There are no rainy days.

A few years ago American Express had a commercial with Tiger Woods.
Tiger talked in the background about the serenity and possibilities of 

having a lazy day around the house because it was raining. 

 It faded out with a scene of him working the practice range in a downpour and, of course, the tag line..."there are no rainy days.   It doesn't rain on the golf course, deal with it.
Last weekend made me remember this.  

     Our club held the infamous "W" ride this past weekend almost half of the riders wimped out and dropped at the turn.  They had ridden 12 of the miles against the wind and quit.  I don't get it.  I know riding against a 20 mph wind sucks, but think of the good part, if we were in Europe it would be 32 kilometers per hour.
 I guess not being competitive about it makes it easier,  I just gear down, suck it up and go slower 'til it's over.  Then, I get to enjoy the big blow job from behind.

     Honestly, you miss the reward without the pain.  On my first weekend trip of the year, I struggled against a 25 to 30 mph wind for the entire first day.  It took a good 4 hours longer than normal to cover the 76 mile ride.  Not only was it the longest ride of the year for me, it was the most difficult. I knew it was worth finishing, I could have turned around and gone home easily.  

If I had, I would have missed the rest of the weekend which was really beautiful and comfortable.

 I know from years of multi day rides and tours that "that day" is going to happen.   If you give in to "that day" the whole week may be lost.  It's probably why I am not as fast as other people.   I have developed the patience to get it done  with the least amount of effort.   Unlike some people, I don't mind slowing down,
but I am not pretending to dominate or win. 

I want to have enough attitude left in the tank to be there in the morning.

To avoid sounding tooo much like Knute Rockne,
I thought I might share this little bit about 10 favorite quotes about cycling.