THE QUESTION: “My friends want to go mountain biking, but I’ve never ridden a bike. Can I learn to mountain bike there?”
Ski and snowboard schools regularly welcome never-evers, but what happens when someone shows up to the bike park with zero riding experience?
The question we posed to bike parks around the country was inspired by a mountain bike director who’s fielded it more than once. Still, it’s rela- tively rare in the world of mountain bike lessons to encounter a student who’s never put foot to peddle, even as a kid.
The goal wasn’t to stump anyone, but to see how guest service teams respond to an unexpected request. Responses ran the full range: Some resorts took the query in stride, offering thoughtful guidance and creative options. Others were less prepared for the concept that someone might not know how to ride a bike, and a few weren’t shy about showing it.
Has a guest asked you an interesting question lately? Send it to jordyn@saminfo.com for the Spy to pose to other mountains.
MOUNTAIN 1, UT
SAM: Yeah, I figured it was unusual. Staff: I guess. We don’t offer lessons. SAM: OK. Dangit. Staff: Yeah, you could just go out and try it. SAM: ( laughs ) I’m not sure I am comfortable with that. Do you have beginner trails? Staff: Yes, we do have a few. I mean, you could have one of your friends teach you? SAM: I guess they could if they were up for that. Staff: Yeah, unfortunately that might be your best option. SAM: OK, well, thank you. Staff: Yep, good luck! Score: 6 Comment: She was nice enough, but clearly caught off guard by the question. Her best suggestion was “have a friend teach you,” which rarely goes well. But she can’t invent a mountain bike lesson program that doesn’t exist, and she did recover reasonably well from her initial long pause. MOUNTAIN 3, NC
First Contact: Female. SAM: Stated question. Staff: Well, we don’t have lessons on our trails. ( sincere ) So, you’ve never ridden a bike, or you’ve never ridden a mountain bike? SAM: I’ve never ridden a bike in general. Staff: Hmm, OK. I would recommend trying a road or something flat first ( chuckles ). There’s roots, rocks, berms and things that if you’ve never ridden a bike before you would definitely not know how to go at them. SAM: Yeah, that makes sense. Staff: And like the balance and stuff like that. I mean, we have a nice big parking lot that you could definitely practice in. SAM: That’s cool. Thanks! Staff: But I wouldn’t want you to start on a full suspension bike. I would definitely start on a rigid bike with no suspension and then kind of work your way up into the suspension. SAM: Thanks. I don’t have much bike knowledge so that’s good to know. Staff: And we do rent bikes if your friends were still interested.
SAM: Great, thank you for that. Staff: Yep, have a great day!
Score: 9 Comment: This was a terrific customer service interaction. She was genuinely helpful. Instead of rushing me off the phone after telling me the bike park doesn’t offer lessons, she took time to give me honest advice about what kind of bike I should be learning on and where I should ride it to start. MOUNTAIN 2, MI First Contact: Female. SAM: Stated question. Staff: ( sincere ) I’m sorry, what was the question? SAM: [Restates question] Staff: Umm, ( long pause, chuckles ), I have never gotten that question.
First Contact: Female. SAM: Stated question.
Staff: Um, ( monotoned ) as far as I know we don’t have any lessons or anything, not here. So, you might have to do that somewhere else. SAM: OK. Staff: You are able to rent a bike here, and we do have easy trails. If you go on our website, you can see the easy and hard layout. SAM: Oh, OK. I wasn’t sure. You list mountain bike lessons on your website, so I wanted to call and check. Staff: Yeah, we do have a camp that is running, which I think it’s [dates], but I can double check and ask. I don’t believe there was anything aside from that, though ( quiet ). SAM: Yeah, that would be great if you could check. ( on hold )
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