I pedalled steadily up the hill, and there it stood. Out in the desert, a few miles up the trial. A rock. A big rock. I stopped and walked the bike over it. Nothing significant, right?
Wrong.
I had ridden over this rock dozens of times. Why not this time? Because I hadn't encountered this rock for over two years. Haven't been to Boulder City for mountain biking for quite some time.
Still, it bugged me. Why didn't I ride over it?
Consequences? Oh, yeah. Fall on a rock like that, it hurts. Fall to the right, and it is over the edge with you. That really hurts. So the consequences are great. But I remember. The rewards are great too. So what's the problem?
Confidence.
In the past, I rode the area regularly. Trained myself to go over that rock. Found a good line. Pushed myself.
Today?
It looked simply impossible. I knew I had conquered it in the past, yet looking at it, I marvelled that I could ever have done it.
Now what?
I'll keep working at it, again and again, until I beat it.
But first I have to win the mental game.
Visualize myself pedalling over the surface, stroking the pedals with all my might, keeping the bars tracking that thin line to weave through the chaos.
Win the mind game first, win the rock game second.
It's not just about mountain biking. It's a life lesson.
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