Just riding.

January 25, 2010

Back in the day, I knew a fellow, Sheldon, who would come on our training rides sometimes. He was a few years older than the rest of us, he had raced as a top amateur (a “Cat 1” on a name-brand team). Several years into his cycling career, he developed bad allergies and “retired” from racing to go back to school and get a degree. Sheldon would say to us: “I don’t train anymore - I just ride.” And that’s what he did; he wasn’t trying to get faster, or peak for an event. He had nothing to prove to anyone, and perhaps, especially, to himself. So Sheldon simply rode, and enjoyed the time he spent on the bike, and he was still faster than most any of the rest of us on any given day.

There’s a lesson to be learned from Sheldon, applicable to more than just bike racing.

Just riding. - January 25, 2010 - chad r. frost