If you’ve ever competed in sports at any level, or performed in a concert, or spoken in front of a crowd of people – you know the feeling of nerves slowly building up inside. The mix of being scared and excited all at the same time. And the first time you’re on that start line, behind the curtain, or stepping up to the mic is always its own brand of special because you don’t know quite what to expect.
The morning of May 27, 2018 was the start of something new for me. I was going to be lining up against the best female mountain bikers in the world. I was, and still am, amazed at how far I’d come in such a short period of time. My race started at 11:25am therefor I didn’t have to be up and eating breakfast until around 8:30. I remember laying in bed that morning and purposely drowsing back off to sleep, because if I was asleep I couldn’t get nervous yet! Then the alarm sounded…
I have a pre-race ritual of sorts, same meal, water water water, warmup and generally a good deal of smiling. Now don’t get me wrong I was still smiling, but the butterflies were flapping the shit out of their wings in my belly. I have never been that nervous before. I was just ready to get on my bike and start moving, the waiting was the worst.
Before I knew it, all the riders were being corralled in the starting gates. More waiting. More nerves. Call-ups. More waiting. More nerves. Then the heart beat amplified over the speakers! Talk about really getting your heart rate up in zone 5 before the gun even goes off. 30 seconds to the start, nerves high, heart rate higher.
To be continued…
Alaina Casioppo 