There’s nothing you can do to help yourself now!

If you’re not ready by now, there is no hope of improving your situation.

So here we are with less than 10 days to go, coming to the realization that eight months of effort is going to be put to the test in less than two weeks.

The tendency is to say, “let’s do all we can now before we leave”. The reality is there is absolutely nothing you can do 10 days before the start of this race that’s gonna help you if you haven’t already put in the time and effort. There is, however, a bunch of things you can do to hurt yourself. We have to be careful not to do something stupid either in training or something else that will give us a set back. We’ve gotta just keep turning the cranks

So…

This blog has a bunch of pictures of the last week or so of training. It’s all been done with friends, family, and folks that we respect.

Phot Cred Salty Cut

Right now we’re in pure maintenance mode. Multiple trips up Soledad Canyon, and Dripping Springs are still in the offering, but it’s more in the sense of staying strong rather than getting stronger.

We’re lucky because we’re able to loop a bunch of our friends into these rides They do get feisty at times, resulting in several PR’s and several top tens on KOM’s. That’s a great feeling! It means that all the work you’ve been putting in is paying off.

Evening one

The other thing that these rides mean is that we’ll soon be heading north to Canada. North to the start of what should be an incredible journey, regardless of how fast or slow we go. We don’t know what we’ll experience along the way, but we do know what waits at home. The other thing that we know is that we will come out of this different men, hopefully better men.

Tall pines and bikes!

Additionally, we get to do rides in the beautiful Mesilla Valley. Wandering through pecan Orchards on ditch banks and dirt roads that we’ve ridden thousands of miles on. Miles that we’ve ridden while talking about the ride from Canada to Mexico and envisioning all the things we’re gonna see along the way and people were gonna meet.

Rides where we talked about the challenges of whether terrain saddle sores in sunburns. Knowing full well that all these things lie ahead of us. At some point, you come to the realization that you do these types of events because you want the challenge. The doldrums of day-to-day don’t present the types of challenges that make you grow. The Tour Divide provides this in spades!

Views from the gate.

Some more friends we’ve ridden with.

Just a little hill to go! Photo cred Lee Cunningham

The other thing that the last week gives you is lots of apprehension as you begin your final pack for the ride. Every tiny detail that needs to be addressed whether it’s your clothing, inclement weather gear, first aid kit, lighting, food, navigation. Whatever it is, there is plenty to think about and worry about. But the truth of the matter is, less than 10 days there’s nothing you can do about it. You’ll be where you’ll be and you’ll adapt. And ultimately, on the Tour divide, that’s really what it’s all about. Adapting to whatever situation you find yourself in. Because as Jay Petervary said, “don’t plan, prepare”. And if you’ve prepared properly, everything will take care of itself.

I believe we have prepared properly, and I do believe we can adapt and succeed.

Until next time.

Ride On!

Shane