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The End?
Posted on May 3rd, 2011 4 commentsSigh. Here it goes.
With just over a month until it’s time to leave for Banff, my Tour Divide bid is unraveling before my eyes.
In my piece “Epic Evolution” in The Cordillera vol I, I coined a term that describes the ungodly number of things that must “go right” in order for a Tour Divide hopeful to even make it to the start line. That term is “The Unshackling.” It represents the sometimes monumental struggle of finding LOTS of time away from work, family, finances, societal responsibilities, and the “gotchas” of everyday life which, collectively, define the reality that you’ve built for yourself over years and years and years. You are woven into the fabric of your own life, and it’s only when you try to leave it for a little while that you realize just how strongly embedded you are.
Over the last couple of weeks, I have realized that I forgot to include injuries and physical ailments under the umbrella of The Unshackling. If you want to endure for 2700+ miles, your bones/joints/muscles/digestive system, etc, had better be healthy. Pre-existing conditions must be dealt with, and bodily injuries must be treated and eradicated long before race time.
Well, two such conditions have “blessed” me in recent weeks. I won’t go into them here…I’m not going to be the guy who bores you into oblivion with a detailed battery of all his hurts and afflictions. Let’s just say that they are both of a nature that (barring some sort of miracle) I’m not going to beat anytime soon. Racing the TD with either of them still hanging around would be painful and, potentially, even perilous.
I’m not counting myself out yet. I do have a chance. Slim, but a chance. As hard as I’ve been working and training for this race, I want to afford myself every opportunity to make a miraculous recovery. I will continue to prepare for the TD, see a lot of doctors, control what I can, and hope for the best. If, in a couple weeks or so, I have not dramatically improved, I’ll withdraw my name from the Start List and go into fan mode. Lots of good Texans to cheer for this year.
Until I make that decision, the blog will most likely be pretty silent. Fellow TD’ers, I hope you are getting in your long multi-days, nailing down your route research, and configuring your final final final gear lists! I still hope to see you there!
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4 responses to “The End?”
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hope thigs work out for you Tony
one of the axioms of long distance racing is ‘do not harm’ meaning don’t permanently hurt yourself
best of luck
Cheers
Marshal -
Tony, I hope things work out for you. The amount of effort and training you have put in well hopefully help you to make it to the start.
My fingers are crossed and I hope you get there. Be well and get healthy!
-sean -
NO!
I hope you get through it all. I’ll buy you a beer in Banff! Get out there!
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nooo! What a disappointment for you. But, those mountains aren’t going anywhere. Perhaps I’ll see you on the start line in 2012.
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Marshal May 3rd, 2011 at 21:20