Good Day my friends, I had the opportunity to meet up with John, a fella I met during the Magnolia Miles event some weeks ago and he brought another friend, Morné, to join us on a ride this past weekend. Morné originates from South Africa, which I thought was pretty cool and we hit it off immediately. Morné is what John called a skinny rider, which spells doom and suffering for us heavier set guys as he kept us pushing our limits just to keep in pace. To be good at anything, you really need someone better than you to push beyond your comfort zone and give your muscles a quick (and sometimes severe) wake up call.
Half-way through the ride, John decided he was going to attack at every climb while calling us a bunch of pansies (or some other expletive that was a direct attack on our manliness). John threw down the gauntlet and Morné happily accepted the challenge as he exploded off the line, tucked into John's slipstream for a few pedal stokes and powered ahead to win the sprint to the top. 
What is it about the male species that we constantly test each others machismo by calling each other a derogatory name? It's all in fun, but it never fails to bring laughs and challenges as we attempt to keep our dignity and pride in what boils down to a name calling contest. Alas, I too fell into the trap and attempted to battle it out after John took off at the bottom of a short steep climb followed by Morné. I'm no climber, but I thought, "Let's see what I can do!", so I shifted gears and hammered on the pedals. I remember looking at my bike computer and seeing 27.5 mph (HOLY SMOKES! THIS IS FAST & IT'S UPHILL!). I was feeling strong, even as my legs were screaming at me to stop pedaling. I looked up expecting to be close to the attack. I was dead wrong. I saw Morné passing John to the top of the climb about 20-30 yards ahead of me. It was amazing to see them battle it out like that! It went on like this for at least 5 or 6 climbs with me bringing up the rear. I tried to match the attacks and speeds these guys were hammering out just to keep competitive (this came back to bite me in the arse).  |
| Summer 2011 Wildfire |
We were at the 45 mile mark when we headed back to with 22 miles to go. I took my turn at the front and set the same pace as John and Morné had with the wind in our faces. I made it 4-5 miles before I had to peel off and make an attempt to recover. From mile 50 to the end of the ride I was bringing up the rear trying to keep my pedals turning. I was cooked, suffering and trying to keep up. It was then that I kept thinking about how I should have conserved my energy early on so I had enough in the tank for the end. Thankfully, it was a no-drop ride and the guys were sticking with me and encouraging me to keep pedaling. There were still the occasional attacks that I was unable to match, but they were kind enough to keep it short so I could catch up.
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| Summer 2011 Wildfire |
These types of rides reinforce the need to know your limits and how to plan your workout. It's not just about finishing, but finishing strong and having a great support group to keep you moving when your mind and body want to stop. I'm thankful for the group I was with and the lessons learned. After a few days of reflection, I've come to the conclusion that a S.W.O.T. Analysis would be a great tool by laying out a plan of action to sharpen your current skills and develop and identify areas for improvement. For those not familiar with the strategic planning method, a S.W.O.T Analysis identifies your Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. Think about where your fitness goals fit into these four areas and where/what are the areas that you need to work on. S and W are simple enough, but the Opportunity could be something along the lines of making better use of your time in order to have a more effective workout and the Threat could be allowing your stomach to dictate your next meal by not making healthy food decisions, especially right after a workout.
Post a comment or send an email and we can share our experiences and grow our support group as we fight on to be stronger, leaner athletes.
Until the next time,
Keep your mind sharp, body fit, and pedal hard
MB&B
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