How Bad You Want It? Tour Divide Race

David Goggins, as far as I know, is the only human to successfully become a Navy Seal, an Army Ranger, and an Air Force Para Rescue. On top of all that he has completed almost all of the toughest ultra-endurance events on the planet. He’s a bad ass; period. I’ve heard him talk, and the question he puts out to anyone who says they would like to do this or that is “How bad do you want it? What are you willing to do to accomplish it?”

8 Hours, 140 Miles, and a Very Sore Butt

I just finished out the week with an eight-hour ride in the basement on a stationary trainer. After about four hours I had to ask myself “How bad do I want this? What am I willing to do to finish the Tour Divide?” One of my goals for The Divide is to ride at least 15 hours a day until completion of the race. To get to that level, my plan is to increase my long rides each weekend until I can do back to back 15+ hour rides. Last Sunday I rode seven hours in freezing fog where the temperature dipped below 20 degrees F. This Sunday, an 8-hour ride was in the plan. A snow storm and single digit temperatures made riding 8 hours outdoors next to impossible (unless you're Jill Homer). How bad do I want this? Answer: At 5:30 am I was in the basement on my bike for 8 hours of suffering. It was tough, but in reality, I loved it!

Early Morning Rides in Garden of the Gods

How bad do I want it? For several months now, I’ve been getting up early, sometimes as early as 3:45, for interval workouts, long rides, strength training, or whatever it takes, before going to work. The funny thing is the more I do it the more I appreciate it. I find myself riding through The Garden of the Gods at 4:30 in the morning filled with gratitude. Grateful that I want this bad enough to get up and put in the work. Grateful that my wife supports me on these adventures. Grateful to work for a company that supports me on this project. And lastly, that at my age, I am still healthy enough to pursue such a quest. Yes, it's sometimes tough getting up so early, but once I'm on the bike I feel nothing but gratitude.

 

Looking Down On Colorado Springs after Early Morning Climb

When I did the Leadman in 2009, the first six months of that year I was working a project which required me to work 72 hours a week; 12 hours a day, six days a week. I wanted not just to finish Leadman but to win it. How bad? 3:30 AM runs, quick hard lunch time rides, and all day rides and runs on my one day off. 

I guess the lesson here is, if you have a goal, no matter how big or small, it comes down to you. How bad do you want it and what are you willing to do to accomplish it?

Happy Trails

-larry

Week in Review

Mon AM: Jog/Hike with Max the Dog.    

PM: Core Strength Training

Tues AM: Morning Commute 2hrs 31min/51 miles 

PM: Evening Commute 42 min/7.4 miles

Wed AM: Hill Repeats 1hr 5 min/13.4 miles 

PM: Evening Commute 40 min/7.4 miles

Thur AM: Morning Commute 2hrs 43min/30.6 miles 

PM: Evening Commute 42min/7.4 miles

Fri AM: Morning Commute 38min/7.1 miles

Sat AM: Hike with Max the Dog (6 miles) then High Intensity Intervals 2hrs 22min/45 miles

Sun AM: Endurance Ride on Trainer 8hrs 5min/140 miles

Total: 19hrs 22min/308.7 miles