The Strava trap: chasing KOMs

“I had to quit,” he said, sounding defeated. Strava was ruining his life. Winning a Strava ‘King of the Mountain’ (KOM) takes serious time and effort and he had a bunch of them. He’d ridden local trails at insane speeds to claim those titles. But the constant chase for KOMs had taken a toll on him.

Addicted to KOMs

Getting a KOM on Strava is like going viral on YouTube or getting a surge of Instagram likes. It’s a digital trophy, a validation of your effort. But while KOMs require real physical exertion, what’s their actual value? My buddy learned the hard way that chasing these titles can come with a cost.

During a family vacation, his phone kept buzzing with updates: “Andy just stole your KOM!” It consumed him. He sulked, yelled at his kids, and couldn’t enjoy the vacation. All he wanted was to get home, hit the trails, and reclaim his lost KOMs. He was addicted. He knew it, and that’s when he decided to quit—cold turkey.

Reclaiming the joy of riding

I imagine his brain on rides now, free from the pressure to perform. No expectations of glory, no need to capture a perfect image, and no pressure to beat a personal best. He rides for himself, not for a leaderboard. There’s a chance that no one will even know he went for a ride (gasp!).

We’ve been riding together for over a decade, and back then, the woods were an escape. Without needing to label it ‘forest-bathing,’ we knew stepping away from screens and disconnecting for a few hours was good for us. It kept us sane.

The digital invasion

But now, our digital world invades every aspect of life—work, home, school, even the forest. These days, catching a fish doesn’t count unless it’s Instagrammed, a relationship isn’t real unless it’s on Facebook, and a ride didn’t happen if it wasn’t Strava’d.

Breaking free from strava

So far, my buddy has stayed off Strava. Sixty days in, and he’s still going strong. When I ask how he feels, he laughs.

“I’m riding for pure joy again,” he says. “No pressure to take down a KOM. Riding is fun again.”

The bigger question

It makes me wonder: how many other things would be fun again if we all put down our phones for a couple of hours each day? It’s worth considering next time you’re out in the woods—without your phone.