“Yep, I'm definitely lined up for the right race,” I thought to myself as the shotgun was fired and the colorful mass of lycra that was all of us began running towards our bikes. The clock had officially begun for Epic Rides' 24 Hours in the Old Pueblo, and for a record first time, I wasn't riddled with doubt in myself nor my training. For this race truly began months ago.
Rewind backwards to the end of the 2017 race season. I had just come off my first La Ruta de los Conquistadores, an epic stage race across the entire country of Costa Rica. After weeks of recovery and time off the bike, I was keen to get back to structured training for Old Pueblo. I mapped out a training plan that involved more time spent properly recovering. Yes, I did the obligatory intervals, I did the leg drills, I even added regular Maximum Sustained Power strength training into my regime. However I knew I would be playing with fire if I didn't attend to the recovery aspect.
I've had a genetic spinal condition my whole life, made worse over the years by my passion for sports, that causes debilitating back flare-ups if I'm not careful. And I've been “not careful” far too many times in the last 5 years or so of racing. I knew if I wanted to accomplish my lofty Old Pueblo goals, and be able to build upon the race for what I hope to be my best MTB season to date, it would require some time be spent researching proper injury prevention and back pain management. That's just around the time when I began CBD research. I was intrigued, and was keen to the idea of not wanting to put any forms of internally damaging things such as Ibuprofen and Tylenol in my system. However I was skeptical with how many CBD companies were out there and didn’t quite know where to begin, as all of my research pointed toward the necessity of finding a reputable source.
Thankfully through contacts of Troupe Racing, I was put in touch with SevenPoints CBD. I spoke at length with them about the research I had come across and was pleasantly uplifted by all of the medical information they gave me regarding what I could hope to expect from their products. Thus began taking my recovery and pain prevention efforts to levels I hadn’t experienced to date.
A mere few weeks in had me with less internal inflammation, less flare-up episodes, and enhanced recovery, which meant I could go into my hard training days better prepared to work hard. As the next two months went on, I saw my efforts were paying off; instead of going into Old Pueblo scared and worry-ridden, I went into it not only ready and excited to ride a bike for 24 hours, but feeling that the lofty goals I had for the day weren’t quite so lofty anymore.
And that brings us back to the beginning of February’s 24 Hours in the Old Pueblo. As I jumped on my bike and began turning the cranks, I felt focused, I felt calm, (calmer than I can ever remember being at the start of a race), and most importantly, I felt hungry to take on my goal of getting a 200 mile jaunt in on my singlespeed.
Kimmi Runner is a Seven Points supported rider of Troupe Racing Co.
More on her races at trouperacingco.com.
