Hell be adding his particularly twisted take to the altitude-induced madness with three pre-race blog articles, then one each day once the festivities begin. Jeff, in a moment of delerium, has agreed to race on a Spot Bikes belted singlespeed.May Mont Blanc replica watches I present... PRE-RACE : VOL. 1 2009, By Jeff CarterLessons Learned “Where’s Uncle Jeff?” I heard my four-year-old nephew ask as I crest the meadow hill – dead last in a six-person field in the weekly local race, happening just steps from the farmhouse where I was vacationing with my family in Western Mass.
I look back and realize I learned a few things that day. It was the week after my first Leadville 100, and I was totally impressed with myself and my new big belt buckle. I had flown back for a family vacation in the Berkshires. My suburban Connecticut mother, about as in touch with mountain bike racing as our last president was with reality, Vacheron Constantin replica watch had mentioned “Oh Jeffrey, they have mountain bike races there.” Sure enough, there was a thriving weekly race scene there and evidence of a recent 24-hour race on the property. Five PM, start by the barn. “Neato”, I thought to myself, but down deeper I thought: “Shit, I’m gonna clean up.” So I line up with some super nice guys and sprint out to the lead on the first lap, racing a singlespeed for the first time. (Puhhlease, it’s 12 miles, and I live in Colorado.)
As lap one of three concludes, I’m quickly imploding. I wonder if I really could barf up my heart. “Did that dude just pass me on a cross bike?” I ask myself, incredulous. End of lap two, I’m in tatters, lungs on fire, legs in hell, cursing my choice of Replica Audemars Piguet watches bike, just in sight of the guy in front of me, and in last place. Lap three... the aftermath of Leadville gets the best of me and it’s game over. I lose touch with everyone. My family wondering if I’m OK.: “Jeez, he said he was good at this.” Immediate lessons I learned here: 1) I’m not all that fast; and 2) Never race a singlespeed again.The conclusion of the race effortlessly gives way to introductions, brews, stories. “Nice job on the cross bike.” “Oh yeah, I know him.” “Yeah, the Vermont 50 is killer.” And from my mother, “Jeffrey just did the Leadville 500.” “Jeez Mom, it’s the one hundred.” And so I revisited a lesson I’d learned before and since: It isn’t about the results, but the effort and the experience.
