I have completed, attempted, quit and considered a lot of races in my life. Finished the Tour Divide in 21 days (I think this number gets shorter the older I get.) Finished the Arrowhead 135 five times in all categories. Not completed a bunch of them, too. Finished Trans Iowa’s and quit even more. I have dreamed of routes that do not exist yet. But why? Why race with a bunch of stuff through places that any normal person would travel slowly through and savor?

Short answer is, I do not know. People do weird things.

Here is where I am on the topic this morning. I think for some types of people, the act of racing, or pushing oneself more than normal, is an act of focusing in a world filled with distractions. I think the constraints of time and gear give shape to a story that is ancient yet new every time someone says, “Go!” The preparatory process is certainly part of the journey and enjoyment, too.

Paradoxically, I have been practicing slowing down, meditating and trying to fly fish every opportunity I can. Yet we create and host races that don’t lend themselves to any of those things. OK, maybe a hybrid form of meditation while riding. Yet the desire to use race formats persists.

I think there is room in ourselves and the world to do and hold contradictory beliefs and actions. I know that racing has given me clarity in ways that touring has not. I know that traveling, either by bikepacking, backpacking or canoe camping, reminds me that I really do not need more than what is in my packs. There are select times in my life where the intensity of going hard is a welcome-selfish, excuse to think of nothing other than food, water, breathing and moving forward.

Our races, The Fox and The Wolf, are consciously designed to be a bit more, though, than the typical sufferfest. We want participants to have time to unwind, meet other racers and relax in their beautiful surroundings. We have found the combination of racing hard and relaxing harder to be a sweet spot.

To be sure, no one yet has come up to me and asked me why we create the events we do. I hope those who join us in these cycling experiences gain more than just new Strava data. I know that there are powerful moments to be had while cycling, especially up here on the North Shore. Keep your mind open for these flashes of clarity. And even the chance to share it with someone, too.