Riding Through Seasons: A Reflection on Balance and Obsession

It’s been a month since I last rode my bike. Yeah, I’m surprised too. But sometimes life just gets busy, and the trails just have to wait their turn. Today I’d like to share a little bit about balance and how priorities shift through the seasons of life.

A few years ago, mountain biking wasn’t just a hobby. It was everything, it was all consuming. I was eating, breathing, and sleeping the sport. I had just launched a shuttle service in Boise, and I was pouring everything I had into making it a success. I wanted to be fully immersed in the community, showing up to every ride, every meeting, every opportunity. But in doing so, I started to lose sight of the rest of my life. Friendships outside the biking world suffered. I was overcommitted, and while the shuttle was gaining traction, my personal life was coming apart rapidly.

In a strange twist, the federal government shutting down my business turned out to be a blessing. It forced me to stop, to reassess, and to reset. I got a day job. I started riding again. Not for content, not for business, but for joy. And in that shift, I rediscovered something essential I had lost: balance.

Obsession, I’ve learned, is a dangerous place to live your life.
It’s loud. It’s demanding. And over time, it becomes suffocating.

That’s part of why I launched this blog with the tone I did. From the beginning, Filthy Casual has been about fun and light-hearted riding. The name itself is a regular reminder for me; I’m not doing this to become a professional. I’m doing this because I love it. I want to share the sport with others, I want to help people find new places to ride, and create space for the everyone without needing mountain bikes to define my worth.

Some of you may not know this about me, but I have two teenagers, I work a full-time job, and I’m pushing 40 years young. A lesson I’ve learned while raising kids is that life will sometimes demand your attention elsewhere. You get pulled into responsibilities that exist outside of your hobbies, and you have to learn how to practice endurance and fidelity to the needs of your family. That’s not to say you quit doing the things you love, it just means you're continually required to audit where they fit into your priorities. And bikes will never come before my family again.

This past month off the bike has reminded me just how much I do love riding mountain bikes. But it’s also reminded me that sometimes, life demands us to address other things first. Right now, there’s a lot going on behind the scenes of this URL. And it means that riding just is not at the top of my list and that’s okay.

There are seasons in life where you have time and energy to give your hobbies and there are seasons when you just don’t. Both are valid. Both are part of the ride.

So if you’re in a season where you're riding hard and feeling strong, enjoy every moment of it. Don’t let this blog post make you feel guilty for leaning all the way in. And if you’re in a quieter season, like me, give yourself some grace. The trails aren’t going anywhere. I'll be back to riding very soon.

Forever two wheels!

-Myles