Had a wild hair at the beginning of March and dropped $6400 on a bike, after not having been on any sort of bike for like 10+ years.

I really want to like this sport but wtf at spending 1-2 hours climbing a fire road only to find out it takes 8-10 min to make it down a run.

And also wtf at me being able to bomb down black diamond single tracks after only having a 2-3 weeks on the saddle.

The hardest part about the whole thing is my leg muscle endurance and being able to pedal up fire roads without having to stop frequently or walk the bike up.
Haven’t found a single obstacle, gap or drop off on a trail that I didn’t feel comfortable hitting.

I feel like this sport is way easier than skiing/snowboarding.

which mountain bike you have?

i bought one years ago, i think i've only rode it like 5 times lol... its in my garage , one day i plan on jumping back on it

Do flat paved trails count?

Probably just very tame trails/obstacles in your area. The difficulty rating is relative to trails in the area, a black in your area might be an easy blue elsewhere.