Do you want it....

"Go outside and ride. And also ride your trainer. Unless you physically can't ride a bike your excuses are lame"

~Summer

"Change is hard. If you want something you have to work for it"

~Summer

These comments above are real. They are also "REAL". They were in response to an excuse filled post I had on Monday. In case you missed.....I used excuses for why I didn't ride. I got called on them.

This post is mainly about the second comment. And specifically the "if you want something you have to work for it" part. Because....Summer isn't wrong here. Not even close. And her comment got me thinking. Do I really "want" it?

And the answer is....not really. And my reason isn't what you think. I "DO" want it....but I don't "REALLY" want it. Meaning I want it, but I am not doing the work to get it. I can sit here all day and dream about my next century. I can imagine crossing the finish line of the Lumberjack 100. I can picture being handed my sunset award at the Coast to Coast Gravel Grinder. But my imagination isn't driving me to do the work.

Motivation is missing. That is what I am looking for....motivation. I know once I sign up for LJ100 that it will kick in....but I need to jump start it now when I have a few extra months to spin and burn calories.

Bottom line.....I do want it.....and now I have to work for it.

Drop the.....base?

Picture if you will:

It was a dreary morning as Southwest Michigan was recovering from a rain covered night. Not sure when the rain actually stopped, but all the roads were still mostly wet. Knowing that Kal-Haven would be okay to ride I pressed on and arrived to find a basically empty parking lot.

Kevin and Jimmy arrived and it was time to head out. Spirits were high. Then they were not. Thankfully I remember everything that happened....and that is an important detail. More on that later..

We left the parking lot and I was leading. I made the first right hander on the deck...and proceeded to become acquainted with said deck, in the area shown below. Faster than a speeding bullet Fat Albert shot out from under me and dumped me in a pile. Wet wood. Fail.

I remember thinking...this might be...and then feeling the wrenching pain of my knee being slammed into the deck followed by my hip and eventually hearing my helmet hit wood. The concern here is simple....a brain bleed. That is the only stock I was taking. I thought out loud "Fuck, I just hit my head"...and I laid there facing the grey sky wondering to myself if I had just accidentally committed suicide. The only concern my doctor gave me about riding was a head injury. I said "well I wear a helmet" and the response was still "be careful because a fall from standing height can cause a brain bleed"....which in turn....can kill me.

Kevin and Jimmy sprung into action and I eventually stood up. I wanted to make sure there was no head pain....and there was none. I checked my helmet for damage....none. This was truly the first instance I have ever had of a crash where I was more concerned about myself than about my bike. I pressed around on the back and side of my head near my neck to make sure there was no pain. I made sure I wasn't gushing blood out of my knee or anywhere else. Then, I threw my leg over the bike and we were off.

We had planned on 36ish miles, but at mile 10 I decided I was going to cut off. I made it to mile 11 before finally saying it out loud. The three of us turned around and headed back towards Kalamazoo. The long slog back felt more brutal than it should have. Neck and shoulders were starting to tighten up and my legs were not appreciating the weight of Fat Albert...or me. lol. But I plugged away and got back to the car. One final check of the pupils to make sure I was good and off towards home I went. We ended with about 23 miles. Not bad all things considered.

So, Monday was rough. Felt like I had whiplash in my neck (that already has arthritis) and my legs were simply shredded. I drank a lot of water and took some tylenol to ease the tension. This morning I felt much better, but still pretty sore. Trying to stretch and hydrate and just keep moving in general.

So...here is my PSA

BE CAREFUL ON WET HARD WOOD

;)