Day 8 Tidbits

Commitment to a cause...

On the climb to the Tourmalet, a Canadian fella named Jim (we'll call him Jim C) had a bike malfunction. His seat fell off. No kidding, with 5 km to go to the top, a seat bolt broke and the seat fell off the bike. With no way to re-attach it at that point, he stuck the seat in his rear shirt pocket and rode the remaining 5 km on the Troumalet STANDING. The last 5km are the hardest part of that climb. From what I understand, folks were applauding when he passed and they only saw a seat post and no seat. What killer commitment. He and I chat often and typically eat breakfast together. I asked him what he was thinking with continuing on the climb. He said he was on a mission and needed to get to the top. When I asked why, he explained that on that day, his divorce became final. I inquired some more as to why the Tourmalet was so important for this day. He said his plan had always been that when he reached the summit, he would throw his wedding ring from the top. So, he needed to reach the summit. Since the ring was in his saddle bag under his seat, he blamed the bad karma from his broken marriage for his seat bolt failure. So, how did he descend. At the top, the support van for our tour waited to assist stragglers and cart home the broken and weary. They also had some tools, but no bolts. The mechanic removed one of the two bolts holding on the handlebars and used it to partially secure the seat. It still was not too secure, but Jim C descended the Tourmalet the way he finished, mostly standing on the pedals and bracing himself down this 10 mile descent. Now that's commitment to a cause. You may not believe in his cause, but the physical achievement was impressive indeed.

Help me, I'm shrinking...

Since my senior year in high school I have been wearing XL shirts. I currently sport an XL kit. (A kit is what cyclists call their cycling shorts and shirt. I also mentioned bib shorts. Bib shorts are not typical spandex shorts with a pad in them. They are cycling shorts with overall shoulder straps, there is no waist band; much more comfortable than typical cycling shorts.) While climbing the Pic d'Nore in the mist, the cold was getting to me. When I reached the summit, Jim C (from above), offered me one of his shells, a weather proof jacket, fits snug so as to not grab the wind. It breaks the wind and traps some body heat; sufficient to descend out of the clouds and down to a warmer altitude. Jim C happened to be carrying two that day for some reason. Jim C is approximately the size of my eldest son Matt, 5'5" and probably 140-150 pounds. I said sure, not caring about the size. When I looked it over, the tag indicated size "M". I figured I'd give it a shot. Worse case, it does not zip. I got both arms in, the sleeves were about 5" too short. When I reached back to grab each end of the coat to attempt a zip up, I nearly fell over. Both ends met and I was able to easily zip up; to the neck. I felt good and bad. Good about the apparent loss of mass around waist, bad about the apparent loss of mass in the chest and shoulders. Given what I am doing, I think I'll appreciate the loss of mass. Now, I just need to keep reducing the mass and increasing the speed; "We need more power Scottie. I'm giving her all I've got Captain."