Today, my coach asked me to think about the reason for my willingness to race. Usually I would completely forget about the question until seconds before I was required to answer it. Right now, maybe I'm feeling philosophical or maybe its the few hours of sleep I got last night, but I feel inspired to right a blog post for the first time in around a year.
Let’s start off by talking about how I became a bike rider rather than a ski racer or rock climber or musician or artist. Art and music, although I enjoy them as much as anyone else, were never for me and those dwindled out of my life fairly quickly. Ski racing and rock climbing, both super wonderful sports that I have no negative words about.
I love the idea of an adventure, and any outdoor sport that can further the experience of a true one, I am on board. Biking has always been my favorite form of escape from the stress of reality. The idea that I was born into a world where it is expected that I will go through 13 years of school, then head out to do optional, but recommended school, then immediately find a job, get married, and have kids, is an obnoxious trajectory that is blindly followed by masses globally. Why is this the main goal? My goal in life is to be happy and to live life to the fullest. Although I do plan on following this mapped out path, I plan on bushwhacking and making my own way by taking the time to break away from the “norm” and leading a life of freedom from this locked path we call life.
Now why did I choose mountain biking over road biking? First off, road biking is terrifying. I would take rocks, mud, and trees over high speeds and cars any day. Second, I love the halcyon silence that comes from being out on pleasant tacky dirt, amply moist to provide ultimate cohesiveness to my tires. The high grip plus low mud equals ultimate freedom. I feel grounded yet unrestricted. I love the feeling of my lungs burning, my heart pounding, and my legs being pushed to exhaustion. Call me crazy, but testing the limits is extremely gratifying.
I race because it combines my passion for adventure with the devotion that I have for doing it the best that I can.
