Strength can be a fickle thing this time of year, when the training isn’t as consistent as it should be; it comes and goes, sometimes several times in the span of a single ride or even a climb. Like a rosy-eyed dreamer I keep awakening as I train, thrown like a rag doll between a state nearing euphoria and one resembling purgatory.
My mind is what drives me as a Cyclist, it is what allows my to keep going despite the burning in my legs and lungs. It is what pushes me to leave the comfort of my home to climb aboard my bike when it is dark, cold, and rainy. But there are times when the legs won’t go or the body fails in some anomalous way when we are struck by the reality that we are but puppets, pushed and pulled by forces that exist outside outside the jurisdiction of our will.
Whether or not the body fails, the mind can still resist. It can resist easing back. It can resist turning around. It can resist turning the bars to steer away from the extra climbing loop. Giving in is the worst kind of weakness we have in Cycling. With time all the acute reasons why we want to quit will pass; the acid will flush from our muscles, the gasps for air will give way to steady breathing, the cold will leave our bodies. But quitting, and the doubt it cultivates can last much, much longer.
Quitting begets quitting. It wears down your confidence and makes you question yourself. It asks questions of you that you will struggle to answer when the 2am Ghosts of Lost Opportunities come calling. Worst of all, quitting gets easier the more you do it.
Before my rides, I will decide if it is to be a hard day or an easy day; whether I will do the extra loop with the big climbs or look for the flatter roads. Once on the ride, I will shut off the part of my mind that asks those questions and simply shut off the part of my mind that processes those considerations. I will not stop until I am done.
Our strength may be fickle, but our minds are steady.
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Great study as usual Frank.
I personally find that the notion of quitting, when it comes about, usually lingers over me up until I summon the V to kit up and wheel out. After that, it dissipates.
Also, it the sum of the quit is usually directly proportional to the epicness of the ride. The more quit one has to overcome to get out, the more one is rewarded by La Volupte.
VLVV
mrhallorann
Great piece. Should be posted regularly for those of us for whom the open road isn't an option right now. (SE Wisconsin) This may sound kinda bad, but I did 90 mins (instead of the usual 60) in my garage on the trainer yesterday despite the complete lack of feeling in my toes after an hour or so. Was this resistance? Yes. If I was out on a ride with 20 miles to go, I have no option but to suffer. But I had a very easy option - quit, climb off and head upstairs to the warmth.
Ps Kudos yet again to Ms Vos the Boss. Seventh world championship. Truly, my respect and love for her grows exponentially each year.
I was in a 40 minute breakaway last year. I gave up 2x a lap after 20 minutes. Each time I pushed myself to get back on. I wasn't going to do the walk of shame.
I finished 2nd.
If you do the math, I quit about 10x.
It never got any easier though.
I am the Cafe Roubaix guy, so I have to look like I am fit at the very least. I had a man-flu over the weekend which kept me from doing much constructive, let along the pain cave. But got back on the trainer today. I shut down the little voice that said, "oh you could use another rest day..."
No, I could use more time in the saddle.
I, on the other hand, am a quitter. Occasionally on a training ride, after a few kms, I feel like shiet, or in a wretched mood, not getting any enjoyment out of being on the bike, I quit. I turn around to ride another day. I don't quit on a real ride, I'm too dumb and stubborn to do that. Not every ride is a real ride for me.
Many many years ago, I tried my hand at bike touring. The peugeot px-10 weighed metric tons: tent, stove, pots, etc. I had to walk it up part of the coast range west of Palo Alto, that was bad enough. The next day I had to pedal while riding downhill with a headwind and I said fuck it, this is not for me. I rode to Santa Cruz and that was it, I quit, and very happy about it. The one day tourist. I didn't want that ugly experience to ruin my love of the bike.
Dan - is a man-flu what Canadians call a liquor-induced hangover?
Nice! This piece obviously has a lot to do with the V-Moment of the Year Award from 2013. Cancellara put his mind to it, and did it.
I feel for all of you riding indoors or having to pull on booties, winter caps, etc. for every ride. Just getting dressed can be enough to crush you mentally.
I grew up playing lots of competitive sports, and while I wanted to play my best, I also wanted to beat the other team. Hating the kid from the other town or team or club made it easy for me to push through and never give up. Oh yeah, being smaller than most other players also gave me a mean streak and an unwillingness to give a centimeter, no matter how much it hurt.
In contrast, I only compete with myself when on a bike, even when racing. I wonder how my competitiveness would have been shapely different had I only done solo sports or endurance sports.
Another good read @frank
I many many reasons to quit, some real and some imagined. The imagined ones are the worse!
My neck injury is the real one but fortunately for some weird reason feels ok on the bike.
Maybe the endorphins kick in and the brain and pain receptors just love those endorphins.
My Grandfather used to race on a big old heavy single speed up and over some of the same roads I bitch and moan about now on my light carbon geared steed. This fact of how awesome he must of been at full flight serves me well when an easy quit is an option due to the perceived or real reasons to throw the towel in.
"Ride on" a little voice in my head says, its what he would do !
I'm well into my third decade of road cycling, and don't feel the need to 'push through' or 'overcome' anything.
Oh, and fuck off Strava.
@Frank
I think its fair to say the we've reached the point where it wouldn't be out of order if your Rule Exposition Essays also included a little homework for the Velominati. It would be aimed at demonstrating or providing an experience of some aspect of the lesson in question.
@Chipomarc
[ Pee Wee Herman voice ] "Ah ha! I love that story!" [ sarcasm ]