Patrick, I think you are right that Randonneuring is suited for a particular set of personality traits (or disorders). One trait that I think makes me well suited for Randonneuring is that I have a short memory for bad experiences and a long memory for good ones. I think that's one of the reasons I'm suited for fatherhood. You'd have to remind me about the dirty diapers, sleepless nights, nights in the hospital. I've essentially forgotten the troubles, and remember the vast majority of the pleasures. Looking back at it, my ongoing career as a father is a constant source of joy and optimism. I've had many difficult moments on brevets as well, but I have to think hard to recall them. I have no difficulty at all remembering a myriad of positive little details. A saran-wrapped package of cubed cheese and sausage at the Valley Ford Market. The borderline over-peppered and piping hot clam chowder at the Marshall Store on a rainy February dusk. A fellow rando yelling "Go Bubba!" coming the other way on an out-and-back section. The view looking North along the Pacific Coast from the Pt Reyes Lighthouse. The long list of positives and my inability to recall the negatives makes me itch for my next event. People who have a good memory for hardships probably would finish an event and say "that was stupid, never again". I hear people say that about children as well.
On Tuesday, December 11, 2012 11:02:02 AM UTC-8, Patrick in VT wrote: > > > > On Monday, December 10, 2012 8:35:15 PM UTC-5, JimD wrote: >> >> >> Every ride we talked about he had ridden and had only negative comments. >> This fellow seemed deeply involved and experienced and pretty grumpy about >> it all. I've never really figured this out. >> >> I too hear a lot of "death-march" recounting of randonneuring. Rando is > fun to think about it because there are those magic moments and the pure > joy of just being out on the bike exploring and taking in the scenery - > it's easy to fall in love with the idea. but it's the rare person who gets > by on this idealized notion, especially for the longer brevets. the folks > that do it and can extract the "fun" out tend to be the highly motivated, > goal-setting, and self-competitive types that are driven by the challenge > of it all. it definitely suits certain personalities, especially those who > draw their energy and sense of accomplishment and meaning from within > (i.e., introverts). in other words, "fun" isn't so much about the sunrises > and the pretty spectacle of a stream of reflective gear and bicycle lights > at night - it's the satisfaction of not quitting, overcoming something > difficult, the lessons learned along the way, and most importantly, > reaching a goal. Being "deeply involved" and "grumpy" is understandable > when you take into personality and psyche into account. > > likewise with respect to marathon/ultra-running, ironman distance > triathlon, the Tour Divide, etc. those events are technically races, but I > see no real difference compared to the "non-competitive" sport of rando. > for the vast majority of people who do stuff like this, finishing is the > primary goal and meeting a self-prescribed standard of performance (the > "personal record" or "PR") amounts to winning - there's no real external > motivator (most don't do it to finish first and win the prizes, get the > attention, etc.), which again might be why more introverted folks gravitate > towards and excel in these sports. > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msg/rbw-owners-bunch/-/3927s8PYHUMJ. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.
