Last Minute Rides & Details

It seems like a life time ago....

 A short season - a long time gone..

This year started many months ago - right, like 9 months ago. The dry winter did allow for early riding with some distance, but work commitments like everything else in life, seemed to get in the way. Looking at the Garmin stats, there have been a lot of rides, with a respectable sum of miles despite what seems otherwise. They just didn't seem to be the endurance rides I've made in the past. There have been challenges - for sure. Life is like that, baked into the mix. This past year has made me personally look at everything differently. Saturday morning will happen regardless of most anything else. The unknown is definitely worse than knowing  - or something like that. Realizing that we have more control over our own situation than we want to admit is a big leap. That time is gone - call it a "sunk cost". It's not coming back. Now it is a matter of what we make of that "sunk cost" - perhaps turn the worst of any situation into an investment. Positive thinking; now there's an idea.

Focus, Confidence & Fear

Now there's a combination - but what a mix. The past two years have soaked into my head. Last night I found myself fixated on an old LOTOJA elevation graphic posted on the wall of my office. It is right next to a picture of my dad's plane in flight shortly after V-E day. It is also part of another picture that reminds me of  - well, me. Looking at those elevations reminds me of where it will hurt, where I'll get dropped and when it is likely to get dark in my own head - for a while anyway. I know that course. I know everything about that day. I have walked into the race with absolute confidence, only to be crushed. Other years I have showed up with no expectations to finish with a calm feeling of peace - as if I hadn't been on my bike at all that day. Standing at the line in the dark early morning, hearing all the last minute instructions, checking the gear - you can't see the finish from there. You know it is out there and can't wait to meet the challenges of the day - not thinking about the pain yet to be experienced. Before you know it, we're rolling over the line, hearing the beep, beep, beep, clip, snap, beep - timing chips crossing the initial indicator, cleats snapping in, watches being set......and then the rush of wind that comes with a few hundred wheel-sets cutting through the quiet morning air. The buzz of everyone's freewheel spinning as we head down Second North. A few light hearted comments - but everyone feeling the same. Soon we are sailing in a great draft and the day light breaks over the Mount Logan Range. A couple guys will be dealing with bike issues, while others are trying to get comfortable in the group. A little chit chat to break the tension, but we all just want to get into the business side of things. Focus is what takes over above all else before too long.

They say courage is what overtakes the unknown when you choose to do so. The unknown is what stimulates fear. Rolling up into the fetal position is no way to approach this life. Meeting it head-on can also be a bit daunting. I personally have a tendency to look back on what I feared at some point, only to recognize the outcome itself - totally forgetting how paralyzing the unknown had become. Attitude is everything and getting past the unknown takes a positive outlook - courage. Right now I could use a little encouragement.....

SR39 MP44 - Heading for home

Going Home

I've seen MP44 only once this year and not necessarily the way I would like to have done so. Still, seeing the top and blowing past that indicator is a milestone. MP44 is that place that tells you "it is all down hill from here" - mostly. I've made a lot of this location over the years, as it represents more than a road marker. "Bring it on home" has always been the go to associated with the post referencing MP44. Call it nostalgic, but I'm going with something from the same era - just opposite sides of the spectrum. The Zeppelin track was released on II roughly 18-months before John Denver (Henry Jon Deutschendorf Jr) released "Take me home, country road". Quite literally the same era. This past year during the World Cup, the song was dusted off - quite regularly. It became kind of an unofficial anthem of sorts. Never a John Denver fan - probably because my "hippie" fourth grade teacher was obsessed with one of his songs, but I do respect him as a writer and performer. There are several of his tracks that are so simple, but yet deep. At the end of the day, going home is all about what makes any of us feel comfortable - the familiar. MP44 has always been that for me. You can't see it from there, but you know - somehow, you're going home.

Click here for something a little different - "Take me home country roads" JD

Ride HARD! - NEVER EVER GIVE UP!