Alcohol and MTB
- Thread starter Hugor
- Start date
cog_nition
Likes Dirt
I switched from beer to wine, and dropped the consumption to a small degree and that alone has saved me carting an extra 3-4 kilos around (now 77-78kgs, 184cm). When you think about the money people spend shaving grams, a much easier option IMHO.
Hellyeah
Likes Bikes and Dirt
Wow I just noticed the Vets section.....yay
Now........ i've spent many years in the recent past drinking
and skateboarding, infact to a point where it was a normal
thing to down a sixxer in a session probably more if things
started to heat up and never had an issue with doing so, it
might of given me that extra bit of courage
MTBing is a whole different thing, after a heavy night on the
beers I can't ride untill late in the afternoon and even then i'm
fairly tentative, so if i'm going for a good ride i'll only have a
couple the night before
but there's nothing like coming home after a long ride and
cracking open a cold frosty ale...........mmmmmm beer.....hehehe
Now........ i've spent many years in the recent past drinking
and skateboarding, infact to a point where it was a normal
thing to down a sixxer in a session probably more if things
started to heat up and never had an issue with doing so, it
might of given me that extra bit of courage
MTBing is a whole different thing, after a heavy night on the
beers I can't ride untill late in the afternoon and even then i'm
fairly tentative, so if i'm going for a good ride i'll only have a
couple the night before
but there's nothing like coming home after a long ride and
cracking open a cold frosty ale...........mmmmmm beer.....hehehe
dunndog
Eats Squid
You forgot the bit about 'it's fun getting pissed'!Good question.
Thought i should answer my own questions too!
My main drinking nights will be Thursday to Saturday.
Monday to Wednesday are almost always alcohol free.
"Sunday sessions" are a bit of a tradition in Perth and I'll go to one of those sometimes.
Why?
Thursday is the drinks with the work crew.
If you have to work as a team its helpful to bond socially as well.
Alcohol just helps the conversation flow easier, the jokes appear funnier, the social barriers diminish.
I could drink water but would probably get bored a hell of a lot sooner!
Friday/Saturday
Social beers watching the footy stirs the banter which is half the fun.
Wine with dinner a must. Post ride beers with the crew are a highlight of the week.
Sunday afternoon is the social day of the week. There isn't a pub in Perth that isn't packed with beautiful women and buzzing activity.
The alcohol is part of the experience. It ensures you are completely destressed and ready to cope with another stressful week at work, and the 3 alcohol free days that lie ahead.
My riding definately suffers after a boozy night, especially dh, for 2 reasons. 1 is that my local (you Yangs) is a push run joint so that just saps me, and 2 it's a pretty rocky kinda place and a small error in judgement/lapse in concentration/moment of hesitation can end rather nastily - so after falling victim to these effects several times you just ride with the 'keep it simple and safe' mentality which ultimately means hold back on everything and don't push yourself. Boring. much much rather be fresh, alert, confident and coordinated. and you just dont bounce back as well as you did sub 30! Life's too short to wonder how you'd have gone if you were more sober.
Saying that, life's also too short to not get pissed and cause a riot every so often!
gcouyant
Farkin Advertiser
Oh come on cog.... We're not kids here..... What could be easier than writing a cheque?
You can have your beer and drink it too.
gcouyant
Farkin Advertiser
It would be but the river is full of crocs.
And the bikes go back onto the car for each crossing.....
But back onto topic, I'm hard pressed to find a post ride picture from our travels without a refreshment of some kind somewhere in the picture.
scblack
Leucocholic
AFD's - Monday to Wednesday are AFD's. Thursday I have a couple, Friday can be 6 or so but also often tired from the week so only a couple. Saturday and Sunday usually start drinking about 4pm, but slowly.
Favourite beverage is beer, love my homebrews. Also love a good Sauvignon Blanc - New Zealand's Oyster Bay is unbeatable and the best aussie one is Broken Wood Cricket Pitch.
Decrease in performance? No I don't think so. But I do definitely limit my intake the night before a ride. Never have more than 4-5 beers the night before a ride. I may be ever so slightly dehydrated if I have a few, but don't find perffomance is affected. One run down and I am at full steam generally.
I don't think having post ride beers affects recovery. I only ride weekends DH and I always have a few on weekends so I don't reckon it changes anything much.
