Ok - we're off today to Columbia to get on this very exciting ride to raise money for multiple sclerosis. (try to spell that without a checker!)
I'm ready - trained for 5 mos last year and again this year, since the spring. 40 miles last weekend.
It's hard to recall all the brilliant thoughts I had while riding all these months... there have been spills and near crashes (bounced off a parked pickup one day!) and I've met a ton of great people.
There's Wally who rides weekends without fancy gear, and he's had a stroke or some such, the way he has to steady his left hand on his hip. What a wonderful man he is, quiet and nice and so determined. I'm bringing him one of my old helmets because his got gone somewhere. He might even have MS.
And there's Becky, an amazing woman who struggles on the hills like me, but I call her the energizer Bunny because she just keeps going and going. Oh yeah, and she has type 1 diabetes - nicest woman you'll ever meet, but not in a sweet way, rather a woman of substance.
And Willy rode with me last weekend, a UPS driver who is also new to the game. We chatted about bikes and gear and rides. He's funny and knows life is good when your company cares about who you are. It makes a huge difference to have someone along for the ride - something about the energy of two that is more than two.
There was the 300 lb man I saw do 36 miles a few weeks ago.
Nothing but inspiration everywhere you look on these rides, even in the "hard bodies" that seem to have it "easy". We're all just doing our best, normal folks getting out for a good cause and incidentally getting some good cardio in.
I can't wait to do The Ride this weekend.
Send good thoughts, say prayers.
And think about how whenever you're new at something you always wobble. It's the danger of being around new or really tired riders. So being new is ok, and so is being tired.
But the wobblyness goes away after a while, whether it's walking, running, biking or VB programming. You'll get your sea legs, and be able to navigate through with grace, if you stick with it. Then comes the endurance part. And then knowing when to quit.
Quit when it isn't fun anymore. Not when you're scared or tired or lonely.
And remember that you always get wobbly when you're tired. So don't parent, or drive, or ride or code when you're worn out. Take a break and be good to yourself.
it's all good.
v