YOU’RE ONLY ONE YEAR OUT OF RACING, SO NO DOUBT YOUR PERSONAL NETWORK OF PRO BIKE RACERS IS AS BIG AS IT EVER WAS. WHAT DID YOU HEAR FROM THEM ABOUT TRYING TO MANAGE WITH THE QUARANTINE? WHAT WAS THE DOMINANT EMOTION YOU PICKED UP ON FROM THEM – DESPONDENCY, DETERMINATION, BEFUDDLEMENT, SOMETHING ELSE?
I don’t communicate with many pros. Most of them were just confused at not being able to ride outside and then having their sponsors commit them to racing virtually on Zwift. Some pros went apeshit on the trainer, others did not...it varies greatly. I think it allowed everyone some headspace to consider a life without racing and what else they’d like to pursue, if anything.
YOU’RE AT THE BEGINNING OF AN INCREDIBLE TRANSITION IN LIFE. THE CYCLING MEDIA HAS CHARACTERIZED IT AS A CAREER CHANGE: FROM PRO BIKE RACER TO ARTIST. DO YOU CONSIDER ART YOUR NEW JOB? OR DO YOU FEEL SOMETHING MORE FREE THAN THAT – LIKE YOU’RE ON A SABBATICAL FOCUSED ON ART?
I’m most definitely unemployed right now and lucky to be enjoying it. I believe in my artwork, I work every day to make things and progress as an artist. I am constantly reminding myself that I just spent 10 years pushing my body beyond its limit 11 months out of the year just so I could eventually build a big enough foundation to take a break. Once you’re in the break it’s very easy to fall back into a pattern of abusing the body especially since 90% of my feelings of satisfaction over the last decade were related to how hard or how long I trained.
I’m discovering that once you make a big life change your habits don’t just automatically adopt so reprogramming myself has been a big challenge but one I am enjoying. Quarantine helped a lot with this as I was forced to stay inside and could no longer explore my physical surroundings to find satisfaction in the day. Instead I had to direct energy inside and through the body using breathwork, meditation and dance (music).
Read more at Allied Cycleworks
Read more at Allied Cycleworks