So as I stated I'm going to be talking mostly about MTB riding because well that is my passion ! And also Xterra Tri's and the training it takes to be competitive. Well today I decided that I was going to do a run/bike day. Sounded great up until 1 am when I was still out last night after the Rays game which by the way go Rays it was an awesome game. I'm going to say this once if you are serious about training for any kind of endurance race it takes drive. You will have times when you ask yourself why am I doing this (my exact thought at 4:30 this morning when my alarm was screaming at me to get up) and then in the middle of the training you'll notice that your pace is 10 seconds faster or you'll hammer a technical section that just owned you before and it'll all click. But if more times than not your asking yourself this question then just stop. The most important part in any of this is to have fun, just have fun and if you can kick your buddies A$$ while doing it then dang that's even cooler ! So back to my story . . . its a run /bike day, Sunday's normally are because there is a run group (always train with someone it make it so much easier because you'll realize if people are waiting on you, you don't want to disappoint) that does 7 miles at 7 am on some awesome single track trails at Balm Boyette and its close to Alafia so after the run I normally head over there to do some good MTBing. Well the run this morning was 10 miles and I wasn't so sure I was up for a bike after but I brought it just in case . . . So the run went well we finished in under a hour and twenty minutes. Obviously now I want to ride cause the run was great. Well unfortunately all my friends I ride with are out of town so I head over to Alafia a loner. I just figured I'd meet someone in the parking lot and tag along with them. After rolling around the lot I didn't see any prospects so I headed out to the trails in search of a riding partner for the day. I started on North Creek a really good trail to get loose on and warm up. My legs felt great and for me I was hammering the trail. About a quarter of the way through I ran up on a guy who was carrying a good pace but he politely moved and let me pass. However as soon as I did he ran up on my tire and let me know that he wanted to move. So I'm a man and I pushed even harder, took it sort of as a challenge I suppose. He did a good job of keeping up never lost sight of him. He was close, not on my tire close but insight. I thought I'd lose him on the hard option but he followed and again stayed within sight. Towards the end of the trail I had realized that what I was doing was really just seeing if he could keep pace so I could have a riding partner. At the end of the trail I pulled over to talk to him. First thing I noticed was his bike, a really high end Cannondale lefty fork carbon frame with all the bells and whistles then immediately the second thing I noticed was his age. He was 63, how awesome is that. I told him the trails I wanted to hit and told him I liked to technical stuff just to make sure he was down and he was. So we took off and I let him lead cause my legs were a little cooked from the run. It turns out he was an extremely solid rider who also enjoyed the technical stuff. I was stoked I had met a good guy who loved the sport and wanted to ride fast, sweet. So we headed over towards the rock garden to get to the hard options over there ( Franks loop and the other one just past) and I was impressed with his ability and lack of fear for someone his age. We went on to do bridges then rabbit ears and over to roller coaster. After roller coaster I had told him about a section on moonscape that I had just found out about called doom. I told him I would lead so we can make the turn. Its a tough entrance if you don't run the right line. We rolled through it pretty good staying away from the one nasty downhill section and got back onto the main part of the trail. Just after you get back on the trail there is a climb option which is pretty tough followed by some fun rollers. We took on the hill neither one of us making it and I had warned him of what was to follow ahead. I took off and felt great through the next section but for the first time all day didn't see Dan behind me. I waited like 5 minutes and decided I'd walk back and make sure he was OK. And of course he wasn't, right after the climb there is a drop and he had washed out and crashed pretty bad. The bike survived but he had broken is left collar bone. I felt like the world's biggest jerk for bringing a 63 old man down this trail. He wasn't mad, like he said stuff happens, its why we ride. I pushed his bike out of the woods for him and gave him a ride back to his campsite. He had plans of heading out west with his travel trailer and staying with friends along the way and mountain biking the entire time. He was talking about Moab Utah, Colorado, Montana and ending in Bend Oregon. But with this new injury it would push everything back, just made me feel worse. I gave him my number and told him to keep me posted and if he does I will post it on here. But what a cool guy, 63 and still MTBing hard keeping up with at decent fit 27 year old. We were talking about how dangerous the sport can be and a fraction of a hair can completely change everything. We came to the conclusion that is one of the attractions of this sport. No real point to all this just wanted to share a story about a guy who became my hero for the day. I hope at 63 I'll be fortunate enough to ride the way he does or just ride at all. Dan I hope you heal fast and get back out there sooner than later. It was a pleasure riding with you . . . Till next time Just Ryde !!!
