On Rule #5: Not Minding That It Hurts
In my favorite scene from Lawrence of Arabia, T.E. Lawrence, after lighting a colleague’s cigarette, allows the match to burn down to his fingertips before snuffing it out. Having witnessed the stunt, the dim-witted associate attempts it himself, only to blow out the match before it gets anywhere close to burning down. “That damn well hurts!”, he states, barely concealing his amazement. “Certainly it hurts,” replies Lawrence with the cool calm of a man who is at ease with The V. “Well, what’s the trick then?”
“The trick, William Potter, is not minding that it hurts.”
The trick to becoming a better Cyclist depends, they say, on one’s capacity to suffer. Riding faster is easy, after all; all you have to do is push harder on those flat things attached to your feet. But that, as many of us have discovered, is the complicated bit.
Our ability to suffer is driven by our willingness to push ourselves, to resist the signals our bodies are sending – whether those signals tell us to stop an effort, to stay inside when the mercury drops, when the rain falls, or dipping into the cellar for a session on the trainer rather than for a bottle of wine. To walk the difficult path of becoming a better cyclist requires, in a word, willpower.
Many of the obstacles along that path require us to eschew the wisdom taught to us by our elders and society. Listen to your body, they tell us, when in fact our bodies are chatty things that have only a few sensible contributions to make. Stay inside when it’s wet, or you’ll catch cold, the folk knowledge claims, while in reality those who stay indoors are more likely to catch cold and if we were to heed that advice, we would rarely throw a leg over a top tube during non-summer months. What doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger… well, I suppose they had to get one right.
In practice, weakness breeds weakness and strength breeds strength. We may not allow ourselves to take the easy path, for nothing worth travelling to lies at the end of it. If we relent to the pain during an effort, it only makes it easier to do so again next time. Allowing ourselves to stay off the bike for today’s bad weather makes it easier to do so again tomorrow. On the other hand, enduring today’s cold steels us for tomorrow’s chill.
To claim we enjoy suffering, that we enjoy the pain of an effort, or that we enjoy riding in the wet and cold is a bit misleading. While I believe there might be those who possess a perversion that does indeed allow them to enjoy pain, for most of us, we have merely discovered that the burning of our muscles today strengthens them for tomorrow. We have learned that submitting to the deluge or climbing aboard the trainer in winter helps build towards a result that won’t be realized until our planet reaches the next equinox. Rather than enjoying suffering, we enjoy what suffering does for us and have learned through practice to associate current pains with future gains.
Personally, I enjoy riding in the rain more than most, certainly when it comes as a refreshing change from riding on dry roads. I enjoy the rain splashing up from the road, or the cold air in my face. But to say I cherish riding throughout the cold and wet Winter months is certainly an overstatement. During this time of year, I have to push myself to go for a ride every single time. When I am warm inside, there is no part of me that wants to pull on cold-weather gear knowing I will be cold and uncomfortable for the duration of the ride. Instead of thinking about whether I want to ride, I simply do it; focusing on desire or comfort does little to improve the condition. Quite the opposite, in fact – a frozen toe is better left not contemplated when one lacks the means to warm it up.
The trick to becoming a better cyclist doesn’t have so much to do with our capacity to suffer. Certainly we suffer; the trick is not minding that we suffer.
@frank
Pendant? Deliberate, Frank… Or antagonistic to the rest of us pedants?
@jank +1 and welcome
did one of “us” do this?:
http://www.xtranormal.com/watch/12674956/cycling-explained
@scaler911
Saw that the other day. Had me rolling.
Followed a link to this chap, Tommy Godwin, today… now that must have hurt.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tommy_Godwin_%28cyclist_born_1912%29
75,000 MILES in one year – that’s 200 miles a day. Having broken the old record he kept going and beat it by an extra 13,000 miles, then kept going until he reached 100,000 miles, by which time WW2 was in full swing so he stopped and joined the air force.
Amazing. A record still standing since 1939 and considered too dangerous to even attempt.
@mblume
Wow, you had the chance to meet Jure? Very cool story.
