Show me the MOJO!!! Anyone got stories of inspiration?

[Norse]

Try reading these blog accounts of the Susitna 100 held in Alaska this past weekend: http://alaskab4udie.blogspot.com/ and http://arcticglass.blogspot.com/. Amazing.

[nscrbug]

While I don't have any inspiring stories to share here...I just wanted to say to Jiffer, that your post could have been written by me! Right down to the "gifted" DH and stronger cycling buddy...except my buddy is a 245lb male. Yes, a guy who has nearly 100lbs on me, can easily out-climb me every single time. It does get discouraging at times, especially since we both know that cardiovascular-wise...I am in much better shape than him. But I just do my best to try and keep up. I have to admit that sometimes though...when I'm lagging far behind, I do feel like breaking down into tears because sometimes it does feel pointless, as you said. Maybe we can inspire each other throughout the upcoming season.

[Jiffer]

Thanks for all your support guys. Loved the Lance video. I am actually feeling pretty good about riding these days. I had a good interval ride yesterday and did a women's group ride tonight, which was pretty paced and I was happy with how I did. Still lagged behind on the climbs, but not too bad (although I know a couple of them could have climbed faster). But both of these rides were great for my mental state. Yay!

I know I'll never be able to ride as fast as my DH and I certainly have no unrealistic expectations of ever doing so. But sometimes it's just not fun to hear how great he's doing when I don't feel like I'm doing so great. For the most part I'm very proud of him and often boast about him. But sometimes, like after the Palm Springs Century, when I got dehydrated and didn't ride as fast I had really hoped to, I had to come back to find out he had done his fastest century ever ... only 4:38 ride time ... with some other guys, but he did most of the pulling. He was the physical and mental force behind their pace. All I heard the rest of the day was how amazing he was from all the guys. And while I just wanted to beat my last year's time, which I might have by a little if I hadn't gotten dehydrated, my cycling buddy "crushed" hers. I didn't even ask what her time was, I was so depressed.

In general I do believe in riding with people who are faster than you, which is what I have been doing since I started five years ago. And it HAS made me faster. But I'm at a point right now where riding with her in particular can just be crushing to my spirit. I love her. She's more than a cycling buddy. She's one of my best friends and she would never in a million years gloat over her ability to climb better. As it turns out, her work schedule is changing, so I now have ample opportunity to ride on my own and try to improve without her improving right along with me! When she realized how much faster I was getting from doing intervals last year, she started doing them. UGH!!! So maybe now I'll have an opportunity to level out the playing field a little bit!

There's a woman in my cycling club who is taller than me and not a skinny stick. She climbs extremely well, which gives me hope. Just watching the Lance video reminded me of how he wasn't the best climber originally, supposedly because of his body type, but he overcame it. So, I'm not accepting that I'll never be able to climb as fast as my friend. I just need to slow down her progress and catch up! I do realize that I "may" never be able to, but I'm sure going to find out. And this is precisely why I was looking for motivational stories. Stories about people who weren't naturally gifted or given the typical body type for their sport ... yet beat the odds.

Thanks again. I am happy to report that I think I got my mojo back after two great rides.

On a side note, I'm thinking of getting into time trialing, because I can ride flats pretty fast and might actually be pretty darn good at those. So changing up goals is helping, too. Not going to focus on distance for a while, which is part of what was getting depressing. Just short and FAST! Oh yeah!!!!!!

[7rider]

You sound very familiar.
I also am at a state where riding with my DH - and his group of cycling buddies - is not fun. I love the people...they are all wonderful, but their speed is too high and I'll never be able to keep up. I'm always bringing up the rear and the last one to arrive. And no matter what I seemed to do, I never improved. If my fitness increased - so did theirs, and they got faster still.
This is one of the reasons why I joined a triathlon club this year. New folks to ride with...new challenges....but also, the racing allows me to strive to perform at MY best - and I can chase down all the rabbits I want on the course - but at the end of the day, it's just me and the clock. I can measure my progress against myself, and not against my DH or the ride crew.
And I'm thinking (hoping) that this strategy will keep me in a better mind-set for my riding - and running and (gasp!) swimming - this season.
Bring on the MoJo!
So, good luck with the TT's. I think they'll be great for you!