Defining the Ineffable with Brooke Trine
Chasing an addiction with 'just pure happiness'
Thirteen years ago I was in high school, longing for graduation day like a brand new turtle trudging through sand destined for the wide-open sea.
My wide-open sea led to a career in writing as a journalist. Brooke Trine, who graduated the same day — and from the same high school — found a life riding bikes in awesome, often far-flung places, like Mexico and New Hampshire, Utah and Cleveland, Ohio. OK, maybe not too far-flung.
After a period of racing motocross, and then working in the corporate world, she’s now a professional freeride mountain bike athlete (recently sponsored by Nukeproof) who lives in a van in Virgin, Utah, where she and her boyfriend, Tommy, can ride year-round.
I recently caught up with Brooke after seeing her Facebook post about being sponsored by Nukeproof bikes, a company founded in the 1990s in Grand Rapids, Michigan at the height of the North American mountain biking craze.
Here’s what Pinkbike had to say about Brooke.
In 2019, Brooke did what many of us wish we had the courage (and skill) to do — she quit her successful career in corporate America to chase the dream of professional mountain biking. And boy did she chase it. Hailing from Ohio, with roots grounded in the dirt jumps of the famous Ray’s Indoor Bike Park in Cleveland, Brooke is on the bleeding edge of the women’s freeride movement. Starting with the inaugural women’s Speed & Style event at Crankworx Whistler 2019, Brooke has had notable appearances at Freeride Fiesta, the Hangtime Jump Jam and several stops of the Women’s Slopestyle Tour. Now splitting her time between the freeride holy land of Virgin, Utah and Highland Bike Park in New Hampshire, Brooke is dedicated to progression — both in her own riding and in the women’s freeride movement as a whole.
Cheers, Brooke, on finding a path that makes you happy.
Here’s our Q&A, edited for clarity only.
Who are you and where do you live and what do you do for a living?
I am 30 years old. BUT I feel like my biking age is much younger! haha. I currently live in Virgin, UT. The past 2 winters, we've come here to escape the snow and be able to ride year-round. In the summers, my boyfriend, Tommy, and I have been living in New Hampshire. For a living: I ride bikes :)
Can you outline your journey from motocross racing to downhill mountain biking and what attracted you to mountain biking?
All through school, I was very athletic. When I graduated and stopped playing sports, I felt like there was some structure/purpose missing from my life. My dad had gotten me into racing motocross when I was younger, so I explored that again for a few years.
During that time, I would ride at Ray's Indoor Bike Park in the winter, to cross train for motocross. At first, it was just that, cross training. But as I progressed on the bike, it turned into a much deeper passion and I learned so much more about the different disciplines of cycling. While riding at Ray's MTB, I was riding a 26" dirt jumper, but as I got more into it, I got my first full-suspension mountain bike in late 2019. Since then, I've been inspired by the community of cycling, regardless of the discipline. Everyone is so eager to help others and just have fun riding together, regardless of their skill level.
Could you describe your earliest memory of riding a bike?
I remember being about 12? And REALLY wanting a BMX bike because all of the kids on our street were riding them. I remember getting it for my birthday (I believe?) and being so excited and feeling so cool. It's funny because that is the style of riding I gravitate more towards now (freestyle ish), so it's cool to see that I was interested in it then too, even though in a completely different way that I am now.
What's the toughest aspect of being a pro in downhill mountain biking these days? And what is the most rewarding aspect?
I would say I have different challenges since I am more on the freeride side than the racing side. Racers are held accountable by their race results, which can be extremely tough if the results aren't going your way, but it's also pretty objective.
As a freeride athlete, things are a bit more subjective. Many of my sponsors are looking at social media to judge my riding, which can be tough if you're not being favored by the algorithm that week, haha. There are more freeride MTB events popping up, though, as female freeride is exploding at the moment — and more women are getting invited to some of the "men only" events that have been around for awhile. It's also pretty cool though, because I have a lot of freedom in my riding.
I don't have a race schedule necessarily and can do whatever I'm finding fun or exciting. I can ride different types of bikes on various terrain, and it seems easier to not get burnt out as quickly as some of the racers might. I think there are so many rewarding aspects. I get to ride my bike for a job … that’s probably the most rewarding, haha. But I get to interact with so many people — virtually and in person. I genuinely love helping other riders push past their fears and accomplish things they never thought possible. With my own riding, any time I accomplish a new feature or new goal, it's extremely rewarding mentally, physically, emotionally, everything! And, depending on the season, that could be happening daily, haha. So there's definitely times where biking is SUPER rewarding, and then there are times where you are injured and it seems ultra un-rewarding. I've actually been pretty plagued with injury my entire time in mountain biking, but it seems to help keep me out of ever getting burnt out of riding because I'm forced to take 2-4+ months off at a time and really think about why I love riding and can't wait to get back to it.
How many bikes do you have and what are they?
