What I learned (warning, long!)
I know I just posted another LONG thread with a ride report, but I this was a letter I sent to my sponsors, and I heard such positive feed back, I thought I'd post it here - I sent this out three days before my ride on Sunday:
In exactly three days I will be embarking on a 100 mile bike ride in support of the LiveStrong Foundation. I did the 50 miler last year, and loved the event so much that I thought I would try for the 100 miler this year. Training for such an event has been terrifying, exhilarating, and down right weird at times, but there are a few things I really learned along the way, and I thought I’d share them with you.
* I can do this. I am not the fittest, most ultra sleek person out there, and I’m sure I’ll raise an eyebrow or two in the starting corral (middle aged woman who is 20 pounds over weight daring to put herself with the elite athletes?!), but I’ll just smile and nod. I may not be as fast as they are, but I will complete the course. I know I will because I’ve trained correctly and I am ready.
* To borrow a phrase from Mahatma Gandhi: “Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will.” I cannot tell you how many times in the middle of my training I thought I could not physically pedal one more stroke. I did a 60 mile ride with a 4000 foot altitude gain, and I can tell you I literally cried when I rounded a bend in the road thinking it would be all down hill only to see yet another long hill in front of me. I paused for a moment, feeling defeated, wondering if I would have to call my husband to pick me up. Then I thought about my friends battling cancer and what pain they must be in. I was in minor discomfort compared to them, I realized, and managed to push on. I can tell you that the six mile down hill after that last hill felt like heaven itself. So much of these kinds of events are mind over matter. When I think I cannot, often if I just do, I find I can do much more than I ever dreamed.
* I am capable of the focus required to do such an event. I HATE rotations. I hate being forced to do what someone else tells me to do. I'm the kind of person who will ride a bike miles and miles one week, then decide I want to be running or hiking the next. But while I did have tough weeks with this training, for the most part, I managed to follow the training plan put together for the ride. As I look towards Sunday, I can honestly say that if I had to do my training over again, I would not change a thing (of course, this could change on Sunday, :P - which it did not - my training was spot on). That idea opens up a whole world of possibilities and I’m seriously considering the “Death Ride” next year.
* Focus on the Positive. Wow, if I had a dollar for every person who looked me up and down and asked, “You sure you want to do this?” I’d be a bit richer. But our VP of Support who is an endurance cyclist (and actually looks like one) heard me say I was thinking about doing this and responded enthusiastically, “Yeah! That’s a great idea! You’ll love it!”. I signed up after I talked to him. Of course there may something that happens on the road that prevents me from finishing – that’s the chance you take in anything – but if all goes as planned, I KNOW I will complete this ride.
* My friends are invaluable. I am fortunate to have some of the bestest friends in the whole wide world, including many on the TE Boards. I have a cheering squad from literally around the world. Without that support, I would not be as far as I am. Every time I had a bad ride (and yes, they do happen), I had someone there either literally or in cyberspace picking me up, dusting me off, and cheering me to get back into the saddle. I want to thank each and every one of them.
So, the real message I’m trying to convey is that I’m not a super fit athlete who does this kind of thing. If you ever find yourself reading the story about someone who ran a marathon, or did a century ride, or even raced an Ironman and find yourself wondering if you could do something like that – GO FOR IT!! You’ll have ups and downs. There will be days when you just want to drop to the ground and pound your fists and feet in the most childish temper tantrum ever. But there will be days when you accomplish so much more than you have ever dreamed possible and the feeling of euphoria that goes with that is better than any drug – those days make the others worth while. And believe me, in the training and perseverance of attempting something like this, you will learn more about yourself than you ever thought possible.
