Letter to a Competitor

 

Rhythms of breathes;

Long, slow, deep repetitive 

Intakes of healing.

It’s always interesting to discover what happens when you throw a few new kinks into a workout.

 It’s great to have a routine that allows for variation, though maintains a core basis from which to build off of. Throughout the years I’ve always tried to keep a speed, tempo and distance session in my training regimen. Over the years I’ve become a bit more relaxed about how structured those are and whether they need to be done on a weekly basis.

 Also being proud, stubborn, recognizing I’m not an elite athlete and also understanding the limits of my wallet I’ve managed to be a happily self-coached decent age grouper.

 So why not just get out there and find out what you’re made of or just how doing something different affects you once in a while? Keep it up.

 But if you are curious to push through and not just be healthy but try to be competitive as well, keep an eye on that scale, as well as whatever you’re using for strength indicators and keep those both moving in the right directions.

 As for the shoes…Unbelievable how expensive top of the line cycling equipment is. I used to ride Lake shoes, which I loved, but when I went to replace them I was shocked at the costs. I went with the best reviewed pair I could find at a decent price. And even at that my Shimanos were still very expensive.

 Running shoes are now skyrocketing in price as well. And where equipment choice used not to be that significant, the new high-end carbon plated shoes are registering improved objective results on both the feet of elites and age groupers alike.  So I’ll go in on that being the competitive bastard that I am.

 Long ago I had a mechanic that thought the problem with cycling shoes is that most of them didn’t allow for the cleat to be moved far enough back. He always recommended putting the cleats in that position to start and then adjust if needed. So it’s great that you feel that has improved your power and comfort.

 Running right now is my focus so I’m far less concerned about the structures of my rides except to make sure I use one of them once a week as an endurance replacement for a long run to keep from beating my legs up so much. So, like you, every now and then I’m going to consciously throw in a few (hill topper) sprints or pushes just for the fun of it AND to see how long I can hold you off.

 I’m not so sure we can avoid slowing down as we age. But by how much and how much that makes a difference in the feel of being out there is debatable.

 I often felt there was an ugly edge to competing when I was younger that I didn’t like about myself. Not to you guys, but I’ve always regretted the way I treated Mary as events neared. Fortunately, that seems to have dissipated with age as so many rough edges to teen-aged males do as we wise up.

 Long friendships like we have are to be cherished as they provide so much richness to the history of life.

 So I thank you as well.

 Talk to you soon. Stay healthy and have fun out there.