Race Anecdotes: Imposter syndrome at Boulder Roubaix

It took me writing about the Boulder Roubaix race several times to learn how to correctly spell “Roubaix.” The race comes every two years and in 2017, there was no amount of white chocolate or kombucha that would have convinced me to give it a go.

Fast forward to 2019, add a dash of dirt and unpaved experience, and there I am, paying $55+tax to suffer with 13 of my closest cycling friends. And I was nervous.

Originally, I made it my “A” race, an important, get-me-some-upgrade-points kind of race. That was, until I previewed the course and lost any modicum of confidence I once had. As soon as I pulled up to my car and dusted off, I updated my TrainingPeaks account with “C.”

C for coward.

C for chickenshit.

I didn’t think I was being negative, I was “realistic.” I knew I didn’t have the bike handling skills others possessed, so “realistically,” I could assume they’d do better than me. I’m realizing I always assume others are better than me.

I still planned to do my best and face my gravel fears, but I also didn’t expect to podium.

The race went about 80% as I expected: I charged to the front at the beginning of the race to get away from any possible crashes. Once we hit the pavement and I had been pulling…