CTR changes

All photos courtesy of Fred Grinnan's Picasa album from his 2010 ride.

In August of 2001, just before turning 40, I rode my mountain bike up Mt. Washington. (I didn’t realize it was a road race.) Every year since, I have tried to push the envelope with at least one big “bicycle thing.”

I’ve done XC races, solo 24-hour races, I’ve raced on a velodrome, and I’ve done the Breck Epic, a six day stage race, three times.

As with most jobs that I’ve held, I wasn’t entirely qualified/ready for most of these events. And each year, as the event drew closer, I started wondering and worrying if perhaps “this year” I had bitten off more than I could chew...

But the fear is part of what tells me I am at the right level of commitment.

If you KNOW you can finish and be competitive, then it seems to me that’s it not truly a challenge. (This attitude shouldn't be surprising as I'm sure that my thinking would be different if I had some natural speed.) I am looking for an event that is so hard that merely finishing is a victory.

And I am ready for the next level.

And I know just what to do next...

But not this summer. And that’s ok.

I think that, for the first time in 12 years, I am going to take the summer off from any “crazy bike rides.”

It’s not that I don’t want to put in the effort, it’s that I am tired of the stress and feel like I need a break.

“A break? From the stress? What stress? You haven’t been training!” (I hear ya bro’.)

Ok, that’s fair, but still... Probably half of the nights since last August I have crawled into bed imagining that I was crawling into a sleeping bag thrown down in the dirt and rocks on the side of the trail at 12,000 feet. Between the navigation, the food and shelter issues, the gear etc, this race has caused me more worry and anxiety than any other race I have done or considered doing.

And so I think that that is part of the stress I feel. Of course a low mileage winter, issues at work and a couple of other things haven’t helped either...

And while I am not expecting to be a contender (1. it’s not really an official race and 2. as previously stated, that’s not how I roll), if I’m feeling in shape, then I will do it. If not, then I will do it next summer...

If not in 2013, then definitely in 2014.

And I will use the intervening time wisely to hone the gear, the food, the navigation, the camping, everything. By being more prepared, the race will be more about just me and less about everything else. I think that that will be better.

Who knows, come next summer, I might even be at ease when we roll up to the parking lot, ready to start a 500 mile journey that every participant says will change you forever.