being quite good at it then, he naturally accepted my challenge. With the Binneman name being well known in the road cycling of yesteryear he was thrown in at the deep end.

I decided to take him for a short spin at Majik forest, the same place I first started cycling and where the mountain biking bug bit me.  Majik forest is just around the corner from where I grew up and it consists of a good climb up a jeep track and some easy to moderate single track on the way down.

My dad was armed with a set of my riding bibs, shorts, golf shirt, an old DJ helmet, gloves and my trusty Commencal when we decided to hit the road.  We started at the car park and pedaled up a short hill, my dad was full of fury and sprinted up the first hill, that also being the last. :)

He then pushed the rest of the hill since according to him it was too steep.  There after we had a bit of a flat ride through the vineyards.  I enjoyed the scenery and savoured the moment of riding with my dad for the first time in my life, while he on the other hand was concentrating profusely to keep the blue machine on track.  He kept reminding me that bicycles of his time were not like these and that he has not been riding a bicycle in years!

As we reached the top we stopped for a water break and enjoyed the view.  Eagerly we packed the water bottles away to get going down the single track.  This would be my dad's first time down single track ever and he reminded me of it every five seconds exclaiming how narrow the road was.  He did pretty well for a first timer of 69!  As I was riding behind my dad I felt very proud and also very blessed.  How many people can say that they went riding single track with their dad at age 69!

On the way down my dad had a minor off and had a lay down in the fynbos.  He could not stop laughing and quickly jumped back on and on we went.  When it got technical he decided to jump off and walk.  We made it through the most technical part and as we got to the flattish part just before entering the dense forest he took another dive into the grass.  He rolled over and back on his feet quick as a cat, of course laughing so much that he was barely able to get back on the bike.

Our ride was over for the day.  My first MTB ride with my dad was successful.  He enjoyed it as much as I did.  This would surely be a day I will never forget.

I just want to say thanks to my dad for joining me! You are the best!  Thanks to Arné and my mom for waiting back home while the boys had some fun out on their bikes.