It’s interesting to have composed this blog for five years now. The number of followers has slowly increased. I wish it were 20,000. But honestly, its 1354 at the moment. And I thank you for following my work. This blog has gotten me some writing work over the years, but I truly do it because I love it and enjoy sharing experience and insights. No big ulterior motives really.

Yet occasionally, I’ll write something that seems to offend a few people. The number of followers will drop by five or six overnight. The way I look at that fact is simple. At least I’m writing something with an impact. If people don’t agree with something to the point that they’re moved to unfollow this blog, it means that I’m actually saying something.

What an interesting contrast that is to the moment when you get dropped from the group in cycling or running. Over 40+ years of training and racing, I’ve done my share of dropping and my share of getting dropped. I’ll frankly admit to being pissed when I’m the one getting dropped. Often I sink into a funk of angry dismissal.

By contrast, however, when I’m in the group doing the dropping I genuinely feel bad for whoever is getting dropped. I’ll look back and check on them. I feel compassion for them if it’s “not their day,” or just learning to ride. Getting dropped is no fun. I can relate to how they might be feeling. If the situation demands, I’ll drop back. I’m not that great a rider that it ever matters if I’m not King for a Day.

Which is rather contradictory in nature. Because I frankly don’t want anyone to wait for me during a ride. Not when I’m the one that’s been dropped. If it’s Dog Eat Dog, then let it be so. If I’m not in total distress or bonking, I’d rather ride in at my own pace than engage in the idiotic Yo-Yo game of having people roll far ahead and then wait at corners. Hate. It. Makes no sense for anyone.

I can’t stand affecting the ride quality for anyone else if I can help it. If they’re having a good day I prefer they get the full benefit of their ride. It’s too hard to find good time to ride without getting held up by someone that is struggling. My relative slowness on a given day should not be a factor in what someone else experiences. I’ve come to realize that most cyclists ride too hard all the time. This I’ve learned from really great riders, not the local hacks who kill it every time they go out.  The same was true in running all those years ago. I used to train everything at 6:00 pace and under until I trained with a group of guys that could run sub-29:00 10Ks. They trained long and slow on their longer runs. They didn’t ‘drop’ anyone in those workouts because there was no need.

There is not enough time in this world to worry about such things. Which is why I also don’t take offense if people “drop” my blog when something offends them. On one hand I say “tough shit” and on the other, I completely understand. If my writing or philosophy does not appeal somehow, it makes no sense to receive it in your inbox. Drop it.

By contrast, I do wish more people who like my writing would share it. I’d also rather people click through from the emails sent out during publication than to read them in the email format. The analytics on this blog don’t record the number of people who open and read the email version. My blog does better in Google and such when the analytics indicate there are more readers.

Plus I’ll admit, sometimes I go back in and edit after the original goes out. It’s a fact of my ADD or some other adverse attribute that I don’t catch typos in the application review. Not until I publish do I sometimes see the stupid mistakes I make.

But I go back in and “drop” those from the original. I wish it weren’t so, and I try my hardest, but my attention span sometimes drops things it shouldn’t.

Thanks for reading.