The Janus of Suffering

Time for a different kind of suffering.

I came strongly into the Fall, stronger than in other years thanks to a late-season objective to do well at my first Heck of the North gravel classic in Minnesota. I was light and I had built good power and endurance by riding the steep gravel roads that pepper the North Cascades and suffering through brutal interval sessions on the windswept stretch of road along Shilshole Bay. I was good at hurting myself.

With the race behind me and the first of the next season’s objectives many months away, I entered into what in many ways is my favorite time of year to ride: Winter. The months between objectives at that time of year provides a kind of serenity on the bike that is hard to find when goals are looming. Focus shifts away from building a sharpness in the muscles and towards putting in long base kilometers at steady speeds. There is no need to push hard on the climbs, just slip into a nice tempo and explore the beautiful quiet of a steady rhythm.

With that serenity comes a different kind of suffering; not so acute but where the cold winds and rains harden the mind against the long hours of discomfort and somatic pain. Simply staying on the bike all day, riding from sun up to sun down, is suffering in itself. The willpower and discipline needed to hold the course and do the Work is itself an entirely different but very real kind of suffering – even if the suffering is not intense at any given moment.

But as Winter slowly loosens it grip and the days grow longer, so too do the objectives for the coming season loom nearer. It is time to pull myself out of steady rhythms and once again build towards the sharp sensations of a hard effort. I find I’ve nearly forgotten how to do it; my body resists the signals coming from the mind; its first impulse is to employ the Scotty Principle, I’m givin’ ‘er all she’s got captain! It seems my mind has forgotten that whenever it gets that message, there is always another 10 or 20 percent left to to be taken from the body.

Janus is the Roman god of beginnings and transitions; he has two faces – one looking to the past and one to the future. I’m transitioning from one kind of suffering into another; the work I did yesterday will make tomorrow’s ride a little bit better. My mind navigates through the mixed signals it receives, and the body responds and adapts. To transition is to explore the boundary between two seemingly separate entities. Science explores the boundary between ignorance and knowledge; art explores the boundary between reality and imagination; Cycling explores the boundary between the mind and body.

We are Cyclists. The rest of the world merely rides a bike.

frank

The founder of Velominati and curator of The Rules, Frank was born in the Dutch colonies of Minnesota. His boundless physical talents are carefully canceled out by his equally boundless enthusiasm for drinking. Coffee, beer, wine, if it’s in a container, he will enjoy it, a lot of it. He currently lives in Seattle. He loves riding in the rain and scheduling visits with the Man with the Hammer just to be reminded of the privilege it is to feel completely depleted. He holds down a technology job the description of which no-one really understands and his interests outside of Cycling and drinking are Cycling and drinking. As devoted aesthete, the only thing more important to him than riding a bike well is looking good doing it. Frank is co-author along with the other Keepers of the Cog of the popular book, The Rules, The Way of the Cycling Disciple and also writes a monthly column for the magazine, Cyclist. He is also currently working on the first follow-up to The Rules, tentatively entitled The Hardmen. Email him directly at rouleur@velominati.com.

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View Comments

Ron says:

Mar 17 2014 at 2:21 pm

Excellent!

Definitely looking forward to some spring & summer cycling. I'm at the point, which seems to happen every year, where I'm darn tired of pulling on so much gear just to ride. I know in a few months I'll be tired of cooking under the sun and having to apply sunblock.

It's always nice to look at the past, and then towards the future. Such as...I'll be on the road on Sunday. Do I get up early as to make it home for MSR or do I accept that I can't watch every single big race live?

Oh yeah, we're getting freezing rain and it's only getting colder tomorrow. Crazy weather for these parts in mid-March.
Fausto says:

Mar 17 2014 at 2:34 pm

I've learnt this year that what I really need to kick start my training is a good kick up the arse. This year it came in the form of a team mate and regular training buddy handing my arse to me on an entirely normal weekend ride, to the point of bonking on the way home for the first time in years.

What has followed has been a thorough exploration of the pain cave system via the means of sticking rigidly to 'the plan' come hell or, surprisingly frequently here in SW England, high water. Where the roads can't deliver, the turbo has been the torture device of choice and I've found new highs in amongst the sweaty lows.

I feel better this year than last, and hope that means I can go out there and do myself justice. I'll be pretty hacked off if this has all been for nowt though.

