Alright so several weeks ago I did 6 Gap Century in Dahlonega, GA.  It was a fun event and really eye opening at how much fitness I have lost in the last 5 months or so.  The riding has slipped a bit since our move, and a little before that for that matter, the guys I did Phantom canyon with can attest to that! 🙂  But hopefully really long days of work are going to become fewer and farther between and a little more consistency will come back in my training which is necessary in preparation for RAAM next year. Anyways…enough about that and on to my real reason for writing.  At 6 Gap I was surprised by the audacity of one individual who stated, “Dumb racers go to fast to even enjoy the scenery,” as I was riding through a little slower moving traffic (missed the start by 10-15min…oops!).  This really bothered me because I felt I was being as courteous as possible in going by.  Either way I think there is something that the “racers” need to understand as well as the more recreational crowd and everyone in between.  Everyone gets their enjoyment from riding in different ways, some enjoy the scenery, others like to push their limits.  The most important thing is that we all have a mutual respect for everyone that is out on the road.  Love what you do and just be glad that someone is out on the road and riding in a respectable manner to continue to give cyclists a good name.  

Well, I got my first road race in 4 years done 2 weekends ago at the Mead Roubaix.  For those of you unfamiliar with a roubaix style course it is not only pavement but dirt and gravel roads.  This race happened to be 68 miles in total and 20 miles of that was Gravel.  Let me clarify that a bit more.  It was gravel, hard packed dirt and the worst of all was sand that was 2+inches deep.  The race started and we have several miles before we reached the first of 3 dirt sections.  This was the longest section each lap and was the smoothest and fastest (minus the the headwind) it wasn’t more than 150meters onto the dirt and the first crash happened near the front of the field taking down 5 guys right in front of me and thankfully there was enough room that I was able to steer clear and catch up to the guys who had already created a gap.  The cross winds played their toll and those who were not able too find shelter suffered.  The race turned south and the tailwind kept the group compact.  Because of a recommendation from another racer in the morning wave I moved to the very front in this stretch for the next section of dirt.  It was a great tip because when we hit that stretch I was second wheel and the 2+ inches of sand had clearly played havoc on the fields.  There were police cars already on scene from groups that went off in front of us and broken and battered bodies laying in the ditch.  A deep section of sand grabbed my front wheel and put me into the left lane and almost onto the hood of the cop car that was sitting there.  Through the descent and up the sandy climb and a field of 65+ was now a break of 10 riders. A couple miles of pavement and we were on the final dirt stretch.  This was two shorter steeper climbs with what looked more like a cyclocross sand pit to me than a road race and we reached the top with four of us together and nearly 50miles to go still.  We turned back north after the start/finish line and within miles it was 3 of us. The final 2 laps we continued to push and pass the shattered remains of many of the fields that headed out before us.  On the final lap one of our 3 men was struggling and in the second dirt section we dropped him and then there were two.  I worked as little as possible and tried to conserve as much as possible.  A valuable lesson was learned in the final 1000 meters and that is be sure that you pay very close attention to what the finish looks like.  I attacked thinking I had 400 meters to the finish and it turned out there was a orange fencing up at the turn prior to the finish and I went with closer to 750 meters.  OOPS!  So giving it my all and realizing that the distance was nearly double what I expected the other rider caught my wheel with 200 meters to go and then went around me and I was unable to muster up any additional strength.  Second place on the day and a big lesson learned.  Either way it was fun and a great challenge. Final lap and hurting a little   Blog taken from Scalybirdlegs

Over the years I have worked with many athletes of varying levels and have learned many things about training, people, communication and friendship.  When I first began coaching I was excited to help people not only meet their goals, but meet them more quickly than they imagined and even exceed many of the ones they set for themselves.  The last thing that I had consider was the friendships that grow from the time on the phone as well as riding together. Not until recently had it really become more of a reality when one of the athletes that I worked with several years ago passed away suddenly and unexpectedly at 48.  This shook me to a point that I have not been to in a long time.  This made me realize several things.  First, how much my athletes (current and former) mean to me but also the fact that this relationship is very important for great success. In American society we tend to be very closed in and it takes us a very long time to open up to someone.  As a coach the people who I have seen be the most successful in their training are not always the ones with the most time to train but are the ones that see the most improvement are the ones who are willing to open up and communicate the things that are often hard to verbalize.  We don’t often realize, or want to admit, the fact that whether at work, at home or on the bike our stresses and strains are not often localized and every aspect of our life affects our performance. 

Many athletes start their mornings off with a good hard run or maybe that nice long swim.  How about wrapping the day up with a nice fast paced group ride to really test your limits?  No matter what your workout is the test is always there.  Pushing your limits, bettering yourself and achieving that much loved endorphin rush from your workouts. This Thanksgiving day, nationwide, people are showing thanks for many different things and we at SoS are thankful for many of those great things that include: family, friends, a roof over our head and food on our tables. We are also thankful for each and every one of you.  The athletes that inspire people to be a part of the lifestyle that you have.  The people who drive the events in communities, lead beginner rides and runs and guide people through the first stages of what your sport really is about.  Thank you for your dedication and devotion and we look forward to continuing to support you to the next level in 2014!  Happy Thanksgiving and Thank you for all you do!

Preface:  I know I am not that “old” to some or maybe many of you