Christmas Calculations

Eggnog, carols, advent calendars, too much good cooking and family are all reasons why I love Christmas time. I like to think of myself as being a traditionalist when it comes to the Christmas which is why this is my favorite time of the year. My favorite thing about Christmas however, is that it holds the power to bring everyone home to be together even if it's for the shortest of days. Christmas to me means family and that will never change.

With friends, family and acquaintances all coming back home at some point during the last couple of weeks, I have been asked frequently why I like to do ultra endurance races. For the longest time, I didn't have an answer that even I believed. Sure I love to ride my bike, but that couldn't be the sole reason as to why I would want to put in as much work on the bike as I do.

Last Sunday, my family all got together and celebrated "Welch Family Christmas". This is the weekend when both of my siblings and their families come home to avoid the chaos of running around on Christmas Day. After watching my niece and nephews open their gifts with such honest excitement, I had an answer as to why I enjoy racing.

As I mentioned earlier, I define Christmas as simply "family". That is also how I will now define the reasoning behind my racing. You see, I couldn't race without the support of my loving wife and family. They are there to ensure I stay safe in the chasing of my dreams all the while cracking the whip to get the most out of me. They haven't missed a single race since the beginning. For that, I am grateful.

For the longest time, I hadn't realized that I was blessed more so than others. Instead of having just one Christmas a year, I can now use the following formula to calculate the number of Christmas' a year I get to celebrate. (1+X) where X=the number of races I enter in a given year. And that is all the motivation I need to put in the time on the bike this coming year.

The Night for Suede?

The day has come and tonight is the night.  As I sit here going over my presentation ten or eleven last times, my mind took a turn.  It is now questioning whether or not I can make it through an hour at the front of a room speaking to friends, family and strangers.  Will my legs buckle underneath me or will my normally cast iron stomach turn south robbing me of my dignity and ruining a pair of new suede shoes which belong to the unlucky soul in the front row who decided to wear them out on the town tonight?

After a few minutes of wearing a confused look on my face as the voices in my head debated all the possibilities, calmness returned.  After all, ultracycling is not only about having the power to turn the pedals over a hundred thousand times or the ability to sit on what some perceive to be such an uncomfortable seat for so long.  No, the hardest part for the rider is having the mental strength to know that everything they have done in the times leading up to the race was the work and now they can race the race while enjoying all that comes their way.  Having faith in the preparation will keep you calm when the time comes to do what you do.

I am honored to have been asked to do so and look forward to introducing the sport of Ultracycling to those who are able to come out to Endorphin Fitness (8908 Patterson Ave) tonight at 7pm.  The weather forecast isn't calling for rain so your shoes might even be safe.