Yes, his passing was indeed a loss for cycling. But if you are training as much as he did (6-8 hours/day) on the open roads, the likelihood of eventually being in a crash is probably pretty high, just like for people to drive for a living. From the sound of his personality, he was probably alright with that risk.
@ frank
golden
what article is that? i missed it, and need to go back to read the archives
@Steampunk
Agree. Most of my posts are squeezed out at work, furtively typing to make sure no – one realizes I’m not actually doing, you know, work. I’m all for attention to detail and accuracy but these are comments on an internet website after all. I spend all day with media content, and some of the howlers that end up being press releases, which get published verbatim in hundreds of articles, you’d have grounds to complain there.
BTW, we love Big Ring Riding.
@Kiwicyclist
Fantastic you all got to ride – sounds like a great ride, one I hope to join you on some day.
@ChrisO
I’ve never wanted a thing to do with a desert, but now I do. Thanks for that visual. Amazing.
@Blah
Totally disagree. Opposite, in fact; typos are careless while grammar and spelling errors can be simple ignorance. Take, for example, the Keepers Tour debate. First off, I simply didn’t know the rules around that, and second, according to the discussion it’s a gray area at best.
On the other hand, I think the Articles should be held to a much higher standard than the posts, though it is still careless to make errors.
@frank
Or beer…………
@scaler911
And, If you’re really good at carelessness (like not being able to tell a dude from a chick), you get a +1 badge to wear around here. See, everybody wins!
@Steampunk
Thank you for this. I knew there was a reason we keep you around. (It’s not for your good looks.)
@leadout, @Dr C
Yeah, WTF? We need details.
@mblume
This is absolutely fantastic and tragic at the same time. I’ve read quite a bit about Robic, but had not realized he had passed away. Thanks for the story and the info! A proper hardman.
@Souleur
I think we’re loosing each other – that quote came from a previous revision of this article but I cut it out and then pasted it into a post here because (it seemed/was) relevant again. (Updated your quote to include the links in case that’s what you were asking about.)
@scaler911
Thank you for bringing that up again! On my ride Saturday, a came across several large groups out riding. To my surprise, well over half of them were women, which was really great to see. It occurred to me several times to be sure they were women before pulling a “Scaler”.
@Oli
Well, as it’s beneath my post, but with no quote or @blah, I am only assuming it’s directed at me. Possibly a jab at my use of commas? Internet forum nuance is hard to gauge…
If so – which specific comma or commas need to be taken out? And why? “It just seems like too many” isn’t an answer.
@frank
Ugh. Sorry to keep it up, but… It’s not a grey area. Just decide what it means and there’s a rule for expressing that.
@Oli
@frank
Actually, this is stupid. Forget the whole punctuation/grammar thing. Self imposed exile for me. When I come back you’d better not be discussing it any more.
Awesome article Fronk, thank you.
But Christ on a bicycle, 115 posts later and I can finally go to bed (I think my OCD is even worse than Tommy Godwin’s).
PS LOA and W&I – two of the finest productions ever captured on celluloid. I truly am in the company of the enlightened
Just watched Quantum of Solace on the rollers. Good desert and Daniel Craig’s Bond is also no stranger to the V but shit movie, not enough there to distract from the numb ‘rse and hands for an hour and three quarters. I need to reorganise my Love Film lists to cover epics to while away the hours to.
I have found that the Spring Classics are good for musing on the bike, if I watch movies you can’t go past a David Lean monument.
thanks frank!
got it
@frank
I was going to stay right out of this discussion as my typing may be charitably be described as woeful, but…
Please, please all and sundry, the distinction between the words “loose” and “lose” is as follows;
“loose” describes the relative done-uppedness of something, whilst “lose” refers to the relative state of dis-posession of something.
To be used in a sentence as follows:
I lose my mind when I see someone spell “lose” incorrectly.
Just remember, “lose” rhymes with “youse”.
Pedants Ahoy!
Oh, and Frank;
Awesome post. You’ve nailed it.
