Great Rides

wellness
Had two great rides over the weekend, and what really made them great was: No stomach pains, No nausea, No cramping, No aftermath!

Truly a breakthrough; first such occurances since the end of July and the beginnings of giardia infection. What a blessed relief. Leg pain, general fatigue: hey, great; it felt so good to simply experience THAT type of "healthy" pain! And none of the other nastiness...

...Two easy hours on the roadbike on Friday, followed by a rest day on Saturday, then two hours of HARD, technical mountain biking on Sunday, with both rides being undertaken within beautiful weather conditions. Made me feel soooo alive again.

Thank you, Thank you, Mr./Ms. Universe.

On the Colorado Trail at 11,600 feet

spirit

Echo Lake, Colorado

spirit

Return of the Blogger

spirit
It's true; I've been a bad blogger recently. Bad in the sense that I haven't been blogging much. Seems like I've had only so much energy, so have had to parcel it out. Still feeling somewhat puny, but am back on the bike on a daily basis trying to spin my way out of this whatever-it-is physical affliction that's been pounding me for the last six weeks. Giardia still seems the most likely culprit, but COME ON... a month and a half is enough! Time to put this crap behind me (pun intended.)

The Leadville 100 has come and gone (last weekend) and after a year of training, it done went without me...
...I've accepted that, albeit with much knashing of teeth and wailing of sound. Now, I'm focusing on the 24 Hours of Moab which will come up in mid-October. Got in a couple of good sound rides last week. Out and back, Kinosha Pass to Georgia Pass, on the mountain bike, and Evergreen to Echo Lake, out and back, on the road bike. Both are good rides in their own right, plenty of climbing and altitude, and both went well, though at a slower pace than normal. And the ride to Georgia Pass is some of my favorite singletrack, the Colorado Trail through massive groves of aspen that absoutely take your breath away with their beauty. Ride through those groves, twisting in and out through the shadows and their shimmering leaves and tall white trunks, and it will definitely take you somewhere else, out of the ordinary and into the realm of God and something higher. Good for the soul, good for the body. I'm a lucky man; rides like that remind me over and over of that fact. And I give thanks... and know that the trees and rocks are listening. The trail takes me there, and that, at its essence is what mountain biking is all about.

Waiting

wellness
Big morning: 6:45 a.m. Waiting for a buddy to show up and then take off to Kenosha Pass to do a four hour mountain bike ride, my longest since the Silver Rush a month ago, after getting puny. I did a good road ride on Sunday with about an hour of moderate climbing in it and felt great, like I had my energy back. Climbed from my house in Lakewood up the the Mother Cabrini Shrine overlooking all of Denver and the mountains to the west. Arrived at the top feeling really, really good... and i was so happy; like life was returning to my muscles once again.

Now, I have high hopes and expectations for today; it should be a beautiful ride, Kenosha to Georgia Pass, out and back. Glorious singletrack with a few rocks and roots in it, up to about 11,600 feet.

Let ya know later how I did.

Into the Light

wellness

Ever notice how during times leading to change that life seems to slowly close in on you, then suddenly opens to a new light as you make whatever decision is required?

That's how I feel right now. After a month of fighting giardia and losing training time and stamina, as my goal event of the year moves ever closer (Saturday, August 13) I have finally decided to abandon my attempt of the Leadville 100 this year.
[Wow, I can hardly write those words; it just feels so weird and disappointing to actually admit it.]

I'm having to face the fact that even if I start the race, I may not be able to finish in the required 12 hours (last year my time was 10:56.) And even if I did make it, it's very likely that I'd be setting back my health and training from overstressing my immune system once again...

...This race is simply too grueling to be good for me at this time. My coach agrees with this, my accupuncturist agrees, and most importantly (to me) my wife, Katherine tells me the same thing. Guess it's time to listen.

What a bummer.

BUT, the good news is that I have decided to go ahead and take the time off from work that I had already scheduled. I will use it to rest, eat well and train as my body tells me to. I'll push, but only with my next goal in mind: to be READY for my first solo attempt at the 24 Hours of Moab in mid-October.

Leadville, you'll just have to wait until next year.

There's definitely light at the end of this tunnel, BUT...

DAMNED!

Tic Toc

bike racing
Here it is, Monday night, August 1, 2005 and the gun goes off for the Leadville 100 mtb race at 6:30 a.m. Saturday, August 13. I still don't know whether I will make it to the starting line. I still have hopes, but the stomach upset and weakness left from giardia lingers. I did a 45 minute endurance spin tonight and felt pretty good... but that is a FAR cry from 11 hours on the bike at high altitude and racing speed. Still hard to tell...
...I haven't given up hope. Will still continue to keep options open until later this week. Stay tuned.