SCOLETRAIN

Damage?
From reading the posts on mtbr.com's endurance forum concerning the whereabouts of Cameron Chambers(2005 US National 24 solo champ), I started to look back at my most recent 24 hour experiences wondering if I could have caused any serious damage to my body. This years 24 hour nationals would count as an experience that just about pushed my body too far over that fine line as I experienced everything from vomiting, chills, loss of appetite and more crashes then I've had in the last two years. From being bull-headed, not wanting to disappoint people, and a pit crew that was bound and determined to make me feel better by pampering me, I did get through the race in better shape vs. how I started. At one point I wanted to get off the bike and bag the whole race, but the competitive demon in me took over and I managed to rise from a position outside the top twenty to finish tenth in this storm shortened event. Some people think that I pushed too far at 24-9, but that is up for debate? What always comes to my mind about possibly pushing too far is what I remember from the 24-9 nationals and at the world championships where I saw Cameron off his bike cramping badly, and in Conyers puking so severely that I could hear him for a few minutes before encountering him in the singletrack on the first half of the lap. Both times I asked if he needed help, and his responses were either no or a wave. In Conyers, the image of him along side the singletrack stuck with me throughout the night as I continued towards the finish dealing with my own knee issue that was taken care of with a few longer pit stops to limit the damage and make some changes to the bike which helped. I'm lucky to be able to report that my knee problem has healed with some rest and that I'm again gearing up for the 24 hour nationals in 2007. It's also good to hear that Cameron is re-focused with a new sponsor and race agenda for this upcoming season. It should be about wanting to ride your bike, having fun, and enjoying the camaraderie with the other participants that we meet because of cycling. For me, I can't tell you when I'd pull the plug in an endurance event as my competitive drive sometimes takes over and my focus to finish can mask a great deal of pain and suffering. In a perfect world, I hope to not ever deal with the possibility of questioning what amount of bodily damage I'm causing in my next event, and I hope that I can make the right decision along with my pit crew if it does come to that. Riding my bike and racing are a huge part of my life and I want to keep it that way.