I have 5 bikes (which I realize seems so excessive, haha! But they all serve different purposes).
I have a Nukeproof Solum, which is a 26" wheel dirt jump bike. I ride this on pumptracks, slopestyle courses, local dirt jumps. It's a bit more "freestyle" oriented. It has 100mm of front suspension and no rear.
I have a Nukeproof Reactor. This is a full 27.5" wheel mid-travel trail bike. This is the bike I use when I’m doing local trail rides on pretty mellow terrain. If I have to pedal long distances, this is the bike I will use because it's the most efficient. The Reactor has 160mm of travel in the front and 140mm of travel in the rear. For some people in Ohio, this probably sounds like a lot of travel, but it's actually the least amount of travel I've ever had on a full suspension, haha!
My next bike is currently my favorite and probably up for the most discussion; the Nukeproof Megawatt. This is a mullet (29" front 27.5" rear) e-bike (so it has pedal assist). It has 170mm travel in the front and 160mm travel in the rear. This is my first year having an e-bike and they seem to have a bit of a mixed review in the cycling community.
As someone who doesn't bike for fitness and enjoys descending much more, the e-bike has allowed me to get so many more laps in and have so much more fun than I would on my normal trail bike. This is also my first time riding a bike that has a 29" front wheel. As someone who wants my bike to be as nimble as possible, I've strayed away from bigger wheels, but after riding this one, I've really been loving how it charges through some of the more technical sections compared to my full 27.5.”
My last 2 bikes are the ones I do most of my "competitive" riding on. I have a Nukproof Giga, which I'm running as a full 27.5" with a dual crown 200mm fork in the front and 180mm rear. This is my current "freeride" bike, but only because I haven't gotten my final bike which is the Nukeproof Dissent.
The Dissent is a full 200mm front and rear travel DH bike that you would see on the UCI DH racing circuit. Once I get this bike, I will convert my Giga back to a 180mm single crown front fork and use it for riding at lift-access bike parks where you don't necessarily need a full DH rig. The Dissent will be my primary bike that I will ride on the larger freeride features. Out in Virgin, we are primarily riding older Redbull Rampage sites, so this bike is perfect for both technical descents and soaking up the bigger hits.
Having multiple bikes definitely keeps you on your toes and keeps riding extra exciting because they are all their own types of riding, so I can set different goals and have different expectations for each.
What has cycling done for you, both professionally and personally?
At the moment, my entire life revolves around cycling, so in a way it's been/done everything. I met my significant other through riding, quit my corporate job, changed my lifestyle to living in a van full time, and am traveling around seeing places I never dreamed of!
I'm also now riding professionally/full time, which almost happened accidentally, if I'm being honest. Now that I'm here I'm so grateful for all of the support along the way and am just enjoying the process and trying to make it last as long as I can! I think cycling has showed me there is so much more to life than what I thought growing up. I was raised, I would say, a bit close-minded to the opportunities that existed outside of a small town in Ohio. Bikes have really opened my eyes to the various communities and people that exist around the world — extreme kindness even in a competitive community, and just that you don't have to do one set thing for your life.
It's never too late to chase your dreams!
Who do you look up to in the sport right now and why?
I'm a bit channeled in to freeride MTB at the moment, so I would say Hannah Bergemann for just being such a good rider/amazing human but also having the mindset to bring other athletes up with her and creating a space where everyone can thrive. She's definitely the epitome of "a rising tide can lift all boats" and have been so helpful in lifting others up as she has climbed to the top of freeride MTB. The creator of Redbull Formation, Katie Holden, has also been a huge contributor to my career because she's created a space where it’s even possible to be a professional freeride MTB rider, where before you could only be professional if you were also a racer.
Describe the feeling that cycling gives you.
This is tough to put into words. Riding allows you to do things that aren't possible off the bike — so I can't run and jump off a 40' cliff on foot and land and run away. I can't charge at a big jump and just run off of it. So, to do these things on the bike, creates this feeling of unity between you and the bike that feels so incredible and gives you such a euphoric feeling. There are definitely days where you feel like you are in a way connected to your bike, and those are usually days when you feel really good on the bike. It's also such a paradox because whenever you are doing something you've never done, you feel so unsure and almost feel like it's impossible (in your mind), so when you accomplish the feature, you feel such a rush of adrenaline and the biggest dopamine release, haha. Just pure happiness. I would say it's probably addictive and that's what keeps people chasing the feeling of progression, but I think it's a healthy addiction, haha.
Thanks for hanging out with us today, Brooke. Keep pedaling and flying and progressing.
Fellow cycopaths! Thanks for reading. Stick around for another Q&A next week. Like, comment, share — all those things. And then get in the saddle for a ride, dammit. Off the screens! Into the saddles! Face in the wind! Do it!
Brooke says cycling a big feat is “just plain happiness.” Absolutely!!!