WHAT AM I MISSING?

SHANE AND I HAVE BEEN HAVING EPIC BATTLES ON THE CHESS BOARD.  It’s tense.  Dead silent.  Massive amounts of sugar burning between our ears.  If there’s one thing I’ve learned lately, it’s to focus less on my next move and more on his.

Of all the the bicycle racing I’ve done – road, cross county MTB and Super-D – road is definitely the most like chess.  It’s much more strategic, and rarely does the fastest guy win.

You’ve got to be lucky.

But more than lucky,

you’ve got to be wily.

And all wily’s synonyms:  artful, sly, designing, intriguing, tricky, foxy, deceitful, treacherous.

You’ve got to fake tired when fresh, fake strong when weak.  You’ve to pull your unfair share.  My friend Fritz would never race with a clear bottle because he didn’t want anybody to know how much fluid he had left.  There are a million little tricks a wily rider will use to beat you.

The most wily of riders have an uncanny ability to be in just the right spot when it counts.  You maybe be a better climber, but they’ll somehow breakaway before the climb and beat you.  You may be the best sprinter, but somehow they’ll be on your wheel and come around you right on the line.  You may be the best _____, but somehow you’re going to get out maneuvered.

I had Shane backed into a corner tonight.  I could see the one move I needed to make with my queen to finally beat him.  I moved in for the kill…  but somehow he knew what I was going to do and killed my queen with his horse.  Game over.

Tonight I missed his horse,

In a few weeks, I’ll be missing him and Abbey when they move out.

What are you missing?