Ride Positive in 2007

Did all your meticulous winter training plans pan out?

If you live in anything close to the kind of climate (Minnesota) I do, you know how winter can piss all over those plans. Oh sure, there’s “cross-training.” Winter has all sorts of frolicsome activities that can promote a healthy body mind and spirit. Exercise that rejuvenates, while giving tired muscles and cartilage a chance to rest.

Of course that’s all bullshit. Winter sucks the life from your bones and organs. If it’s not the cold (and I mean blue-extremities cold) or the ice, it’s the dry air or the sick co-worker coughing in your face. It’s depression disguised as a season.

My training plans have not gone as planned. The last cold snap and two late-season snowstorms have put a big dent in what was to be an all-out, rabid assault this year. Because I made a resolution during the last race of 2006 to never find myself at that end of the pack again in 2007.

So here I am in early spring, just weeks before my first race, with weak legs, weak lungs and a winterized brain. What’s a guy to do?

I guess I’ll try to keep things in perspective. It’s not like I was given a third-larger-than-normal-Secretariat-like heart. Or have some happy-martyr tolerance for pain. Nope, I’m a confirmed sissy. But I learned an important lesson back in the ‘80s during my BMX days, when I’d wear anything that said, “Club Homeboy” on it. And Club Homeboy’s motto was “Positive Attitudes are Free”

Club Homeboy was something that Andy Jenkins, Mark Lewman and Spike Jonze dreamed up. It rocked my cycling world. Club Homeboy was all about expression and attitude. It was less about making distinctions and more about just plain riding. Riding hard, being put away wet and enjoying the hell of out it.

Now there’s much to be said for the discipline of training. For hill repeats, tempo riding and bike handling. It doesn’t matter if you’re trying to beat someone to the line or land some sort of crazy table-top; practice invariably makes perfect.

But bitching ain’t going to help. You or anyone else.

It’s so easy to start complaining: about your bike, your jersey and your fitness. It’s even easier to start to complain about your team, your local race association, etc. That’s an easy, contagious and sick vibe. It’s killjoy.

Am I saying things couldn’t be better? Nah, I’m just saying fix them with a smile. Suggest a better solution and keep your bitching to a minimum.

I’d like to challenge every one of you to Ride Positive for the 2007 season.

Make a point to curtail the whining about the way your race was run. In fact, I double-dog dare you to get there early and help set up. Don’t bitch about your bike, your fitness or your whatever. Instead, compliment someone else who’s been reduced to complaining after not ascending the mountain of perfection.

Enjoy the team ride. Even if it’s with a teammate that bugs you. Say thanks to team leaders for all their hard work. Thank your competitors for the hard race. For letting you in the pace-line or how they somehow decided not to knock you off your line.
I bet by Riding Positive, you’ll start seeing cool things you might have missed. Bet you’ll make more friends, maybe even get more free beer. Bet your riding community will feed off your vibe. People will dig that and chicks will give you the nod. Maybe even a feel. I can dream, can’t I?

Now, since I didn’t get shit done over my lame-ass-winter, I gotta make myself go do some hill repeats on some crappy-ass hill that’s probably too dangerous to ride and I’ll probably get hit by a car. Stupid cars.

Ride Positive for 2007.

Epilogue
A week after writing this, I nearly got hit by a car. And the dude wanted to fight. So did I, being angry and feather-ruffled. I was ready to go. Plus, I was with three teammates, so the odds were tilted heavily in my favor.

Though we didn’t fight, it still ruined a whole day. After a sweet long ride, I suddenly became bitchy and moody. Yeah, so sometimes it’s hard to stay or ride positive. So what. It’s hard to take life as it happens and it’s hard to let some rich-dick call you a pussy ‘cause you wont hit him first.

Hello new leaf.

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