So I recently posted my thoughts on the lack of Mountain Bike art that I’ve seen, and it’s sparked a little discussion on Twitter and elsewhere.

As a result, I’ve had the pleasure of being pointed to a scarce few who’ve done some bike art. There’s the Mint Sauce comics that appeared regularly in Mountain Biking UK Magazine. There’s also some cool painting work from Kevin Nierman.

Some theories are being suggested as to the reason for the scarcity of MTB art, but I’m taking this as a challenge to myself to actually make some pictures related to this.

I really have no idea where this is going, but it’s kinda one of those things I’m gonna just sort of follow and see where it goes.

There is a bit of irony, though. Typically, when folks see art being posted online, it inspires them to go make some art of their own. But it’s really the reverse that’s happening to me. The lack of art is making me want to see what I can make of it. Who knows? Maybe this little exercise will show me why MTB art is so rare. Maybe everyone else has already learned something I’ve yet to pick up? We’ll see.

For now, here are a few quick doodles from my sketchbook. I think I have some ideas as to what direction each will head, so one or two of these might end up as more finished art. These are pretty crude, and I really don’t think they are grabbing the gist of where I want to take this, but consider this the beginner trail.

MTB Sketch 1

MTB Sketch 2

MTB Sketch 3

MTB Sketch 4

MTB Sketch 5