This is (almost) goodbye.

Because 50 is a nice round number

Dear listeners,

Soon, Jamie and I will be posting our final podcast recording for The Art of Mountain Biking podcast. But I’ve been wanting to address you all in writing, first, as writing is often how I do my best thinking.

For the past few weeks, I’ve been attempting to create a few synthesizing episodes that pull themes and clips from across our 50 conversations. This was an in-depth exercise and quite the endeavor. I re-listened to (and combed the transcripts of) each episode several times. This deep dive not only served as a refresher on the valuable lessons and memorable moments from those discussions but also had a profound impact on me that is hard to put into words.

I heard a proverb once that says: “Knowledge is just a rumor until it lives in the muscle.” Well, for the past few weeks, those conversations have been burrowing into me.

Then, on a very early morning hike last week, it all hit my muscle. I felt the lessons echo with each step: Positioning is key in order to move freely and quickly, with stability. And, ride your own ride—tailor it to where you are and what you need, in that moment. And, when working at your edge, back off, recruit your resources, then ease on through. And, tend to your body, mind, and soul.

And, breathe, and do it beautifully.

On that hike, I had initially hoped to figure out the next steps for the podcast and think about what the next phase would look like. Then it came to me.

This podcast is complete.

Creative offerings and projects like this vary greatly in terms of their lifecycles. And going through all those old episodes, for days, revealed something important. If this podcast were a form of research, I would say that we had “hit saturation,” meaning the same themes were starting to repeat, over and over again. Sure, their forms were ever changing, but I felt like we have actually done it. We have said our piece.

I mentioned this to Jamie at the end of that hike, and she felt the same way.

We often discussed on the podcast that mountain biking, much like life, is about the journey of the ride, not merely the destination. It’s about those moments of struggle, triumph, and, yes, even the moments where we finally leave the trail. Our podcast aimed to be a companion on that ride. And now, the journey of this particular project has reached a natural and fulfilling endpoint. 

In choosing to end The Art of Mountain Biking, we are not just saying goodbye, but practicing what we preached.

As for me, I’ll never not create. I’ve been putting stuff out there since I started my very first Blogspot blog in high school (it was called, true story, “Cry of the Capricorn.” I was so… high school.), and I intend to continue now with my own personal writings in Huomautus. Do subscribe there if you’d like to continue this next chapter with me.

Jamie will be continuing with Simply MTB, and you can reach her there.

I’m ending the payments for paid AOMTB subscriptions with the most heartfelt thanks to those of you who contributed to keeping this show going as long as it did. That said, I’ll continue to keep all content up on Substack, Instagram, and all podcasting platforms indefinitely, should you find yourselves wanting to spend time with us again in the future.

And if you have found value in the podcast and want to leave us a final tip, you can do that here.

Many final “thank you’s” will come when I post our final conversation, but for now, please accept my deepest gratitude for being part of this incredible journey. I was blown away not only by how widely we were received, but by the depth and soul of the people listening. Each episode of The Art of Mountain Biking was crafted with love, passion, and a yearning to understand, to push boundaries, and to celebrate the beauty of the ride. And you all were so here for it.

What a sport, eh?

Please, and I mean this truly, stay in touch. Take care, y’all.