looking back to push me forward

looking back on the year to push me forward

right now I am looking back on the year to push me forward
reviewing the year in my head to see how I should feel on the bike for the Shenandoah Mountain 100
honestly this is my approach each time
always the question that creates the anxiety
have I prepared well enough for this 100 mile event

on sunday I will know
there is nothing that will tell me any sooner
all I can hope for is a good day on the bike
go out hard
and have a good time
there have been many miles and many races
this race is an accumulation of the days on the bike leading up to this point
there were some days pulling the kids in the trailer
and even more days pulling the kids on the trail-a-bike
there may not have been any hill repeats
nor were there any road centuries
but there were a lot of good days on the bike

the back to back wakefield events
a three loop afternoon at rosaryville
it is not about what I have done
it is about what I can do
I have done this race three times before
and I can do it again

mike buchness may have summed it up clearly for the SPOKES article I wrote about the SM100
each year it starts out fun and ends up getting brutal
it gets brutal for everyone
no matter how fast or how slow your race
at the finish you know you gave it your all
the best you had to offer on that day

that regardies photoshoot was on this gwadzilla archive
it is amazing
looking at the photos of people in the cold
those days seem like yesterday
while it was a whole nother season at the beginning of the year

I hope Jason Berry has put it together to chase Chris Eatough and Floyd Landis fighting it out at the front
that will be something to witness
for them... that will be something to experience
fighting it out to be king for the day
for nothing more than the experience and bragging rights

super cool!