For a couple of years I had heard about this insane mountain bike race in Leadville, Co. Like most of us now do in today's age, I went to You Tube and watched some videos, thinking "these people are f-ing nuts". I actually knew a guy in my hometown that had participated & had heard how about how it was both amazing & horrifying. But I was still confused as to why someone would want to spend all that time & money to suffer for 9-12 hours climbing at elevations that made you feel as though you were breathing out of the cocktail straw they give you w/ favorite whiskey drink.
I'm an avid reader of Bicycling, Velo News, Fat Cyclist, blah blah blah & all of them had ads running about the documentary, Race Across the Sky. It was going to be playing for one night only at select theaters across the country. I went to our local Malco theatre website and saw that it was going to be playing here in Memphis. I decided to check it out, I tried to get a few friends to go, but they flaked, (some bs about kids & work & their wives)? So I went solo, which didn't feel really cool, sitting there with my Malco popcorn and coke combo, but whatever, I had to check it out.
An hour and a half later I walked out of the theatre in a daze, not do to the acting or the score of the film, but to the sheer passion and determination of these participants. I'm not talking about the elite athletes, but the weekend warriors, the riders who gather with friends and do rides that include conversation and a quick stop at the local coffee shop halfway. These people blew me away. They were from every background and every age, suffering like not many in this world could imagine, and they loved it. Some made it and some didn't. I watched in silence as grown men cried when they were told they would have to abort b/c they didn't make time cut offs and myself shed some tears as I learned the story of a lady that had been diagnosed with MS over twenty years ago that was riding. That was it, I was inspired and fired up. I wanted to suffer and cry with the masses. I raced home and got onto the Leadville website, read about the rules for signing up, paid my money and entered my name in the lottery drawing. You see, thousands sign up from all over the world and only 1500 are accepted.
Now for a little background, I'm a cyclist. I didn't just see the movie and think I could jump from the couch to 12,570 feet and 100 miles. I have been riding for a few years. It started as a hobby and became an addiction, mentally and financially. I rode group rides three days a week and even had my own personal bike trainer, Clark. (You will here alot about Clark in this blog). So I continued my training on the road bike and winter set in. Most of the time now was being spent on the trainer inside and in the gym, things were great. I had actually forgotten about the Leadville race, since the drawing wouldn't take place until February 28th, 2011.
On January 10th, we got a huge snow here in Memphis, my family and I were having a great day playing in the snow. What started as a fun snowball fight, ended in an oh shit moment. My left foot went into a hole and I heard a snap, I lay there, about to vomit as I realized that I probably broke my leg. My loving and compassionate wife told me it was probably just sprained and just prop it up, thanks Mom. The next morning I went for an X-ray & it was confirmed, broken fibular bone and most of the ligament and tendons around my ankle had torn. Are you fucking kidding me? 10 days later I had a three hour surgery that lead to a plate and 10 screws. I spent the next 6 weeks in a cast. On February 28th, I received a text from a friend asking if I had received the email confirmation from Leadville & I said I hadn't. But not 2 minutes after that call my iphone buzzed, I was in! I looked down at the leg, covered in a black cast and thought, REALLY? I spent that night thinking there was no was in hell it was possible. I called Clark the next day and gave him the news, thinking he would tell me it wasn't possible, but he didn't. He told me it would happen and we would work our ass of to make it happen. Those words inspired me as much as the participants I had watched months earlier.
That bring us to today. I had my cast cut off and was given a walking boot. I came home from work and my training began. I did 45 minutes on the trainer at an avg. of 95 cadence. It felt amazing. But not as amazing as that first shower I took after. You see, it's been two months since I was last able to take one. My training from Clark is set, my mind is motivated and I want that fucking belt buckle.
Thanks Clark.
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