Boston Mountain Bike TEAM

I get frustrated by my performance sometimes.  I remember how fit I used to be, or how much easier it was to hammer up a hill. And, by being so caught up in the past, I wish away the present.

Last week, my husband and I decided to do a charity ride over the weekend.  It was a last-minute decision, so we chose the 50-mile option, paid our fees and made plans to stay in New Hampshire Friday night.  The forecast wasn’t good, and we awoke to very large raindrops pounding on the tin roof. We both groaned at the thought of riding for hours in a downpour.  But the registration fee wasn’t small, so we packed up and went to the event parking lot. The downpour continued for another hour as we started our ride.  In my mind, I planned to bail at the first turnoff, covering 20 miles.  This would have made me feel like I had earned my t-shirt, but would’t make me cranky with bad memories of the event.

There was a big downhill at the start and I was nervous for 2 reasons.  For one, I have had a lot of hesitations about steep descents lately, and the roads were really slick also.  I took it easy and made it to the first sag stop with no problem.  We ran into our friends and their kids at the stop and were impressed that so many people had braved the foul weather to keep their commitment to the ride, and those who donated to support them.  Instead of turning off at the 20-mile point, we kept going.

We hit some hills along the Connecticut River and I started thinking about the 20 pounds I’ve gained in the last few years, and how out of shape I feel, and how I was going to attempt a century ride next weekend.  Our Luna team committed to being “celebrities” at the ride, and I kept thinking about how hard it would be to inspire someone else to ride so far when it was such a struggle for me to motivate myself.  Luckily, my husband and ride partner had a few words of wisdom (as always).  “Think about all of the people who are doing through chemotherapy right now.  They have cancer-that is hard.  This hill is easy.”  Of course, this resonated with me, and since we were riding to raise money for a cancer center, I kept pedaling and didn’t bail at the next option, the 35-mile mark.  I had to get inside my head and apply what I’ve heard so many times in yoga class…it’s not a competition, be in the moment, honor my body.  I stopped complaining (both internally and externally) and focused on the small stretch of road just in front of me.

We hit a long stretch along the river that was flat and we rode at 20mph for awhile.  I finally hit my groove.  We had a few more hills to make it to the finish, and one was really steep.  But the amazing event organizers knew how hard that last one is, so they had a steel band playing along the side about halfway up.  And there was a group of ladies from the nursing home that were cheering us on, complete with a sign that said “Top of the Hill Gang”.  I couldn’t believe how great it felt to ride under the balloon arch to the cheers of the crowds having ridden over 50 miles in 3 hours in the rain for the cancer center and all of the amazing volunteers and police officers who offered their time to make the ride one of the best supported and safe charity rides I’ve ever seen.  I’ll be riding the Prouty again next year, along with the 5000 others who came out to ride, run or walk to raise money for such an important cause.