this about sums it up

i was reading Velo News this morning (i really don't know who i have become ... i didn't even think i knew what Velo News was a few months ago - now not only am i reading it, i look forward to its arrival & devour it before my husband even knows its arrived).

anyhow - i was reading Velo News this morning during my - ahem, pre-run ritual & came across a blurb in the article "at the back" that summed up my thoughts about cycling. (and can also be applied to my running) it was written by a woman who was comparing roadies (which she is) to mountain bikers: she writes -

"they say i take the fun out of cycling.

But the way I see it, it's just a matter of productivity.

Something must be accomplished & measured.

Sadly or not, riding for the sake of riding is not enough for me.

Quantity validates quality".

She also talks about how she's preoccupied with calculations: average speed, calories burned, vertical feet climbed.

I rode with a good friend a few weeks ago ... when we returned from the ride & i discovered how many miles we had ridden, i said "shit, we should have ridden x more miles so i could have gotten an even 100 for the week". her response was something along the lines of "just have fun - why worry about the miles" ... there are definite times when i get a little psychotic about it all, jacked up and obsesive about the schedule - i think my coach told me once too - it's just biking & running, its supposed to be fun.

but if i wanted fun, i'd go out and play frisbee, i'd go boogie boarding (you know, on the occasions that i am actually near an ocean & not in my current, landlocked state), play monopoly with my kids or go out with friends & laugh all night ... thats fun.

but running & cycling? i'm working too damn hard to have fun. and i like it that way.

i'm busy calculating mileage, paces, thinking about entries in my spreadsheet, total weekly mileages --

i love that whole "quantity validates quality thing" ... although i think i'd add performance to it too. cause if i have anything less than a stellar run - if i've walked for a moment. or if i zig when i should have zagged, when i've run x miles instead of x.x miles - i almost feel that it was a wash, like it almost doesn't count.

i always like knowing that someone else feels the same way i do. and i like even more when someone else can sum up the jumble of thoughts in my head that i can't quite express.

so when i read it i say yes! that's me. that's how i feel.

it makes me feel slightly less loony. and that's always a good thing.

full disclosure, footnote, bibliography & giving credit where credit is due, etc: the author of article i referenced above was Jill Janov. the article was in the July issue of Velo News.