While waiting for my fractures to heal and my strength to return, I wondered how I would go about getting back in the pack. \u00a0I spent the rest of the year training solo to regain the fitness and form I had lost during recovery. \u00a0I jumped into numerous group rides in hopes of shaking my daemons. \u00a0In reality, I was hoping to be pinning on a number again soon.<\/p>\n
I admittedly had a very hard time with those first group rides after getting back on the bike. \u00a0I got dropped on group rides with my teammates that I used to dominate. \u00a0My fitness was fine, I just wasn't holding the wheels I needed to be. \u00a0I wasn't comfortable getting in tight with a peloton, even if it was made of my own teammates.<\/p>\n
I had lost my mojo. \u00a0And I wasn't sure how to get it back.<\/p>\n
I had always found it easy to move through a pack of riders. \u00a0Find an empty spot and claim it. \u00a0Use your elbows to assert your claim to your little space in the group. \u00a0Don't be afraid to put your hand on someone else's hip and let them know you're there. \u00a0These are the things I not only taught fledgling racers, but the things I did every weekend after pinning on a number.<\/p>\n
Now I was afraid to do them all.<\/p>\n
As the winter wore on, I sat on my trainer and wondered how I was going to get back to racing a bike, an activity which I loved dearly but was now terrified of.<\/p>\n
Then I hatched a plan…<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
After talking to the guys at my local shop, I was led to the idea that track racing may be my ticket back into competition. \u00a0I queried the shop guys and some friends who raced on the track and ultimately decided to jump in. \u00a0I put in an order for a Ridley Arena track bike and a team issue skinsuit from Vie13<\/a>. \u00a0A few discussions later and I was ready to hit the track.<\/p>\n Many people have asked me “why do you want to race on the track on a bike that has no brakes and goes really fast?” \u00a0I simply respond that it's safer.<\/p>\n Most look at me incredulously and ask how it could possibly be safer?<\/p>\n It's a simple proposition, really. \u00a0A bike with no brakes takes a lot of forethought to stop or slow down. \u00a0Combine the lack of brakes with a fixed read wheel and your only method of slowing down is controlling the speed with your legs. \u00a0That requires thinking ahead and planning to slow down, which compared to grabbing a handful of brake, it's much more predictable. \u00a0And yes, it leads to fewer crashes.<\/p>\n It also doesn't hurt that the track isn't the same rough surface as asphalt. \u00a0It's more like 400 grit sandpaper which means you tend to slide on it rather than get chewed up by it. \u00a0That makes me feel better knowing that I might not lose all my skin, just some of it.<\/p>\n So after a few practice sessions on the track, plenty of specific trainer work and hours upon hours in the gym, I was ready to race for the first time. \u00a0I would finally be pinning on a number again!<\/p>\n On race day morning there was no question that nerves were not in short supply. \u00a0I had the same nervous energy that I had the very first time I started pinning on a number, but this time, there was a more sinister undertone to it all. \u00a0Would I make it through the day? \u00a0Would I be able to hang with the other guys? \u00a0Would my fitness be sufficient? \u00a0Would I even stay upright?<\/p>\n![\"Ridley](\"https:\/\/tailwind-coaching.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/ridleyarenatrackbike-300x300.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nTake it to the Track<\/h2>\n
Pinning on a Number for the First Time<\/h2>\n
![\"Pinning](\"https:\/\/tailwind-coaching.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/trackracingnumber-300x225.jpg\")
<\/a>I slithered into the bottom of my skinsuit and threw on a t-shirt for the 45-minute drive to the track. \u00a0The entire way, the same things kept going through my mind: “stay upright, stay safe.” \u00a0Lovecraft said “The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown”, and today that was true in spades. \u00a0With some trepidation, I signed off on the liability release and took my number for the day, 508. \u00a0Well, it wasn't the infamous “37” that I wore last time…<\/p>\n