We need a category next to the bikes, the rules, the lexi etc links at the top for… the pedantry. Grammar, typos, socks. Cut, paste, drop and flame away.
Writing is like Greg Henderson’s Rule #10 Gorilla. Anyone can write. Few can write well, and we just have tod ecide how polished we want our writing to be.
Blah, I think Oli’s question was directed at a Chris. Which one, god only knows.
In the face of overwhelming force, commas don’t really matter.
@minion
This will be the 1st post to go there should such a depository be created…oh the irony!
@Chris
Nice! 1:45 is my roller record so far. I just listen to music on the rollers as I do not get as bored as on the trainer but 1:45 is a truly arse buster, no doubt about it!
@Blah
Sorry, but it just seems like too many.
As I get on in the years, I am increasingly amazed how still seemingly insignificant events/thoughts can be motivating. The following are a few things that make me look much more forward to a regular training ride:
1) Any thing new on the bike even if it is trivial (e.g. a new a new tubular glued on, or a new chain)
2) Riding after watching a great one day classic or Grand Tour stage
3) Reading something motivating (e.g. the article at the beginning of this thread)
4) The thought of an upcoming race
5) Entering the ride with a goal of setting a new PR on a climb or a route
6) Trying to go faster than friends, or knowing new competition is joining a group ride
7) Having a perfectly clean bike (I am usually in compliance with said Rule)
8) Having a new piece of kit
I am wondering if this will ever change.
@Buck Rogers
I can’t remember who it was but somebody did comment the other day that roller hours are the equivalent of 1.5 road hours. I’m beginning to believe it. I can’t imagine being able to go much beyond the 1.45 mark either mentally or physically.
I would still consider myself to be very much a novice which limits me to spending the duration of the ride seated and with both hands on the bars. I’m sure practice will improve the amount that I’m able to shift around and ride one handed to relieve the pressure but I think the mental side also needs to be developed significantly. I need to get into some sort of meditative state that’s deeper than the grove I can sometimes get into on the road when the pain drops away and the body and bike seem to become one. Taking not minding to a sub-concious level as it were.
@minion
Love how the visors on those helmets make the riders look faceless, especially the second one in who looks to be so possessed by The V that he has lost his individuality.
@frank, @DrC
Nice assumtions! I am leaving, notice I did not say “being released” or “checking out” today. My 7 day stay in hospital will be over today.
Done with Vicodin days and Dilaudid nights. I have found that my recovery program must include cycle treatment: that is bicycle treatment of course. Best days always lie ahead!
@mouse
Certain things such as this, I blame on being bilingual. The meaning that two vowels have when next to each other are oposite in the two languages I speak/write on a daily basis. I do my best, but it is what it is. Mistakes in Articles are one thing, posts another.
@Mikael Liddy
That will be nice, if for only two reasons: first, posts about CYCLING will be kept with their relevant articles, and then I can just go to one place and fucking delete all that shit in one sweep. Kind of like the spam list – one click and I’m done.
@mblume
Spectacular! I love it, I share many of these items with you. Fresh white bar wrap factors heavily on the list as well. Having vanquished the last squeak or creak from the machine and rolling out in silence…The list goes on, I suppose.
Cheers.
@minion
What always amazes me is how different those guys look than road cyclists. They’re monsters!!
@Chris
Possessed by the V! Gold! Both GB guys are making Vunny Vaces. Awesome shot, Minion!
And thanks for bringing this back to…wait for it…CYCLING. (You too, Buck.)
@leadout
The mystery deepens! You still haven’t told us what crime you committed to wind up there.
@mblume
Super post! You’ve captured something that I also feel but did not realize it until you posted this. Thanks.
@Chris
It becomes so much nicer once you can stand up and cycle for a while as it makes the whole body position so much looser and more relaxed.
I snuck in a 1:15 ride this morning on the rollers and I am now able to stand up and pedal for two to three minutes at a time and after the ride, my backside was not sore at all.
Still loving the rollers. Nothing like the outside rides, but I actually enjoy the rollers.
