Dedication

Was at the gym today and ran into Missy. She is racing on a road squad at the elite level. She's lifting and riding between 8-13 hrs a week. That is more than I did in any week over the last several years. And this is through all kinds of weather too.

That's some dedication. These road racers on D3 and other elite amatuer teams as well as the pro/elite expert mountain bike racers are just on a different level when it comes to dedication.

Sure they are probably more genetically gifted and have mental strength in excess of the rest of us mortals, but regardless of god given talents, to make it at the level they are requires a mindset that create pure dedication to their sport which you cannot buy or be given. And it sure isn't for money or fame, cause a little blurb in the Voler e-news letter isn't going to get you a whole lot except a warm fuzzy feeling.

But you know it is all relative. I am more dedicated than probably 95% of the population that lives on cable and potato chips, so that says a lot right there.

The bottom line is life is hard. Jobs, kids, spouses, family, pets, the commute, the grocery store, the neighbors, basically everything that goes into being a human being in America. It's hard to just make it through the day and to the next day.

And it is all relative. My 'hard life' is nothing compared to someone elses who might have medical, financial, or other issues to that makes it tough, yet we create our own rating scale based on our own life. Not sure what I'm trying to say, just that for those of us out there training and racing at the amateur.. sport class or trying to be pack fodder at the expert or Cat3 level, etc....

Do the best you can. That's all you can ask of yourself.

Rock on.