On Pain (a sensation)

LP Crit, originally uploaded by lmpicard.

This past weekend I did a very big stage race. I learned a lot about pain, and although I can tolerate a bunch of it, I chose this weekend not to experience too much of it. I watched a team mate suffering with flu symptoms just torture herself. It was amazing. She dug so deep as if her life depended on staying high up in the pack.

For me....

Sunday I woke to the feeling that I knew I didn't want to work very hard. (that was in my soul). I guess because I was sitting in 24th place (not 4th or even 20th), I certainly didn't have a good show the first two days... so my soul said, "have fun, 'cause you don't need to work too hard." Well... as much fun as 60 miles with 6K feet of climbing can be.

What is interesting about bike racing is that you must choose pain. But pain must be worth it - however you define the value (and to a bike racer this can be a personal thing). To be successful, you also must put your mind aside and realize that it's not pain, but just a sensation and its ONLY our mind in that tells us it is not right. What if we didn't place any judgement on that sensation? What if we didn't place judgement on any "negative feeling" sensation we encountered in life... wouldn't life be more tolerable? Wouldn't in the end you'd see victory in anything we encounter as we move from sensation to sensation? I guess life would be sensational?

I wonder.
I think I shall inflict more sensations this weekend.
Join me?