Road to nowhere

Consumer Surveys and those small print testimonies at the bottom of a TV advert for a shampoo or cosmetics are interesting. They usually say something like, "out of a survey of 1100 women, 78% said they weren't really bothered if animals had been used in the testing of the product".

Of course the famous ones are from such products as cat or dog food, "4 out of 5 cat owners whose pet had spoken to them could report that the food was considered reasonable but not as good as a rat cornered in a dark alley".

There is considerable psychological research behind what appears to be almost a throw-away statement , a multi storey office block staffed with number crunchers and many hours of computer time spent in the analysis of statistics. Such an approach is now prevalent in many aspects of life and will without doubt form the strategy and policy of government, educationalists, bankers and the health sector.

Many aspects of life, if governed by an all encompassing reliance on cold and impersonal factors give the impression that we are but a player in a real life lottery.

I was many years ahead of this trend in my early to mid 20's. My analytical approach to human behaviour was a major influence in my preparation for my chosen sport of cycle racing.

In other words, if I could avoid many hours of training and selfish dedication to diet and lifestyle and yet still get some sort of result in a race then that was what I would do. The main reasoning behind this rather slack attitude was something that I had read in an authoratative cycle training manual.

The average field for an amateur cycle road race consists of 60 riders. On any one day of an event there will be 15 riders out of the total who want to win that race. The next 15 riders have some ability to win but will only act if an apportunity to win arises, usually a crash that wipes out most of the race, a stray motorist disrupting the course or a heavy downpour. A further 15 of the riders have mediocre ability and may follow the second 15 riders as though vultures around a carcass or a magpie stealing away the silver. The final 15 riders lack both ability and motivation and regard the whole event as an excuse to wear lycra and avoid domestic chores or shopping with wife or girlfriend.

I did train and try to lead a healthy lifestyle. Perhaps I overtrained or concentrated too much on getting in the miles but not the speed or conditioning to give that edge which could put me in the top 15 riders or at least the 30 most motivated. That cycle training manual was what I based my preparation on. The best riders in the world had a hearty meal before a race, pasta, meat and carbohydrate based foods for energy. I was an impoverished student and the most I could afford was a sole piece of steak. Nice enough as an evening meal but a bit of a struggle to digest at 5am on a race day morning. For pasta I substituted a tin of Ambrosia rice pudding eaten cold with a spoon. My other carbohydrate intake was a few slices of dry bread. I usually arrived at a race hungry as a consequence.

The best riders had the best equipment. In my bid for a good solid road bike I responded to an advert in the local paper. The owner of the bike gave me his address and on a dark winter night, after a short bus journey, I was able to view the machine. A black coloured Raleigh which in the gloomy artificial light of his shed looked a good purchase. I paid the asking price and wheeled the bike back to my student digs. After a few metres the effort to move the bike became alarming and I was convinced that I was actually leaving a gouge in the pavement like a ploughman. In the bright light of my room the reason for the reluctance of the bike to roll along was more than evident. The rear wheel was a completely different and entirely incompatible size for the frame and at odds with the front wheel.

So from an entirely self inflicted disadvantaged position I took to placing a lot on the human psychological approach. The problem was of course my own attitude. I actually had no idea of my own form and mental motivation on race day.  In one event I was at the front and dictating the race before realising that we were on lap one of 5 on a very hilly course. I retired during lap 2 feeling distinctly ill.

It got a bit better as I came to understand that what actually produced results and a great feeling of bodily harmony and well being was hard work, dedication and self respect.