I competed in a bike race yesterday! This is a race that I did last year, and I can’t believe the improvement I have made in just one year! Last year, I struggled to just stay with my group and I was cramping miserably by the end of the race. This year, I found it rather easy to maintain the pace of my group for much of the race. A tactical error put me a little behind the leading group as we started the main climb, and I made the decision NOT to chase them down, since I needed to keep my legs fresh for this week of training – I could not afford to get sore or hurt. I finished the climb with a second group of riders and then we organized for a compact pace-line with about 13 miles to the finish. Each rider took turns riding at the front while the others drafted behind. As we got within a mile or two to the end, the pace got faster and a few riders started to lag behind. I felt strong and started to mentally prepare for the sprint finish. I kept telling myself, “Don’t strain anything like last year!” With about 200 meters to the finish, one rider sprinted away from us, and I quickly followed him, trying to stay with him. I gave a quick look back, expecting to see the whole pack in hot pursuit. Lucky for me, nobody had much energy left, and I was able to concentrate on the guy in front of me. As I caught him, I noticed that he was in a different age category – so there was no point in trying to pass and risk injury. I finished the race strong and feeling great. What fun!

Dr. Jim

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