I'll find out on Sunday...
Jamie says:

Mar 17 2014 at 2:57 pm

2014 Early Spring Status:

* Legs Strong

* Willpower Weak

* Belly HUGE.

I got in the miles this winter. Sadly they were accompanied by far too many calories. As the Spring Cogal looms, I can only pray for much wind to weaken the lighter riders prior to cobbled sectors of Seattle.
paolo says:

Mar 17 2014 at 3:12 pm

@Joe

And even though I have ridden my ass off all Winter I still won't be able to keep up with you on Latigo.....bastard!
Mike_P says:

Mar 17 2014 at 3:12 pm

@unversio

@Mike_P

From early December I've left the warmth of my bed and abandoned my family, out of the house by 6am every Saturday and Sunday. Rides of 2,3,4,5 now 6 hours, plus turbo sessions 3 times each week, as part of my return to some semblance of fitness and being the rider I've always wanted to be but have never been. I've dealt with weather as I've never managed to before and I'm still a long way from where i want to be. This needs to be a great season cos my poor VMW and kids need more of my time. This community has directly inspired this madness in me and I'm hugely grateful for it.

VLVV

Family time versus time on the bike. Around my household there is theme going on "” Sheetrock and Ride. I'm either handling the enormity of remodeling the house for the overall benefit of the wife, kids (3) and myself "” or "” riding whenever possible for the overall benefit of the wife, kids (3) and myself. When either are behind me, then there is just the benefit. Time and energy are gone, but the benefit is greater. And then I'll go further "” not with the house though! Eventually the theme will be Ride and Ride.

By which time I'll be mostly riding the 4th cat geriatric class!
Optimiste says:

Mar 17 2014 at 3:14 pm
Frank, Yet again your writing has prompted considerable reflection. As cyclists, we are differential creatures. Always comparing. And always preparing.
- If we did not suffer enough in the past, we suffer now. "I should have ridden more during the winter."
- We suffer now in hopes of suffering less in the future. "If I can keep in contact on the climb, I won't be fighting the wind the rest of the day."
- And we look forward to suffering with others . "The HammerGrindSlamCrushTourClimbFest sounds brutal. We're definitely doing it!"
Perhaps this is why Rule #10 is such an enticement and not a deterrent.
Mike_P says:

Mar 17 2014 at 3:25 pm

@Optimiste This
TheDon says:

Mar 17 2014 at 5:29 pm

Great article Frank. Down in the Southern Hemisphere the last of Summer is just ebbing away and there is enough bite in the wind to suggest we have turned the corner and are heading towards Autumn/Winter. Strangely I've somehow managed more time on the bike in winter. As long as dressed warmly, I don't mind it.
unversio says:

Mar 17 2014 at 5:32 pm

@Mike_P

@unversio

@Mike_P

From early December I've left the warmth of my bed and abandoned my family, out of the house by 6am every Saturday and Sunday. Rides of 2,3,4,5 now 6 hours, plus turbo sessions 3 times each week, as part of my return to some semblance of fitness and being the rider I've always wanted to be but have never been. I've dealt with weather as I've never managed to before and I'm still a long way from where i want to be. This needs to be a great season cos my poor VMW and kids need more of my time. This community has directly inspired this madness in me and I'm hugely grateful for it.

VLVV

Family time versus time on the bike. Around my household there is theme going on "” Sheetrock and Ride. I'm either handling the enormity of remodeling the house for the overall benefit of the wife, kids (3) and myself "” or "” riding whenever possible for the overall benefit of the wife, kids (3) and myself. When either are behind me, then there is just the benefit. Time and energy are gone, but the benefit is greater. And then I'll go further "” not with the house though! Eventually the theme will be Ride and Ride.

By which time I'll be mostly riding the 4th cat geriatric class!

Racing is racing. It's all good if you are part of the race.
cyclebrarian says:

Mar 17 2014 at 5:51 pm

@Doug

This past winter I used The Sufferfest videos to help change up my winter riding. They are high intensity interval training videos and they make you SUFFER! I hit the road this past weekend for my first outdoor ride in 4 months and I cannot tell you how much better I felt than in previous years. I am a recreational rider/triathlete and I will most definitely be using these videos in future winters to help me push back on Scotty and say, "Dammit man I need more!"

+1 Sufferfest videos.