Monsoonal rains bringing it in buckets.
Dealing with weather and doubts
The classical summer monsoonal-flows arrived this past week. After a couple weeks of heat, it did bring some cooler weather - but the rains.....oh boy! I've learned that forcing rides in bad weather can be costly and counter productive. Earlier in the week I was able to put down a couple decent early morning tempo rides, but after that it was all indoors until a break Thursday evening. Knowing that a storm could quickly materialize, I lit-out for what should have been a quick 50 minute sprint around the middle tracks. Of course there was the expected mud-puddles, but most of them could be avoided. I know from experience that a lot of that "goo" is like grease. Avoid it when possible, as it flips everywhere and can lead to a quick "wash-out" if not careful. Even with the heavy/aggressive tread of the Continentals, I had to take it easy in several places. Wet roots also made for some concerns climbing out of the switchbacks, but still nice to be rolling again.
Dropping into the top of what should normally be a fast ride out.
As late as it was and the clouds coming over the mountain, I threw a trail light on front, as the north side of the ride is dark, even on a good day. The picture above shows how the otherwise well-worn trail was pretty beat down from the heavy rain. Steep grade like this were still pretty tight, but looking ahead for scouring and washes was essential. Down in the lower sections, there were several "grease" puddles that were sketchy at speed - but generally manageable. Several places along the way, the higher speeds were flipping stuff everywhere - making is hard to see at times. The Garmin stats were anything but impressive - more like a casual ride than anything. Rolling into the garage at dark with the lights on felt like September, but nice all the same.
Intervals
When lacking solid road miles, intervals is a great way to makeup the difference. The old standby is always the steep hill behind our house. Not able to ride yesterday morning, I barely made it home to get out on the hill for a quick session of "racks". A tad bit abbreviated, it was a solid 67 minutes at rate, but still not getting the heartrate up where I'd like. Lights on both front and back, I finished in the dark. Normally riding this in the dark is only sketchy while dealing with the local wildlife, but the recent rains washed a ton of debris onto the road. Doing this with suitable visibility is one thing, in the dark with headlights....sub-optimal. I could feel it in my legs this morning, so I must have done something right. Dirt riding in the right conditions is a lot like intervals - just not structured. Tonight I made time to ride Mules Ear to the top again. Overall I'd give it a C+/B-, with a couple complications. The last turn right at the top, bucked me off again - like it has nearly every other time up there this season. It's a steep, loose and rocky hair-pin that takes leg strength and balance to make it work - that and the correct line. After getting up to the top, I wasn't really satisfied with the effort, so I rode back to a good spot and sessioned it. Sessioning is common with technical mountain bikers, trying to find the right approach, line and method to conquer something like this. I mean, I've ridden this thing countless times, but tonight it just seemed like I didn't own it anymore. Over the past few years, this section of trail has developed into a loose and shaley type grind. It was bad enough when nobody else rode it and it was regularly overgrown. Well.... all of the popularity of the this section has diminished the overgrowth at the expense of a predictable trail. One return session was enough to find the line and make it around to the top. Those little spots are where the heartrate peaks, followed by quick recoveries. A good way to offset the lack of saddle time otherwise.
Confidence
Confidence cannot be overstated. That little sessioning thing above was all about regaining confidence. It's hard to imagine that you can have done something countless times, but being away from it for even the shortest time can result in a lack of confidence. It doesn't take much to make you forget how you may have been so certain in the past. In such a situation, the only way out is to face it head-on. Too often we accept small, or subtle changes as though major events. In our minds, we let those things control us - in fact own us. At the end of the day, all of this has to do with self-confidence and overcoming darkness. It is human nature to fall into complacency, as these types of things don't trigger our "fight or flight" conditions. Before we know it, we allow the shift to take place right before our very eyes. At that point, pushing back is much harder and our confidence spent. The time and effort to regain our own confidence can be grueling, but there is no substitute.
Looking ahead
Not a lot of time to get things in order, but at least there is time nonetheless. It's time to go after some big rides and serious climbs. Putting things in perspective and keeping priorities is a must. No time to fret about what has been missed. Just be grateful for the path that is still open in front of us. No time to allow for squandering of opportunities and resources. Sure, it is easy to take an alternate path at this point, but that isn't being true to ones own self. Do the trials of our lives define us, or do we define ourselves by how we conquer our opportunities? We are who we are. What have you given up that you otherwise should have protected? Own it, earn it, but don't take a course that isn't your own predefined route. Unless, that is really who you are.
The familiar shot at the top. It feels good to own that again.
