Motivation

For the past several weeks I have been riding my bike to work. I really enjoy it. However, I have been disappointed about not going to the beach at lunch any more. It is a quick 6 minute drive down to the beach. A safe bike route to the beach is slightly more circuitous and is a little over 2 miles to reach the same location. In my head I told myself I was already riding 39 miles a week and walking about 12 miles so it really wasn't feasible to add a 5 mile ride during lunch because I would just be too tired. Yeah, that seems silly now.

One night last week I listened to an audio interview with Ron Zeller. Among many things, he mentioned running a 100 mile race at the age of 64. I think I may have heard of ultramarathons at some point, but never really processed what they were. This particular race was 100 miles all in one go through the mountains of Utah. After hearing that I realized how silly it was for me to tell myself I couldn't ride a few extra miles to go do something I enjoy. The very next day I rode to the beach at lunch and even biked along the beachfront bike path for a few miles.

Another good motivating story is that of Cliff Young. At age 61 he won the 875 kilometer Australian Westfield ultramarathon. He was a potato farmer who had herded sheep by foot on his parent's 2000 acre ranch. He won the race by sheer persistence. When the young runners stopped to sleep, he kept going. In one interview he said he just imagined he was herding sheep ahead of a big storm.

Now I don't like to run, but these stories are great motivators. Whatever it is you want to do, you can go do it. No matter how old you are, your body can do amazing things if you just patiently persist. Our mind is the only thing that holds us back whether it be from riding an extra 5 miles a day or running 100 miles or pursuing our dreams. Now I know I can enjoy the beach whenever I want to.