The Trail Blazers

Mountain biking as a sport, which started out as an individual pursuit on the part of a handful of thrill-seekers more than two decades ago, is slowly attracting more people into its fold.

- Nilesh Dhumal

The year has faded from memory with the passage of time, but frames from that glorious morning, almost a decade and a half ago, remain crisp like fresh prints in recall. The rough trail, strewn with gravel and rocks, snaked down the hill, shrouded under a canopy of green. It was raw, it was intimidating, yet, it weaved a seductive charm over me as I stood with my bike at the head of the narrow path that meandered through the forest. For a BMX rider, mountain biking is a natural progression. And like the good old saying, ‘first impression is the last impression’, I was already a convert even before the first pedal-stroke down the narrow trail.

I have many memories of the days when we would return home with broken bike parts, at times dragging the bike along or carrying a friend home after a hospital visit. Recovering from injuries was time spent watching mountain biking videos and reading bike magazines, waiting for the day we could get back out for a ride.

In simple language, mountain biking is the sport of riding bicycles off- road, often over rough terrain. The bicycles are specially designed to enhance durability and performance on such terrain. This style of riding originated in the 1970s when groups of riders in different parts of the US started riding off-road with cruiser bicycles such as those made by Schwinn. Back then, these bicycles were tinkered with to handle the rough trails. By the early ’80s, companies started manufacturing mountain bicycles using high-tech, light-weight materials.