Mountain bikers are accustomed to continually dialing in their bikes. We're constantly tinkering the PSI whether in our tires or suspension depending on where we're riding, trail conditions, and of course personal preference. Sure, if you're like me you don't fuss much with that kind of tomfoolery. A quick grab of the tires to check the PSI or pushing down on my front forks and I'm set and ready for the trail. It's not like I'm getting ready to drop into the DH course at Fort William or Les Gets. But we get this whole notion of tweaking ... adjusting things like brakes, shifting, suspension, and keeping everything in top shape.
The same mindset can and actually should be applied to coffee.
Long before I ever had my first sip of beer I knew about "beer muscles." Actually, come to think of it, I vividly recall when I was 4 years old sneaking a sip of my Dad's Old Milwaukee (maybe it was Schlitz) when he stepped of our the truck to pee while we were driving along the back country roads (for obvious reasons). But we know what beer muscles are. In a sense they are that inflated ego and sense of invincibility that comes when too much beer has been consumed.
While coffee is always essential for staving off dark winters it is just as vital in the warm summer months while road trippin' to get your day started. The question then is which brew method? With so many choices out there and so many opinions to go along with them which one should you choose? Is there truly one brew method to rule them all?
Often times what happens early on ends up setting the trajectory of our lives or at least influencing us in some way. That first time you picked up a basketball and you were hooked. That first time you borrowed your neighbor's hockey stick and it somehow just felt right. That first time you listened to someone masterfully play the piano and you immediately begged your Mom to sign you up for lessons. That first time you remember riding a bike (banana seat and baseball cards in the spokes). As they say, first impressions are everything.
Mountain biking is so much more than a good workout. If that's all we were looking for we'd be satisfied with spin classes at the gym. Instead, it is about community. About our squad(s). Mountain biking is just as much (or more) about a lifestyle and a people than it is about simply a sport.
Since I lead this startup known as Loam Coffee I'm always watching and paying attention when it comes to branding, marketing, social media, and the like. I'll read articles about these subjects and even the nuances from how branding is done in North America compared with Latin America and so on. With that in mind I feel as though I've become kind of good at "seeing through" marketing to decipher what brands are really trying to sell and promote.
