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Showing posts from January 17, 2021

Do you have a behavior change mindset?

Think back to a time when you reached a goal. You likely experienced a great amount of attention, respect and recognition. There's nothing inherently wrong with the satisfaction you feel when you reach a goal, but being too focused on a specific outcome ruins the possibility of a different result. Anything less than reaching the goal may be considered a failure. Here lies the problem in goal setting. The focus is on the outcome, not on the process. Behavior change is hard. No matter how strongly you are motivated to reach a goal, creating a new system - or breaking a bad one - can be extremely difficult. Shifting your focus away from an outcome and to your behaviors will allow you to get more out of the process - regardless if you achieve your goal. With a behavior change mindset, great satisfaction comes from the present moment. And when you are in the present moment, you can observe what behaviors you actually need to change. According to the Four Classes of Human Experience, th...

My first gravel ride.

  Over the past few weeks, Karel has been spending a good amount of time on his Ventum gravel bike. Although Karel has several bikes in his collection, this may be his new favorite.  Although I've never been off the road on a bike (well - just once on a MTB several years ago but I wouldn't call it a real ride), Karel wanted to share gravel biking with me. Seeing that my bike handling skills have greatly improved since moving from Florida to Greenville, SC. I figured it was time to get into nature and explore a different style of riding.  Instead of investing in another bike, Karel did a bit of research and Macgyvered my Ventum NS1 into a gravel bike (it can be quickly converted from road bike to gravel bike).  Here are the specs:  NS1 - XS (size 50) 650b wheels. Front tire: Maxxistires Rambler 27.5 x 1.5. Rear wheel: Continental tire Terra Speed 27.5 x 1.35 (650b x 35). Gearing: 36x52 front and 11-34 rear. Pedals: Look Quartz MTB. Shoes: Bont riot+ MTB. For seve...

GVL WBL #6 - I almost succumbed to fear of failure

  Photo by Yannick Over the past six weeks, Karel and I have been participating in the GVL WBL (Greenville Winter Bike League) group ride. The ride starts and finishes at Trailblazer park, which is a convenient 2.9 miles from our house (we bike there and back).  Every week I anxiously check the website for the upcoming route and mileage. The ride is put on by Debbie Milne and Andrew Crater and it's a very well organized, safe and well-supported ride. Thankfully, we have such a bike friendly community so having a group of 30-80 cyclists isn't a problem on our quiet country roads. We have been introduced to new routes - which is always exciting for us to find new bike-friendly roads. The riding options here in Greenville are endless! Each ride also has a designated stop around half way (to fuel/refuel) and there is always one or two SAG support vehicles that follow us along and mark the KOM/QOM or sprint zones with signs. Like I said - it's super organized! Everyone brings a...