Looks like I missed a couple posts over the last couple weeks. So, to make it up to you guys, here is something on Jeremy McGhee. Jeremy was in a very bad motorbike accident in his early 20’s and has been in a wheelchair since. This was of course a big change in his life but he chose to still live the dream instead of letting himself down.
Passion, Patience, Persevere… these are the three main words that allowed me the opportunity to not only make it through my recovery but to come out of it stronger and more focused as a person and a athlete. The last entry I wrote was about my training for the 2008 season well if you aren’t aware, I was in a pretty nasty crash at the Tour of Gila where I ended up breaking my pelvis in three (my lucky number) places. After a “fun” airplane flight to El Paso where the doctors initially thought I was going to need surgery, I wake up finding out that I was in another state and possibly going under the knife! It was all a whirlwind but luckily I had my coach Michael Engleman there by my side until my mother could fly across the US to help. I ended up not needing surgery and my mom was there to fly me back to SC to start my recovery process. It was a long 3 months of highs and lows, pain medications and crutches for most of it but in hind sight more positive things like seeing my sister Candice graduate from Grad School, attending a friends wedding, and many more. These are all important events in my life that I would’ve missed if I had been racing.
As I wait outside the operating room I am reminded, that of all the activities and sports I thoroughly enjoy, none brings the inner peace and fulfillment of sharing each day with my wife. Whether I am paddling a river, riding my bike, skiing that perfect line, she is always there. Sometimes she is there in person, other times I think of how much she would enjoy what I am seeing when we are not able to see it together.
You may have heard about this already - but on Saturday during a elite men’s Keirin, a HUGE crash happened taking out the entire field. Fortunately everyone walked away - although some equipment was ruined. As youwatch the slow motion - check out the wheel that goes flying through the air - the fork is still attached.
June was an interesting month for me. I had two half ironman races planned for this month. Back in December, when I planned out my season, I’d hoped to do well at both of these races. Life has a funny way of changing our best laid plans. Sometimes you’ve gotta roll with the punches.
What a weekend. The Elkhorn Classic in Baker City, Oregon was a blast. It was definitely the hardest race I have ridden. Beginning with the hot, dry 70 mile Oregon Trail Road Race in stage 1, we were treated with difficult races throughout our 3 days in Eastern Oregon. Each stage seemed to be designed to fulfill every bike racer’s constant need for suffering on the bike! :)
Since my little abrasive episode last week, I have been healing up pretty well. I am now free of those pesky bandages that bind every movement and can finally stretch out my sore muscles. A few days into the healing process, I developed a low grade fever and and the inguinal lymph nodes were swollen and sore on my injured side. I had to decide whether to take antibiotics, or let my immune system chip away at the infection. If the infection gets worse, I take a 10 day course of broad spectrum antibiotics and kill the infection along with my normal intestinal flora. If I continue to fight it off, I don’t have the energy to ride until the infection is gone.
This week was my first Southern Oregon Thursday Night Race. The race is held at the Champion Drag Strip in White City, Oregon. It is a mix between a Criterium and a Circuit race with the course taking you down the Drag Strip and circling back on an access road for a lap of just over a mile. As we were riding warm up laps, I went into a corner and suddenly my front tire decided it was tired of turning and slid across the road. I of course was not yet ready to give up on the turn and continued to lean in the opposite direction until I was stopped by the very firm pavement.
