The Pain Cave

The Pain Cave is that place athletes go during particularly intense efforts.  For me, the surest way to gain entry to the Pain Cave is by riding laps around Babler State Park.

The Cave starts innocently enough.  "Hello, Brian, it's been awhile.  Come on in."  Clamber on the bike and start moving.  After about 20 minutes, an eerie stillness settles in.  That's the sign to start pushing it.  Before long, the only noise you can hear is the roar of your lungs and the pounding of your heart.  Your legs have transformed into searing, boiling lumps of lava.  Your body begs, then demands that you stop.  You fear your heart may just cease beating to end the misery.  When you ignore all that - scream at yourself "Shut up, we're doing this" - and keep going, only then are you admitted to the Pain Cave.

It is a strange place.  The agony is brutal and immediate; something you can feel, touch, examine every nuance.  Horrifying, yet soothing.  It consumes you: nothing exists except you and the pain, but at the same time it is remote, something outside of yourself.  Everything is burned away in the fire of suffering.

The only thing that makes the Cave bearable is that you know it will stop at some point.

Most days, you use the cave to get stronger.  Some days, you need the Pain Cave.  The burdens become too much to bear on your own.  You enter the Cave with stress, anger, frustration.  You leave it calm and rejuvenated.

Today, I need the Pain Cave.  I'm going there now.  See you on the other side.

Recent developments...

Well the winter doldrums have struck...been a while since my last update.  Since then I met a great girl, who then dumped me on my birthday.  With help from my best friend Christy I'm over it, don't worry.

My good friend Marty joined Facebook, which is great.  At first I was leery of Facebook, but it's become a valuable tool in keeping in touch with people, and reconnecting with long-lost friends.

Another friend TK got out of the eBay business, which means I will have to find another way to pawn off my unwanted cycling gear.  But he's moving on to better things, so it's all good.

This year will be a good year for cycling.  I've begun shedding the winter fat a month ahead of schedule, new workouts have increased my off-season speed considerably...and events at work and in life have provided excellent rage-fueled workouts.  Rage may be an exaggeration, but you know what I mean.  Anger, stress, frustration:  all these can be exorcised with some exercise.  I could well be faster on a bike this year than ever before.

Ride on.