Be your own hero!

Somebody named gnome1979 sent me a terse note that just said "time to update SON" Hmmm... What kind of a gnome would be so rude? I was getting ready to post anyway, so here are some random ramblings.
First, I decided last week that I had to start riding more. It is kind of stupid that I have a great job in the bike industry, but I don't get to do as much of the thing I love, which is riding, that got me started on this path to begin with! That said, I realized that I was not riding enough due to my own laziness and fondness for excuse making. Yeah, I work an average of 60 hours a week, but I still find myself wasting time doing stuff that isn't really productive or important, so I decided to stop doing that crap and start riding more! So, to facilitate my resolution I did two things that I realized were key. One was to set some sort of goal, and the other was to get myself out of bed earlier in the morning and go to bed earlier at night. It is amazing how much more you can do getting up an hour earlier than usual. I also realized that I did not need a crazy, lofty goal. A simple one that is achievable will work better. So, my goal is simply to ride 2500 miles more this year by December 31st. Since I started eight days ago I have logged 137 miles of road, mountain and rail trail miles. I think I am going to make it!!

Setting a goal got me to thinking about something else as well. Since the whole Floyd Landis doping thing surfaced, lots of people have been asking me what I think about it. I have to admit that I was pretty annoyed about it. First, Floyd winning the Tour De France seemed like a good thing for American cycling. Then, Floyd being under suspicion of cheating seemed to instantly tarnish the sport. I secretly worried about the very future of the bike industry. Then I thought "to hell with that". The world is obsessed with it's sports heroes and hold them up to impossible standards. Cycling, baseball, football...at the highest levels of these sports, with so much money on the line, cheating seems to be inevitable. I am not saying that I think Floyd is guilty. I am saying that I don't care! I realized in a moment of clarity that we all need to be our own heroes. A bicycle is a vehicle for turning yourself into a hero. Set goals and work toward achieving them. The goal should be a little out of reach but not impossible. You should need to stretch yourself to get there. That is how we become better. Set a goal that is hard and maybe a little intimidating. Have you ever ridden your bike a hundred miles at one time? Two hundred? Maybe five miles seems almost impossible. It doesn't matter. Just believe in yourself and work toward the goal. In the process you will find out that the journey towards becoming yourself and realizing that you are a strong and powerful person is the important thing and makes the journey worthwhile. Like Lance says, Livestrong! Become your own hero