Mountain biker turned his passion into a job

Nickson Mwaura’s love for hiking on a bike saw him go an extra mile to get others learn and appreciate the activity.

Njeri Maina @njerimainar

While many people think hiking is challenging, Nickson Mwaura takes it up a notch and does it with a mountain bike. 

I meet him as I’m going round Mount Longonot Crater, out of breath, with my hair spiking out on all sides going by my shadow.

Nickson zooms past me on his mountain bike, no single trace of panting as would be expected of someone doing something that needs more exertion.

I soon learn that he is a certified mountain bike level four tutor, a guide and member of the UK-based Mountain bike Instructor’s Award Scheme (MIAS).

He is also the founder of Jaribu Outdoors, a company that aims to get people outdoors in an adventurous, fun and affordable way.

“I love mountain biking. I do it for the adventure and to challenge myself physically.

It is slightly different from hiking in terms of equipment and preparation needed.

You need your legs, core, back and arms to be strong as they will be exerted while mountain biking.

You also need to be skilled in bike handling to steer through varying terrains,” Nickson says.

Nickson started mountain biking in 2001. He trained locally and was spotted by an agent, and started competing professionally even outside the country.

He would do mountain biking competitively for seven years, going to places such as Wales, UK, and Perth, Australia.

While the travelling was fun, the practising and the courses were difficult. Nickson would be in training for at least three months before going for a competition. 

“It is not just cycling on a mountain. You have to have full body fitness and be mentally prepared,” the mountain biking expert says.

When preparation meets opportunity, one excels. And Nickson has excelled in mountain biking by winning numerous races.

He is a four-time winner of the Maralal International Camel Derby and mountain bike race. He also at one point placed third in the Transwales seven-day stage mountain bike race, a 350km mountain bike challenge in Wales.

He is a two-time champion with record times at the 10-4 mountain bike challenge, a 70km mountain biking course that humbles many.

He won the first time in 2004 and the second time in 2008, after falling off the race literally the previous year when he fell off his bike and broke his shoulder. 

Racing has taught him that one needs to always be prepared. A pro-biker has a team of mechanics to help with repairs and ensure the bike is in tiptop shape.

This might not be the case if one is doing a new course alone, consequently, this prompted Nickson to learn all about parts and mechanics of a mountain bike or any bicycle for that matter.

He is a Cytech level certified cycle mechanic and technician who goes for mountain bike rides with a toolkit that can take care of anything from a loose spike to a loose chain.

This skill set also forms part of the services he offers at Jaribu outdoors, including bike repairs, bike servicing and the selling of refurbished and new bikes.

He also empowers his clients by training them so that they can take care of their bikes better, especially if they do not plan to buy a new one after every other ride.

Out of necessity

“Having achieved most of my goals in competitive mountain biking, I decided to look for a new challenge that would utilise my skill set and experience.

I noticed that there was a gap in mountain bike guiding and tutoring. That is when I started guiding and tutoring people on proper mountain biking form and practices.

I trained and got certification for this as I wanted to do it professionally and have been doing mountain guiding and tutoring for over a decade now.

I would say my business was born out of necessity,” Nickson explains.

He keeps challenging himself by taking on new mountain bike courses so that he can have new routes to challenge his clients, who run the gamut from young children to baby boomers, with.

He has done the full Mt Longonot course with his mountain bike, several routes on the Aberdare Ranges and has traversed Mt Kenya on his bike using the Sirimon route.

This is what keeps him going; the need for a new challenge and to impact people’s lives positively through adventurous and fun activities in the outdoors.

We ask him what makes a successful entrepreneur and what roadmap he would propose to someone looking to venture into entrepreneurship. He laughs saying that there is no roadmap to success.

“No matter how much you prepare for the eventual launch of your business, you will still learn on the job, and there is no manual to prepare you for your entrepreneurial journey.

Just make sure you do your research on what service and product gaps that are there and what skills you have that can help to fill those gaps then jump in. Ensure that you offer quality services.

This is the main reason why I got professional certifications as I know there is value in repeat clients just as there is power in positive reviews.

So, do it and to the best of your abilities and scale as you go,” Nickson says in conclusion.