Checking in
This is where all the nerves start to boil. Check-in day and now its for real.
After getting the bike out of the shop again yesterday, I did a quick 32 mile spin, only to have the noise re-emerge. So.....at about ten last night, I decided to pull the rear mech (derailleur) apart. Not generally the best of ideas, but I need to make sure I won't have a failure during the ride. Pretty risky, but was able to service the jockey-wheels and bearings. Taking a quick 21 mile ride tonight, I'm not sure the noise has been solved, but I know the rear mech is good. Tomorrow I'll do a complete clean and lube to catch any last thing. From there, it is what it is.
Knowing what I'm, up against, I always get nervous. The entire summer comes down to this and it weighs heavy. Kind of stupid when you think about it, I mean, its a bike ride - right? Thats the problem. Its supposed to be a race, but somewhere a long the way it turns into a survival thing. This is really a check of ones self and discipline. Your mind can make, or break the entire day. Believe it not, a stupid pedal noise can be the tipping point. Still, there is something that is hard to describe, riding with a group of sixty guys, hearing the sound of hundreds of spokes cutting the wind, knowing that you all have the same task ahead. That doesn't last too long, as before you know it, the first climb is under the wheels and it time to get busy. It's...............
I don't know if it is the ride that intimidates me as much as it is the thought of finding out what I'm really made of. In my mind I will have covered this course over and over, always with grandiose images of what I would like to happen. What I forget is the suffering that accompanies the effort of trying to stay on a group, catch a group, or simply get over the next climb. Its like thinking how impervious you are and then having to deal with the truth. Truth is, I'm not a racer. I'm not built for it. Still, I see guys bigger than me crushing the climbs - only because they are mentally stronger. Why do I choose to let off when it hurts? Maybe my fight isn't what I claim it to be. I mean, "Ride Hard" has to be more than a phrase - right? It is all up to me, as it always is.
Weather forecasts look fairly promising. Mid 70's most places past Geneva, with possible winds W-SW. 60% chance of showers, but duration and intensity are low. I can only hope.
I rode down with a buddy to get checked-in today. Funny how we compare notes on different parts of our tactics. Nutrition, hydration, group strategy...........its unique - something you can't understand unless you've done this as many times as we have. Kerry's a stud. Ten years older than me, but rides like he twenty years younger. I struggle to stay with him on flat ground and don't even try on the climbs. I'll see a lot of guys Saturday that are good riders and pretty good friends. Nobody really cares where you finish, but all have an unspoken respect knowing that you did. No real bragging.............not much anyway. Mostly just stories of everyone's experience. You kind of have to be there to appreciated it - I guess.
The day starts early tomorrow and there is a lot to do.
Thanks to all that have carried the water for the "porpoise" this year. You are the true heroes.
Robert Johnson wrote a little thong about selling one's soul. No selling here............
Ride Hard!
