HARDCORE HISTORY

I SHALL RETURN.  I contemplated Douglas MacArthur's resolve while listening to the Hardcore History podcast on the way home from the Crusher In The Tushar.  He'd been forced to leave Manilla in defeat, and he vowed to return and liberate the people...

... a bike race is hardly war.

Still, there are parallels from which to learn and this recent installment of the podcast was rich.

When things go wrong people ask a lot of questions.  To that I might add, if you're not asking questions when things go wrong, be prepared for them to go wrong again and again.

How much can a human endure? Isn't this one of the reasons we compete, to find out how much we can endure?  My guess is we aren't even scratching the surface.

Only those who enter the meat grinder know what it's about.  Until you've been on the Col de Crusher, 50 miles from the start, there's just no way to understand the difficulty it presents.

If you find out you don't have the right boat, all the Bushido spirit in the world doesn't make it better.  No comment.

The non-sexy side is logistics and supply.  This is the most compelling reason to return.

•  The aid stations were outstanding.  Well stocked.  Fast in and out.  And plenty of them.  Three cheers for the volunteers who withstood the withering conditions!

•  I left a lot of room for improvement on the logistics.  Altitude prep being number one.  

•  Race specific training.  I did a fair amount of long climbs leading up, but they were all on the MTB.

I asked my friend Emilio why he's raced Crusher multiple times and why he was happy with yesterday's result...

I'm just happy to finish with good energy and power.

That I dig.   

It's the kind of challenge I can get behind.

To have the bravado to proclaim I'll return and subdue all challengers is something I'll leave for the real warriors. 

https://pedalindustries.com/collections/bike-parts/products/mandible-bike-cage

There were countless bottles ejected on the course.  Every time it got steep and fast with big washboard bumps there they lie.

Such a shame, all that training and time and energy lost. 

Either you ride on and most likely run out of water or you stop and turn around and get that bottle before another rider or car can squash it.

It's dern near impossible to lose a bottle or time or energy with these Mandible cages from Arundel.

I don't just rely on them to hold the bottles, I count on them to gain time over my competitors

They're that good.

Use promo code: RETURN

... unless you like wasting time and energy and risking dehydration.

https://pedalindustries.com/collections/bike-parts/products/mandible-bike-cage

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