Decisions...decisions

Sitting on a saddle for five or six hours will make a man wince in areas unbeknownst to our counterpart gender. It will also force you to reflect and wince on some rather poor decisions you have made, decisions you need to make, or decisions you’d just rather not deal with. Some of my best thinking is done while on a long solo bike ride, as is rediscovering what it is that makes people and/or events so important to me. Health. This is certainly a reason I got into triathlons. I was an elite cross country skier at one time (now just a shadow of that skier—rarely racing even at a local level…as in once every three years or so). Before that I was a runner but only mediocre until I discovered triathlons where my running took a huge leap. Swimming…nope…biking…just a bit. It took triathlon to spur the curiosity in me to unravel the mystery of a three discipline sport, with many, many (sometimes seemingly way to many) miles and hours absorbing the chlorine filled water. Often times, my bottom was so sore from sitting on a narrow uncomfortable saddle that I didn’t even want to sit on a couch. Other times, my quads were so hammered from long runs that were absolutely needed to establish the level required to be competitive, that it seemed like a mindless and unnecessary act of foolishness. Through it all, a certain standard had been established by which I could return at any time to a state of mental retreat.

Not only was this a way of turning myself inside out and hiding from those decisions I was faced with, it was also a quiet confession time for and with myself to admit my true inner feelings on subjects with one person only. Feeling I was the only one that really was 100% trustworthy not to laugh, mock, or try to argue towards side or the other, my confessions were 100% safe and reliable. You know how someone can toss their opinion out there or present questions that are slanted one way or another? Not this way. Sport allows me to say what I want, even out loud (without anyone around), about any subject, person, or view from either side of the pro (or con) aspect of any situation without offending anyone (primarily because nobody else is around!) That said, it allows things to “soak” and find the best possible answers without any influence from any outside source or interference. 100% my decision. This way, I can take 100% responsibility of success (or failure) for whatever it was. What is it that these decisions are in reality? Speaking in tongues about something that I don’t want to say on a blog? Actually…nope. It is in reference to the fact that we have a lot of junk in our lives that we deal with each day. Things that we have to or don’t want to think or act upon, even if an outcome can be positive or negative. The discomfort of what we deal with in training for sport can fade away the mental pain barrier of those life decisions to a point where we can think more clear. The physical pain becomes the focus and the junk that normally clouds our thought process allows ideas to float freely and in the end, a logical resolution develops and we are left with the happy notion that this resolution is correct. Correct and all our own. In summary, I have concluded that I will go with the Adidas Mana rather than the New Balance 904 running shoe—it took a long time and research to get here, but that is it. Not exactly the earth shattering tug-of-war decision you thought I was toiling with is it? Happy trails~!