Muddy Buddy
When I worked at Salomon, we went through this major shift from marketing products to marketing the brand. We noticed that our customers identified with our products primarily through emotion and sensation. Afterall, raging down a hill at 65MPH on a pair of skis balanced precipitously on the razors edge of control is a bit more emotional and sensational than say...I don't know....doing the dishes. Now, doing the dishes, while emotionally scarring, and scalding your hands can be sensational, the act of washing dished does not illicit the same response as skiing, snowboarding, adventure racing, fruit booting, and all the other sports Salomon designs products for. So we labeled this emotion and marketed it as an "Epic Moment". That is when the body, the mind, and most importantly, the equipment became synergistic. Where you almost become a third person observer, or and out of body experience of sorts. I know, it is a little far fetched, but if you have ever experienced an "Epic Moment" you know what I am talking about. So the point of this little diatribe is this...Yesterday I had an "Epic Moment". I got to finally ride my new Mountain Bike on my favorite trail , Tamarancho, here in Marin. (By the way, there is very little "Legal" singletrack here in Marin, and as a professional, I do not condone riding closed or illegal trails)
It's Good to be back on the Mountain Bike. I have not clipped into a mountain bike since November 1, 2005. Not that I didn't feel like it or that training has prevented me from doing so. Nope, it's because I didn't have one. Can you believe that? A pro mountain biker without a mountain bike???? Well my story goes like this. Originally my new frame was to arrive in mid-November, so I sold my old bike to a local racer. I was sad to see the bike go. I had many fond memories and successes on the bike. Most notably my fifth at Masters Worlds. But it was staying local and in good hands. (Besides, I had lots of year end racing and medical bills to pay). So mid-November, no frame... Finally, in the midst of rebuilding the shop, my frame arrived. I had the time this past weekend to build it up.
Monday I went out for a workout on my new bike. The sun was just coming up. There was a bite in the air from the cold temps. Not a cloud in the sky and you could see forever. It was like a dream. Everything was working perfectly, including the body. With some great tunes on the I-Pod, I was in heaven. Pure mental bliss. I was just floating on the imaginary tightrope through the trees. Two laps with nearly perfect conditions for this time of year. A few patches of mud here and there and some slick sections, but nothing like I have raced in or ridden in a thousand times before. I was whole again.
On my last interval, my front wheel washed out on a wooden bridge. I flew off the bike into a ravine. I landed seven feet down on a log, on my ribcage. I got the wind knocked out of me and I either bruised or cracked some ribs. Having broken many ribs before in my past life as a ski racer, I know the drill. It's like a broken toe...there's not much you can do...just grin and bear it.
The GOOD news is, The bike is fine, and the rider will live to fight another day...just not today. I resume my training tomorrow...it is just going to hurt a bit more than usual.
Having the past two days off the bike has given me some time to work on the route details for MS Global. I have been working on Google Earth which is amazing. You can cruise around anywhere in the world, zoom in, zoom out, pan the view down to ground level, spin, dip and dosie-doe. It is a serious TIME SUCK. I have managed to mark all of the major towns and major climbs of our route this year.