Suffering and riding in the rain are two different things. Yes, riding in the rain makes you tough; but why do it if you don’t have to? It makes a mess of your equipment and caused premature failure of components. I don’t ride in the rain unless I have to. Got caught in the rain on a training ride. Get to the race and it is raining. You get the idea. I don’t mind suffering. I have suffered with the best of them. Dry and wet. Suffering is best when you get to dictate the suffering; it is much more rewarding when your suffering causes others to suffer as well. Even better when they give up.
I hate you guys. After reading this post and the Robich link I decided to go out yesterday. It was like 4 degrees with 15km/h wind and some wet spots on the road. I was wearing shorts, an under-armor type long sleeved compression thing, and some polyester short sleeved shirt. Did the first 25km loop with fingerless gloves, hands were freezing, so I put on my leather driving gloves and did another loop. In the end it was definitely worth it. My legs were fine, but my feet were frozen.
@frank
Dude! That’s not nice!
With “not minding that it hurts” in mind, I thought this as I read the packaging of DZNuts while waiting for my post-ride espresso today: embrocation is for the weak. There. I said it.
@Buck Rogers
I’m working on it. Baby steps. Spent the recovery between the 20 minute efforts riding one handed while moving the other around randomly to get used to the effect it has on balance.
Went one cog smaller and suffered.
@Steampunk
I’d disagree, crying in the shower after the ride because of the embrocation burn is weak. Ignoring the burn and drinking beer in the shower while receiving personal service would not be weak.
@DerHoggz
Like I keep saying, get a fleecy hat, that’ll keep your feet warm
@DerHoggz
check these out. they may help you in your effort to stay warmer. they also have some knee warmers for the same price. I know its rough being on a tight budget but if you look you kind find some decent kit.
@DerHoggz
Fixed your post.
@cblackride
Sure, they’re different things. But both of them require discipline to do it. Both of them require that you push yourself to get around to the work of being a cyclist.
As a matter of clarification, I’m not sure where you live, but bad weather and training in it is just part of being a cyclist. Where I live, if I only rode in bad weather by accident, at least 150 days of the year would be off the calendar just as a matter of course.
Absolutely, though, riding in bad weather is terrible for your bike if you don’t also maintain it accordingly. Those of us who are able will devote a bike to this, with carefully chosen frame and components that are appropriate to the purpose and work within our budgets. For me, thats an old used Alu frame that matches the geometry of my main bike, and an old 9spd Shimano group. Those of us who have to ride Bike #1 in the rain, well, maintain it religiously and make sure you get each and every bit of grit out of the drive train and bearings before the next ride. Which is a beautiful process, by the way. Aided by cycling videos and beer.
@Steampunk
Its also not for your use of blockquotes!
@Chris
Unfamiliar with that site and will now be a regular reader.
@frank
I was hating you guys during the ride, as well as secretly relishing it. The looks and questions I got were great, “You are wearing shorts right now?”.
I was certainly breaking all sorts of rules. Baggy shorts, mountain shoes, hairy legs, and a host of other violations.
As to Rule #33, I am planning on becoming compliant pretty soon, probably over Christmas break. I feel like I needed to improve before I shaved the guns, and I am ready to take that step IMO. Hopefully there is some kit under the tree this year, so I can look pro.
@frank
This would be less of a problem if “preview post” and “submit post” weren’t right beside each other. And if I wasn’t an idiot. I’m flattered, though, that you can see my value beyond my devilishly good looks (and just a little weirded out).
@Steampunk
Yeah, yeah…when the preview post happened automatically, it did little to improve the quoting ratio of not just you but anyone. The preview is there as a curtesy at this point; its useless. I have to load up a richtext editor for the posts, that’s all there is to it.
If it makes you feel better, I was looking at a picture of you when I pre-stretched your new bibs. Talk about weirded out: the fact that you requested this service is odd…
@frank
Wow! Just wow.
@frank
Is that a service offered for free or is it an extra charge?
Maybe I will pick up a V branded kit…