Racing has been cancelled. A blown knee in March that required surgery, combined with a total lack of competitive spirit ultimately led me to "retire". All of the soccer matches, swim meets, hockey games and bike racing has, with nuclear force, decimated any competitive bone in my body. I'm over it. At 36 my time is better spent these days. When I was racing a lot, it cut into my riding. Trying to be fresh and recovered for race day(s) means soft pedaling most of the week, requiring patience. Patience and I are not friends. Over it. Love to ride, live to ride, but could shit on racing these days.
This weekend is the Leadville 100 MTB race, the easiest 100mi mountain bike race in the grand state of CO. All hype. Who the fuck want's to kill three days for one day of racing? Too much fluff, too many people. I've had some fun racing in Deadville; 2nd in the Silver Rush 50 and 1st in the 12 hours of Leadville, etc. Those are #chiller events, show up and ride. No one strutting around with more than one belt buckle on their pants, no medical checkin, no inspirational speakers, no breakfast and awards ceremony the following day, just riding, racing and suffering.
Saturday is the Leadville 100, good luck to the racers. I'll be there, but will not be following the little arrows around the course much further than Turquoise Lake and Hagerman Pass. Once there, our adventure begins. Jah Kief and I are rolling the Colorado Super Loop. Plan is to do it in 3 days, including beer stops. Last night I started laying out what I'll carry. Going lightweight. Less to carry, less to think about packing. Simple is my strategy. Still waiting on some new tires and a fresh chain to show up. Going with the PREVENTATIVE, yet simple approach. Keep the bike rolling, keep the body moving. That will be the focus.
It's been a while since I've had a good adventure romp. The lack of adventure has been eating at the soul. After a tough six months, I'm feeling stronger and ready to be back out there. In the middle of fucking nowhere, with nothing to do but ride a bike, eat, shit and drink. Getting prepared is a process. Embrace that process. The planning, the packing, the navigation, all of that is just as important as the ride itself. The process. I'll ride my bike for only three days, but this is much bigger than that.
