thing, taking mental notes during the ride.
Fast forward to this riding season; I rode my own during
an event late this spring. The event took everyone through
Morrison, up through Kittredge into Evergreen. Once
everyone gassed up, we headed out on the second leg of the
ride. I didn’t realize it until we hit the stop sign that we were
turning left onto the same road where I went down a little less
than two years prior and bounced off of the guard rail. I was
so nervous about it that I almost chickened out and went a
different route to the the final meeting place where everyone
would eventually end up. The person running sweep had
been making sure I was ok on the ride gave me the thumbs
up and instead, I stayed with the group and made the left turn.
While riding that same stretch of road I remembered some
of the feeling and mental notes I had taken from the year
before. I was nervous, but I managed to get to the bottom of
the hill intact and let out a huge “WHOOOP” in celebration. I
was so pleased that I had conquered a fear that had plagued
me since it happened and for most of the time that I have
been up front and riding my own. This time my success was
because I slowed down and didn’t try to take the corners
too fast and I paid attention to my “Outside, Inside, Outside”
position, Just like I was trained during class and just like it
was when I was taking my mental