9 Years.....

 Its funny how time is relative.

When holding your breath.....a minute can seem like a long time.

When driving to a destination....an hour can seem like a long time.

When working.....a day can seem like a long time.

When thinking about what is for dinner in a week....that seems like it is so far off.

Looking at vacation in the next month.....doesn't feel like it will ever get here.

When planning on moving south.....a year seems like an eternity. 

Yet, all these seemingly long times are just drops in the ocean of time. Our long work days that feel like long weeks are gone. What feels like forever, is passing super fast. It has already been a few months at my new job and a few months since I got married. 

Where am I going with this? Well....I was doing some thinking yesterday about my riding and racing. I have been 'racing' for well over 20 years now. That is crazy to me. To think of where I started when my Brother-in-law came home with a flyer for some event called Iceman. Doesn't seem like that long, but it has been a lifetime. 

Now that I think about it....its probably closer to 25 years ago that I did my first Iceman. Damn. 

Anyway....those thoughts were conjured up yesterday because I was thinking about the old Championship Point Series (CPS) that the MMBA used to do. I had a solid year one time...and took 5th in the series. That was when I was a Beginner Clyde. I moved to Sport that following year. It was a long long time before I ever stepped on a podium again. Years in fact.

Life got crazy there for a while. Lots of kids and working put riding on the back burner. I gained a ton of weight and wasn't riding at all. Eventually I got back into it. I started riding again around 2007. Not even sure how long it was that I was off, but that isn't important. 

This past Sunday I was able to step back onto a podium step. I was curious as to how long it had been. So I took a trip back in time to sort it out. 

After 7 years, I reached my first Sport Podium at Sweat Shaker in 2014. I remember that I had just gotten my first 29er and I was flying that day. 2015 my focus on was LJ100, and that was my defining event that year. No podiums, but still a massive achievement.

In 2016 I was able to step on the podium once again. However, the first one was by default. I travelled up to Tree Tops and took a 3rd place.....out of 3. All I did was finish, but it was a podium over those that chose the couch that day. 

My next event was the TK Lawless XC race. There were a lot of clydes that day, so I opted for Sport Open...in which there were less people again. I believe there was only 3, so I was guaranteed a podium at the start. However, I did take 2nd that day. Earning the podium spot. 

Nine years. It was nine years between the Lawess podium and the Stampede Podium. That is a long time for sure. The latest bronze medal was earned with every pedal stroke. I was able to finish 3rd out of 7 racers that day. It was good to be back on the steps, but even better to know I deserved to be there. I did the work and I rode hard to earn that finish.

Nine years. Nearly a decade. That...is a long time.

During my race, my thoughts were bouncing around a bit. They would go from the leaders, to what place I was in, to the rain, to wondering how long it has been since a podium. 

For some reason Jimmy Valvano came to mind. His inspiring speech at the ESPY's was one I will never forget. He was fighting cancer, but he had some good words of wisdom.....

I don't know why that came into my head, but I am glad it did. When it came to mind, it was raining. I was worried I was being chased down. My mind said "Don't give up, don't ever give up" and my just kept forging ahead. After 9 years away I figured out a way to get back into the sport that I love and be a name on the steps instead of just a finisher. 

I haven't given up. I don't plan on giving up. 

It took a long time, but it has been worth every step of the journey. 

Here is the speech if you are interested.