Why I Ride
“We’d even managed to get a few teammates positioned well going into the end of the race, but the field was a little too excited to be back at it and a couple of guys went down with 1k to go. ”
A new year, a new team, a new season. It’s easy to get caught up in the excitement of it all, but it’s important to stop and think about why we do what we do. When I was in San Francisco a few weeks ago, I spent some time thinking about all of the things I love that don't involve sport. Returning from that I needed to take a look into why I ride.
Fortunately, the Team Oregon elite team camp last weekend and the first race of the season yesterday helped me to do just that. My favorite part of bike racing has always been the community. Getting to spend a couple of long days riding and hanging out with my new teammates was a definite fitness boost, but the conversations that passed between riders during long days of double pace lines was as much a benefit as the miles that created them.
Yesterday’s season opening race was another reminder of the amazing community of racers we have in Oregon. The first race of the season always feels a little bit like going back to school after Summer Break: some familiar faces, some new; everyone excited to be getting back into it. I was satisfied with how my legs felt during the relatively short race. I covered some breaks and I felt like I could move around the field well. We’d even managed to get a few teammates positioned well going into the end of the race, but the field was a little too excited to be back at it and a couple of guys went down with 1k to go.
Me and a few of my teammates were caught up in the wreckage, but fortunately none of us were badly hurt. A few others were not so lucky though. I saw a couple broken bikes and possibly some broken collarbones. That’s never the way you want a season to start, but it’s also a harsh reminder of the reality of our sport. As I rode the last kilometer of the course with a teammate – no longer racing but simply happy to be up and riding – I thought about why I ride. It’s dangerous, it’s expensive, it’s time consuming, but it’s also apart of who I am. Coasting back into the parking lot, I felt thankful to have made it out unscathed and excited for the season to come.
@UpwardProgress