no girlie girl here either. i have pedal marks on my achilles, a huge scar on one shin and now last night have a puncture wound in the other shin from the one pedal going into it. i have been road riding more than mountain biking and thought i liked it better because i wasn't falling...until i switched to clip pedals and toppled right over after getting stuck between gears on a hill. elbow scrape and knee scrape. i agree, it shows what we're all made of and i'm not affraid to get out there and take a chance or two in the name of a good work out!