Ault Park Blast

“Confidence is the most important single factor in this game, and no matter how great your natural talent, there is only one way to obtain and sustain it: work.” Jack Nicklaus.


I can honestly say I thought this day might never come; my final B-Race. The thought of moving-up and far from the comfy confines of the B’s was not always an inevitable notion but yet always a scary one. Just last week, a rider from a team that will remain nameless called me a “sandbagger.” I have to admit, this is a word I do not identify well with. Excelling at sports has never been an easy task. I think one of the reasons I like cycling so much is that it there are no balls to throw or catch and certainly words like “athlete” are not commonly used.

When I started racing several years ago, Ault Park was a very difficult race for me and it certainly continues to be a challenge. Physically, the speed and endurance required to finishing this or any race is painful, but the hardest part about racing (at Ault) was putting my fears aside. My fear of crashing continues to be something that has to be put far-far away and in place that my “confidence” can not find.

I clearly remember my second Ault Park race. I spent the majority of my 20 laps at the back of the pack, scanning the field for signs of a wobble or a crossed wheel; wondering if I was going to be a victim or perpetrator of an accident. This essentially nullified my competitiveness spirit and relegated me to the back, were I quickly became nothing more than an idle observer; a passenger. I don’t know when it clicked for me (it may have been a slow process that is still evolving) but I think less about this. It’s important to place fear to the side, otherwise there’s no place for confidence.

Bike racing for me is the most exciting thing that I can possibly imagine. I love the discipline and focus it requires; to become a master of your thoughts and to enslave the voice in your head that tells you to quite. Racing is a gift. It is all together beautiful, dangerous, and thrilling to me. As silly as this sounds, it provides me with a larger framework for community and friendships.

Well, I know this is overly sentimental and painfully self-aware but I wanted to take a moment to contemplate what this race has meant to me and will continue to mean to me. My father, who was eternally absent from my soccer and little league games as a child, attends almost ever Wednesday night in June, and even though every week he needs a quick tutorial on when the point laps are, he enjoys watching. For as many reasons as there may be to move to the A’s, there were likely twice as many to stay in the B’s. Foremost on this list was that I was having fun. I’m thankful for the opportunity the B’s afforded me to grow in my confidence. It took me several years to finally feel just the slightest bit confident in this event. There’s often a lot of negativity surrounding the B-Race but I loved every minute of it. Although the B Race will always be the little brother to the much longer and arguably steadier A Race, there’s no shame in the fun and challenge offered by this event.

So here’s to seeing every finish line as the next starting point. BB