Flats happen, don't be sad about stuff

If your tire is setup tubeless and it's still leaking days before a race do yourself a favor and just put one of those antiquated devices called a "tube" into it and call it a day. Many times, against my better judgement i have gone into races with something or another out of sorts whether it's with my bike, myself, clothing or nutrition. This past weekend was no exception, and i paid for it haha! The Michigan Mountain Mayhem Gravel Grinder is a pretty sweet event up in Boyne City, and goes through some beautiful countryside terrain (read hills). It typically draws all kinds of folks for one reason or another be it the sizable cash purse or the promise of good food and cold beers at the finish.

After a healthy warm-up and with the legs feeling good the 60 mile pack headed out onto the pavement to begin battle over the many hills. I'd love to report on the attacks, who was making what moves and what all went down, but the last i saw of the front group was a half mile into the race. Guy behind me says "hey, your tire is loosing air and stans!"... At this point there are a few options; head back to the start and get some warm clothes on and kick back, hang out with some folks and cruise the race as a tour, or the least common sense approach of attack and push relentlessly for seemingly no reason at all. Naturally, being a glutton for punishment i chose the latter approach. Frustration can mount quickly when one has to stop on four separate occasions to and air be it via pump or CO2 to ones tire. I guess the big thing to keep in mind is that it's all for fun, and to challenge yourself. There's not much point in getting bent about poor preparation or luck, just roll with it and give it hell!

It's often asked what the toughest part of competing in endurance events is and my opinion is that the mental aspect is for sure the most difficult. It's easy to get angry, frustrated or demoralized during an event that you've prepared so long for and looked forward to, and understandable in most cases. The thing is, you never know what can happen during a race, who else will suffer from mechanical or physical issues let alone the many other variables. Stick to the plan, use the adversity to fuel yourself and you might be surprised at what you can do. I would have to say that some of my most memorable race results or even just solo rides took place during adverse conditions or with many issues present.

The challenge; next time the chips are down, you've flatted, dropped a chain, wiped out, lost the pack, etc... push yourself to go harder than ever, pretend you're on the attack off the front, use each person you come on as fuel to go faster, don't stop and suck wheel, speed up and fly by! You might be surprised by the mental boost, maybe some increased confidence in your abilities or just the satisfaction that you emptied the tank. Challenge yourself to push beyond those "limits" either you'll amaze yourself at the result or blow up in a glorious ball of flames and either circumstance is something to be proud of!