The old timer in Flagstaff who fixed my line choice with one sentence

I was out near the Coconino trails last spring, stuck behind a rock ledge I had no business attempting. A guy in his 70s with a beat-up Jeep pulled over, watched me fail twice, then said "you're picking the pretty line, not the practical one." He showed me to drop the tire on the left side and let the axle do the work, and I cleared it on the first try. I think about that every time I line up now. Has anyone else had a stranger on the trail teach them something that stuck?

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jamiew5311d ago

Damn, a beat-up Jeep? That alone tells me the dude knows what he's talking about. Around here the guys with the shiny rigs are the ones who get winched out all day, but someone rolling in a scratched-up old truck has seen some stuff. That one sentence about pretty line vs practical line is honestly the best trail advice I've ever heard, and I've been at this for years. It's crazy how one random stranger can nail the exact thing you're doing wrong just by watching for 30 seconds.