Never Say Never

Never is too finite a term and seldom applies to the real world. So other than to admonish folks not to say it, best off not using the word never. I'm going to try to adhere to not using it, because I've found myself reversing that decision more often than not.

I told my coach I'd never run as cross training, that I was drawing the line on that one. WRONG! Not only do I run regularly now (once a week or more), I occasionally go out and run a race. I ran a hilly 8k on Saturday in Greenbelt. I didn't post a brilliant time, but it was close to what I expected of myself. And hey, only 3 women older than myself had better times. And the fastest was only about 2 minutes faster. Maybe I'll run it again next year and do better. In the mean time, I'll probably do a couple of other runs during the course of the year and maybe even combine running and cycling and do a duathlon. So much for never running.

After being less than totally satisfied with my team bike in 2006 (don't get me wrong it's a nice bike but not aggressive enough for racing), I swore I'd never buy another bike I couldn't test ride first. WRONG! I decided to throw that idea out when I ordered a bike specifically for time trials in November. I rationalized it away - if I really hate the bike, I can sell it off at the end of the season. Besides, I was ordering the top of the line - a Specialized S-Works Transition - so it should be fast and that's the most important thing in a TT bike. So much for never buying a bike that I hadn't test-ridden first.