Someone mentioned the Dry July thing. A number of people here at work have been doing similar - two people had a dry March month. Recently I went three weeks dry, after a holiday break. To be honest I exercise in part, so I can feel fine having a few drinks. The level of fitness I maintain for myself allows me to have a few drinks without affecting health at all in any way. I don't drink heavily though.
I would never ever ride with a few drinks in me though. I once did that at a mate's property - he had a trailer and no-one I was sitting around with knew what a DH bike could do, so I rode off his flat bed trailer (only two foot or so high). He didn't understand what I was doing, and unfortunately it was a tip-trailer, so he pulled the pin out. When I got to the end and lifted my front wheel, the trailer dropped, rear wheel flipped under me and I landed FLAT on my back, completely winded. My tail bone was bruised for a couple of weeks. I never ride with grog in me.
Pizzaz
Likes Dirt
AFD - 5-6 AFD's a week
Beverage - Anything so long as its good, don't drink that much anymore so when I do its gonna be the good stuff
Performance - After a biiig night it takes a while to get going in the morning... although managed to finish 3rd in an 8hr Enduro after drinking pretty solidly for 5hrs the day before. Rule is that I (almost) always do the planned ride even after a big night.
Recovery - probably...
The main reason I've cut back on the booze more recently is a weight thing, The order of burn goes Alcohol (28 kj/gram), Carbs (17kj/gram), Protein (16kj/gram) then Fat (35kj/gram)... Having that half bottle of wine basically means that (probably) most of the fat you've eaten than day aint being burnt off... probably you're not metabolizing the protein you've eaten either. Even if you've eaten pretty healthily for the day and burnt a sh*t load of calories, the booze messes you about... No booze = more carbs = better recovery and more energy for training.
Of course, not saying I live like a monk (the Franciscan type , not the Benedictine!) - just finished the Mawson race and spent the next week in the Barossa drinking almost every day... just I know the penalty and the metabolism means the weight don't fall off like it used to!
Wiffle
Likes Dirt
drink almost every night (usually with dinner) but it's only 1-3 std drinks; don't binge often at all, maybe once a month at most? Definitely ride better without a hangover, I think it's my co-ordination that suffers most. I have to drive to ride so very limited on post ride drinks, but the appeal is certainly undeniable! I'll also take quality over quantity these days, so that contributes to my drinking patterns a lot.
gcouyant
Farkin Advertiser
And I'll bet that applies to more than just drinks.
Wiffle
Likes Dirt
You'd better believe it!And I'll bet that applies to more than just drinks.
cog_nition
Likes Dirt
Absolutely, one of the best beers I ever had was a little creatures post Scott 24 hour! Theres something special about throwing back a nice beer after hammering yourself racing.Oh come on cog.... We're not kids here..... What could be easier than writing a cheque?
You can have your beer and drink it too.
And to the original point George. My hardtails already sub 10kgs. it would have been tough to take an 4 kgs off it. Much easier off the gut...and I drink some pretty nice wine now
.
I think this is the general consensus(disclaimer - not my view). It would be very interesting to maybe poll or something similar.
Maybe the xc riders are more focussed on fitness and due to riding such long distances (100k's etc) are unable to drink as much. Maybe its just the "dh" image of us being lazy mad men who dont need to be fit so can drink whenever.
I predominately ride dh - luv beer after hard day dh but thats about it - except for beer after late surf in summer. But most of the fellow "vets" i ride dh dont drink at all.
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Russell...360
Likes Dirt
Well you cant drink and drive, How else can you get around?
I like getting my 1960's Raligh out and hitting the bars around Melbourne.
I like getting my 1960's Raligh out and hitting the bars around Melbourne.
Hugor
Likes Dirt
Getting taxi's in Perth on a weekend night is almost impossible.
Every area has massive lines at the taxi ranks full of drunk dickheads.
Frequently a group of pissed guys decides the line is not for them, and they have the right to enter the next cab that comes along.
Ladies usually struggle and I can't tell you how many times I've had them get in my cab, just so they could carry on with it after my drop off. They'd rather have that than deal with the taxi rank.
I've taken to heading out in my car with my bike in the back. I own a patrol.
When I'm ready to leave, I take out my bike and ride home.
I ride on the footpath and slowly.
Its not legal but its the most practical solution.