Making Adjustments

Tomi is talking about having no regrets for pushing it, despite maybe taking one too many turns and tumbles in the once-every-twenty-years powder we had this winter. Never stopping to think about it, but just enjoying the moment to the fullest



TD wants to sleep in and says he doesn't care about the podium, that he's done all the races he really cares about and now he is "stopping to smell the aid station"...



I'm down with all of that, I was never in it to win it. I was always just looking for something to do, something to finish. I liked the idea that these things were so crazy that merely finishing was enough. And yet folks would still stop mid-race to help out a fallen rider.



Breck2009 sort of changed all that. Despite a bout of altitude illness/bonk related to poor nutrition following a slight crash, a visit to the Medical Center and a too small dinner, I managed to ride 5 out of 6 days and pretty much left nothing on the table. A long day around Guyot, followed by an even longer Death March over Wheeler. The hip not doing well Friday morning, and then the final crank back up over Boreas Pass and hanging out on the final long downhill... Not too shabby, especially in the world where folks take the elevator up or down one floor.




But I wanted that damn belt buckle. And I wanted to do something more than finish. I guess I felt like I COULD do better, so I SHOULD dobetter. Not that there is any shame in DNF or DFL, but why not try to reduce the suffering AND get the buckle by getting into a little better shape? No harm in that.



But after a while using races as a training tool really starts to feel like "real" racing, and that is not really why we're here (though it is at times quite fun.) So when I'm doing MASS racing, it's not really racing, it's just a training exercise. I must admit that despite my entrenched position at the back of the pack, it does sometimes start to feel like I am racing racing and not just racing for training. And after busting your butt for hours and hours, it is nice to be somewhere closer to the front that you were in the last race.



Sometimes I don't care where I finish, other times I want to do better. Sometimes where I finish is more a function of who else is racing and has nothing to do with me at all. Allamuchy had me in a decent position for my age group. At Breck, I was at the back of the pack well behind, not just my age group and the women's age group but also well behind most folks in the age group behind me! Tough crowd.




Maybe I need to stop thinking and just enjoy the ride.
As the folks at Niner say "Pedal Dammit"