Yee Haw!

Current Events

The weekend was a write-off musically speaking. My cherished LUC and I spent it biking in the mountains. I rented a real mountain bike (a Brodie Hellion if you must know) and spent Sat and Sun slogging up hills and bombing down dales.

Some musical activity did take place however. I sang as I rode to terrify any bears down the trail. Well, I sang on the easier sections.(see below). Highlights of my bikey set: The Bear Went Over the Mountain, Teddy Bear's picnic, Bearies in the Night, Summertime (and the Living is Beary) and my favorite, If a Bear Shits in the Woods and There's No-one Around, Does the Pope Hear It? (sung to what ever tune happened to be in my head)

I've discovered that what I enjoy about mountain biking is similar what I enjoy about playing music.

To play well I need to shut off the inner voice that's always commenting on my actions. If I'm thinking too much I can lose the plot entirely. I'll be playing well and that little voice will start up: "Yah, this is great, wow!" and a second later I'll be playing the wrong song.

On the bike when it says things like: "Golly that's steep and rocky, should I go left or right?" bad things happen. Bloody, painful things. The really hard stuff requires trusting your skills and the bike, and just doing it. Somehow this is easier on a bike than on a guitar, I must fear embarrassment more than bruising.

The upshot is that both activities require a non-verbal yet active mental state, a state that I cherish because it's so hard for me to achieve.

Anyway it was a fabulous, fun weekend. Yee haws aplenty. I wouldn't have traded it for the world. A gig playing sideman for Elvis Costello maybe, but not the world.