Heartbreaker: 30.....Me:1 , but of sooooo sweet!
by:
brandonguy from canada
My friends and I ride about 5okms of trails in Manitoba. Throughout the years, we (or should I say they) have built many new trails which keep us busy April, through November. One combination of trails is called the widowmaker/ hearbreaker. Every spring I start a private little battle with that trail that nobody knows about except me. A normal ride with the boys goes like this: Nice gradual climb for 10 minutes, followed by 25 minutes of incredible rolling singletrack. This particular day I was feeling great. Strong legs, good flow, what else could you ask for? Then it happens. That little voice inside of me reminds me what is ahead, the widowmaker/hearbreaker. I start that movie in my head from last ride: bail 4 times down the widowmaker before I walk down. Then when I think its redemption time right? The heartbreaker kicks my ass yet again. The boys are waiting for me at the top....snickering while they patronize me with little shots like," you almost had it man", or "you woulda had it except for that little pebble that stopped you dead in your tracks". As we near, the guy in front stops at a fork in the trail. " Which way? ", he says. Nice! He's giving me an out. Maybe save some pride today. I 'm just about to give him some lame ass excuse like ," the bike is fighting me today.....lets go the other way". Then that little voice inside basically dares me. "Go hard or go home!!" I can't believe I can talk myself into things with little macho bullshit sayings. "Widowmaker", I say. It was obvious our fearless leader for the day was looking for his own way out. I guess he wasn't going to get it, but far from him to decline this silent challenge. "Okay", he says. For the next few minutes, as we near, I go over the mental checklist that will help me not kill myself, or at the very least impale myself on a branch. I go over first, trying my hardest to fight that instinct that yells" hit the brakes", and to keep my weight over the back tire. I make it!!! I silently celebrate my little win while I wait for the rest. I know that the hardest is still to come though, and my record against this climb is not good at all. The hearbreaker is exactly that. It tears all power out of your legs and mocks your skill as a rider. You have to find the perfect balance of weight distribution, skill, and power. Too easy on the pedals, and you stop. Too hard and you spin out. Put your head down and just go.... and you'll land yourself in the bushes. My buddy pulls up and says ," remember, pedal in circles, and no drunk driving". "Shut up ! " was my only response. I start . All I could think of was circles, circles, circles. Half way up I notice I"ve had a fairly cleen run. "Just keep going instead of telling yourself how good you're doing you pompus shithead!" Then something happens that I didn't expect, it starts to get easier. I made it over the hump and everything was clear sailing! Well... except for the last 100 foot climb that seemed like it was up the side of a wall. When I reach the top, I stop and fall to my knees trying hard not to puke. My heart rate monitor says "185". That can' t be healthy can it? Now I'm not about to kid myself , I still regularily get kicked by the heartbreaker, in fact, that was my only win last year, but what fun would it be if I did win every time? Now that I look back on my only win, I can only remember two things: #1 when asked if I've ever cleaned the "heartbreaker", I can say yes, and #2 The beer never tasted better than that day. I can't wait til April!
