W.W.E.D?
Here in the 801we have had a shit ton of rain this spring. By this time of year my lawn is usually brown, this year I have friggin’ mushrooms growing on it. WTF? So needless to say riding in the rain has become a much more common occurance this year.
Judging from the comments on Facebook and Twitter it seems that a lot of my 801 brethren are have a hard time finding the motivation to ride in the wet. To them I say when faced with the decision to ride outside and get a little wet or flog away on a trainer you just need to ask yourself, “What Would Eddy Do?” (W.W.E.D?)
A few years back I was sitting in a pub in Dublin watching a stage of La Vuelta on the TV. I was talking to some locals about racing and riding in Ireland. Of course Sean Kelly came up, alot. They asked me what American though of King Kelly and I told them how he was revered as the toughest of the tough. Their response? ” You Yanks think he is tough which is true from of all those pictures of him riding in the rain and mud. Have you noticed the weather here? Every Irish pro is hard by American standards, even the poofs!” I thought about that a lot on that trip and they are right. To be a pro in Ireland (or anywhere in Northern Europe) you have to really really like riding your bike. The weather is shit, the roads are shit and the competition is cutthroat. Rain and wind are your training partners. When we watch a rainy edition of Flanders or Roubaix we call it “Epic”. For the real hardmen, The Flahutes it is just another day on the bike.
So next time the weather is a little sketchy ask yourself W.W.E.D?, slather on the embrocation, grab your rain cape, and get out the door.
53:11
3 Responses to “W.W.E.D?”
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Hopefully by this time of year it’s a warm rain. When it’s raining and just barely above freezing, that’s what separates the hardmen from the Californicators.
We had a lot of practice with rain this year ourselves, but spring has finally sprung and it hasn’t been that bad for several weeks.
Stick on those race blades (don’t forget the buddy flaps) and go for it. What difference does it make whether it’s rain or sweat?
Amen.
Or you could <a href=”http://www.skibikejunkie.com/2009/06/half-hundred.html”cross train.