Use it………or Lose it.

As of late I have been pondering my Hare Scramble race last May.  I thought back to how poorly I did.  Only being able to complete 45\90 minutes of the race.  Pathetic if you ask me.  Sure I was on a heavier machine than I should have been.  Sure I hadn’t paced myself properly.  Sure I had never raced something like that before.  But should any of that really have mattered?  NO.  I can’t blame machine.  I blame only man, and that man is myself.  At the time only 23 and while not overweight, I sure as heck wasn’t (am not) in proper physical and mental shape.

Now what does that have to do with anything?  Scoop is this.  On top of competing in Trials events, I know that I can win in Hare Scrambles.  There are a few “local” races for me to compete in before my Trials season gets underway, but I’ve needed motivation and more-so a reason to get into this.  Reason: I need to be in better shape.  No two ways about it.

So where does this put me now?  Well for one I’ve hated what I’ve done to my BMW bike.  Sure it rides great, but I’ve come to a realization of what I should have done (hindsight 20/20).  I’m left at a place where I want-need a proper competition off-road motorcycle.  Problem is that that doesn’t solve my non race winning streak.  A better, more fitting machine will most definitely make things easier on myself, but that’s not the entire equation.

I need to address the other aspects of the race.  Most of which drop down to my past and present physical condition.  Now 24, I have realized I am greatly out of shape.  It was depressing seeing for myself that my laptimes in the race were better than most other competitors, but due to my poor mental condition and my even worse physical condition, I couldn’t make it the full race.  Down right depressing.  I know I am a better rider.  That didn’t matter.  Slower riders ended up in better positions than me not because they were better riders, but because they could make it.  I couldn’t.

And that right there is why I sucked it up and joined a gym with Kim.  I finally have another form of motivation.  I have other motivation, but this one has more or less pushed me over the edge.  I will win at least A (1) race.  I will NOT feel like total crap after.  I realize that this is going to be more or less a serious change in pace of life.  All for the better.  So now I sit here with blisters and cuts on my feet after running more than I have in my entire life; legs not wanting to move, and arms that when attempting to bend straight, shoot pain through them like I’m being stabbed.  No doubt in my mind, it WILL be worth it.

Andrew