Riding on the Wind

A gusting, forty-mile an hour wind swept up through Kershaw-Ryan State Park. Its only escape from the box canyon was up and over the 700-foot cliffs that the Redemption Trail runs atop—close to the edge. And there I was, riding all too knowingly towards a freight train of wind that I had no choice but to get in front of.

The day had started off well enough at the Broken Record Six-Hour Mountain Bike Challenge in Caliente, Nevada. My first four and a half laps went off great. I was running my pace and eating right. Happily, the wind was nothing more than a pleasant breeze, but everyone had seen the ominous forecast of high winds and was waiting anxiously for the hammer to drop. When the wind did come, it blew in fast and strong—and stayed. In the pits, canopies were hastily taken down, and chairs, tables, and small children were battened down.

Out on course, the riders were bustled and pushed about, becoming hyperaware of just how narrow an eighteen-inch wide singletrack really is when the gusts are trying to push you into the brush and rocks that line the trail. In some ways though, the riders had it better than the pit crews; whereas the pits sat on top of a ridge and had constant wind, the riders, at times, would be behind hills that blocked most of the gale.

I was, however, not behind a hill but quite near the cliff as that forty-mile an hour gust topped out of the canyon, and that's when I could no longer “ride between the lines” of the singletrack. I ended up being shoved into a string of rocks lining the trail, coming to a dead stop, and barely getting a foot down before toppling. Luckily, I had been slowed by a headwind. If I had been at speed, it would have been a crash. You will never know what fate your bad luck saved you from!

I tried to get going again but to no avail. Each time I’d push down on a pedal, the current would push me back into the rocks. I thought better of it and walked about fifty yards until the trail turned away from the edge. All the while, the gusts were literally picking the rear of my bike up slightly and skittering the tire leeward. At this point, the wind was just being rude!

There was something very cool about this, though: I didn’t get angry or frustrated! Ask any cyclist what the worst weather to ride in is, and above cold, heat, or rain, most will choose wind. Other weather conditions can be coped with by choosing the right clothing, but wind...well, with wind, you just have to deal with it. How you deal with it depends on your attitude. You can curse it, or you can accept it as part of the adventure of your ride.

Now, I haven't always been very zen about wind (and may not be again), but in training for this race, I was faced with a couple of big mile days that were very windy as well, and though I thought about staying home, I asked myself, “Just how many events or races have I been to that the weather was perfect?” In the big picture, not many! So off I went into the swirling air, training for wind. 

So, it turns out, regardless of the wind, I was still able to complete my goal of seven laps and finish with a smile. It was fun—most of it, anyway. Attitude is a big part of mountain biking, and if you keep yours up, you can even enjoy the tough days. 

Hey, it's windy. Maybe we should go for a ride!