Habit

Habit. We are creatures of habit. In some sense habit and route make our lives make sense. We understand our surroundings just a little better with these two things. If things do not go according to this route/habit, then our day seems off. Seems wrong.

What if you do not get your morning cup of coffee? And if you do get it, you have to stop somewhere or get it from somewhere else? Your morning may feel different. Ever forgot to brush your teeth in the morning?

We feel comfortable in our habits. Aristotle believed our ethical virtues arise from our habit. Who we are, ethical; is determined through our habits. Our habits are acquired by our own choosing. Our habits determine who we are. “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” –Aristotle.

Want to change who you are? Change your habits. Change your route.

The problem with this…it gets us out of our comfort zone. The habits that we have acquired so far become comfortable to us. However; if we expect any change, we must change our habits. If we want to become anything else, then we must step outside of our comfort zone.

This applies to cycling as well. Want to be a better cyclist, then step outside your comfort zone. As we do this, we begin to push our limitations. Taking your cross bike onto a mtn bike trail. Your skills will increase exponentially after repeated habit. Without your mtn bike you do not have the luxury of wide tires or suspension to get you over/through rocky sections, roots, going down bumpy hills. If you take these luxuries away you are forced to think about the trail more. Think about the line. Think about how to get through a tricky section. Instead of just ‘jamming’ through it without thought. To just ‘float’ over the objects.

This goes the same for riding a single speed or fixed gear bike.

Know that hill that you always have trouble with, even with gears? Hit it with a single speed. See what happens. I’m sure the first few times will be horrible. They always are as we move outside of the comfort zone. But as you continue to ride on the single speed/fixed you will notice improvements in your overall general riding.

Now try this practice on a local mtn bike trail with a SSCX... ;)

What I have noticed from this practice, is that I started getting PR on some of the local Strava segments; either on my single speed or geared bikes.

Maybe in some way we understand the greater complexness of it all when we really take the time and understand the simplicity of it all…

And remember; who you are is determined by what you do…

Amithaba...

Cloak-nDagger Cyclocross

Cloak-n-Dagger Cyclocross:

So if you’ve heard me talk of Cloak-n-Dagger Cyclocross (CDCX) then here is my idea in full…kind of…

I will send you a Strava route that I have already done. Depending on route, I may also send you a GoPro video that I have done of the course as well, to give you a better idea of what the course is.

After you receive this info, you will have 72 hours to complete the route. If for some reason you cannot do a course in a given week, please let me know ahead of time, so I can plan accordingly.  As many laps as you can do in 40 minutes plus one lap; like ‘normal’ cyclocross rules. You will have to record this on Strava. Once you have completed it, send me the final Strava route for final time keeping on my end.  I will keep an xl sheet with all the people participating in my madness, and their times/laps. The other fun thing…I will NOT tell you whom else I have signed up for this. So you will not know. I will not send out two people at the same time. So your time, is your time. When I give you your time, I don't care about weather or anything like that. So no excuses! If it's raining...it's raining. Plan accordingly.

I will keep all the records private. I will not have more than two riders doing the same course in the same week. As of now, courses are on the west side to the south-west side of things. I am using many different kinds of terrain. From road, to gravel, to dirt; so after watching the video (if one is provided) or checking out the Strava, plan bike accordingly. I do have these set up for a cross bike, but if you want to use something else, I am not going to bitch. So bike choice is yours.

At the end of it all; and as of right now, this is just a trial run of things; you will get something. Not sure what that is right now. It may just be a swift kick in the ass or something kind of cool. I’ll figure that out as I go. I tend to do things on the fly, but they always work out, if you are flexable. Hell…I may have you do Fight Gone Bad at my local gym…

That is about the idea of things.

Why am I doing this?

Well…that’s a little deeper.  To get that answer you may have to get me drinking; which isn’t hard to do ;)

the spin...

The spin. When it gets easier, you shift up. When it gets harder, you shift down. What do you do when you’re on a ss or direct drive?

Adjust your pedaling.

What happens when you ‘run out’?  When your pedaling meets the gear ratio that you currently have set up?  When you physically cannot rotate the pedals any harder or faster? 

Enjoy it.

A perfect Zen experience. Where there is no emotion. There is no positive or negative emotion being put into the pedaling experience. Just the spin.

Where your legs, feet, pedals and cranks are all working as one. You begin to float. Your pedal stroke is perfect. You reach a point of enlightenment. Of peace.

This same experience may happen during meditation. During an experience; whatever that experience may be. When all desire melts away. When all judgment melts away. Where there is no positive karma put into it. Where there is no negative karma put into it. When the experience is experienced as the experience, and not something that we put into it.

We may even find a little Nirvana here, right now.  But we know what happens; as Buddhist, as single speed riders…

We hit that small gradiant, a hill…and that perfect pedal stroke is gone. We must put effort and emotion into that stroke. That experience.

Here’s to the perfect spin.

Amitabha…