Today (Monday) marks my sixth consecutive day completely off of the bike. No short spins, no trainer rides, no wide seated stationary gym bikes, nothing. And I am sort of OK with it.
The primary reason for my time off was a weekend trip to Petoskey, Michigan for B-Man’s club soccer tournament. There is no doubt that I COULD have taken my bike and squeezed in some road miles in a pretty amazing part of Michigan, but with the trouble my back has been giving me the past few weeks and the resulting lack of joy I’ve been getting from riding my bike, I figured a self imposed vacation from my bike(s) would be a good idea.
In the past, I’ve always had trouble with time off the bike and an even worse time when it came to traveling or mini vacations without my bike. Maybe it was the pure joy I got from watching B-Man play extremely well over every minute of the threes matches in Petoskey? Maybe I’m just getting more apathetic and lazier as I come to grips with my current place (or lack there of) in cycling? Maybe if I don’t ride, I won’t experience the lower back issues that force me to think about how I was once a mid-pack racer who consistently rode more than 10 hours a week and now I am becoming nothing more than a weekend warrior who struggles to finish a 16 mile singletrack loop with less than 1,000 feet of climbing? In the end, who cares? It doesn’t matter. The off days were just pretty damn fun and hanging out with B-Man and Wifey over Father’s Day weekend was pretty awesome.
I am hopeful to return to the saddle on Tuesday. If it happens, fine. If not, fine.
Later.