Am I Ready?
The idea of a cycling adventure in Corsica arose some time ago; perhaps as early as last summer. Almost from the day the decision was made, one word has been haunting my most inner thoughts: training. Surrounding that word was, and remains, many questions. Will I be ready? How will I train during the peak of my business travel season? What does an average of 100 miles a day for six days feel like? And these were only my preliminary thoughts. As the Raid draws closer, concerns of weather, clothing, food, and rental bike have loomed larger.

Those of you who know me have long realized that I can be both absent minded and a bit ADHD. Perhaps that’s why I developed my love for being organized. It’s probably the only way I make it through even the most common day. Days that most people would view as unstructured, I visualize a minute by minute agenda of what needs to be done.

Preparing for the Raid Corsica has been both a blessing and a curse to my organizational skills. A blessing in that it has thrust me into an unparalleled personal running and riding training program. Sometimes my training caused me to get off a plane and almost immediately jump into my shorts and run in cities as diverse as New York City and Boise. On other days, I would schedule by flights so I would get in a ride before dark. It was only my ability to envision and develop a training program that included 17 cities, United Airlines, and of course the pressure of Strava, that has pushed me into probably the best cycling shape of my life. And yes, that’s the blessing part.

It’s also been a curse in that it’s been an omnipresent anxiety that wakes me at 3:00 AM and dominates my conversations with friends and family. I probably can’t go more than a couple hours without either thinking about it, wondering if I’m ready and stress about what else I could have done.

Mercifully, Raid Corsica is almost here. In a way, it’s been like preparing for Christmas. The days before are hectic if not downright insane. However, Christmas Eve does arrive. Stores close, nothing ordered online will arrive tomorrow, and the streets grow quiet. I’ve organized everything I possibly can and it’s getting close to the eve of the Raid Corsica.

All there is left to do is, pack, get there, and pedal my heart out.

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