As we close in on race day, I\u2019ve noticed a lot of chatter: What bike should I ride? What tires are best? How much food should I carry?<\/em> And don\u2019t get me started on the endless debates about tire pressure! Here\u2019s the thing: Everyone was a rookie once. I remember when I first rode the ICEMAN back in 2021. My prep? I showed up at my wave start time, threw on a CamelBak with a few snacks, and rode with my tires at 15-20 pounds of pressure because that\u2019s just what they were. It wasn\u2019t perfect, but guess what? I finished, and I had a blast.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At the end of the day, you’re racing against one person\u2014yourself. Unless you\u2019re gunning for a pro sponsorship (in which case, you might want to sign up for the pro race), your goal should be to push your own limits, enjoy the ride, and take in the experience. I can tell you, nobody ever became a pro off ICEMAN alone. But plenty of people have made lifelong memories, met great friends, and grown as riders. That\u2019s what it\u2019s all about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Let me be clear\u2014it’s not about how perfect your gear is or whether you hit every technical section just right. It\u2019s about having fun, learning from the mistakes you make, and simply enjoying the day in the woods, regardless of the weather. This race is meant to challenge you, whether you\u2019re a rookie or a seasoned vet. Maybe it’s your first time out here, or maybe it’s your grand finale for the year. Either way, don\u2019t lose sight of why you signed up in the first place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n ICEMAN isn\u2019t just a race; it\u2019s a community. So be kind out there\u2014help someone if they need it, give a nod to the faster folks, and encourage those who are taking it slow. We\u2019re all in this together, and a little kindness goes a long way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And when the race is over? Hug your family, head over to the beer tent, and soak up the good vibes with your fellow riders. Grab some food, share your stories, and just live in the moment. Because here\u2019s the reality: None of us make it out of this life alive. So while you\u2019re here\u2014while you\u2019re riding, while you\u2019re breathing, while you\u2019re living\u2014make the most of it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Enjoy the ride, ICEMAN. Don\u2019t take life (or yourself) too seriously. After all, we\u2019re here to have fun, aren\u2019t we?<\/p>\n\n\n\n See you at the start line. Let\u2019s go ride! <\/p>\n\n\n\n PS: I am in a Turtle Jersey with Bright Orange Shorts during the race.\u00a0 If it’s post race, I usually rock a cowboy hat of some sort. If you see me make sure you say “HI!”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Thank you to our 2024 Iceman Cometh Challenge Casey Smith @casey_thetractorguy<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" What’s up, everyone? ICEMAN is right around the corner! We\u2019re officially a month out, and I can feel the excitement building. I\u2019ve been getting in some miles here and there\u2014maybe not as many as I\u2019d like. Life has a funny way of sneaking in with jobs, family commitments, and everything else. But that\u2019s part of … Continue reading “Don\u2019t Sweat the Small Stuff \u2013 Just Ride”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[18],"tags":[69,165,72,139,179,141],"class_list":["post-1021","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-training","tag-iceman","tag-iceman-cometh-challenge","tag-kalkaska","tag-training","tag-training-tips","tag-traverse-city"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.iceman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1021","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.iceman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.iceman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.iceman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.iceman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1021"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blog.iceman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1021\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1025,"href":"https:\/\/blog.iceman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1021\/revisions\/1025"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.iceman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1021"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.iceman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1021"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.iceman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1021"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.iceman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/IMG_2449-scaled.jpeg?resize=840%2C1120&ssl=1\")
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