Stijn Amundsen :: Blog :: Why I compete and want to do something great

A friend of mine asked me why I'm so bent on riding faster and faster and wanting to race etc.

It actually made me think and meditate on it for a while and it was intresting how many layers of answers I had to dig through until today I think I finally have the pure correct answer at the heart of the matter. So here it is

The reason why I want to race and be fast and maybe one day do something remarkable is that I want to inspire others to be their best as other great athletes have so inspired me.

I love outdoor sports, and I feel most alive, and I found that I'm not the strongest person, or the smartest person but I have found that if I work on it I usually end up being one of the fastest at endurance sports I've done. I want to do something in my life that makes people stop and go wow, a person can do that? That's crazy, and then I want them to say to themselves yeah maybe I could do that too.

So in essence all athletes are not only competing against others but really competing against what everyone thinks is humanly possible. It's all about pushing the envelope.

I get super inspired when someone pushes the envelope to a new level, and on all levels, I get as or even more inspired by people that compete and push the envelope on what's possible for people with handicaps etc. because in reality most people are not perfect and most people have things they have to overcome and deal with to reach their new levels.

So people like the kid dieing of cancer who ran a marathon everyday across Canada, or the first person to do an ironman that no legs and had prosthetic legs, or the 70 yr. completing her first ironman. Or Lance winning his 7th Tour after almost dieing from cancer. The list is so long of people who have pushed the envelope and inspired me to squeeze every last drop out of life! I want to do something great too and inspire others.

I think already this summer I've inspired a few people to get in shape, because they knew that I started off probably in worse shape then them at about 70lbs overweight and totally out of shape. I also have chronic kidney illness for the last few years that I don't really talk much about that has a major impact on my health and training and that I constantly to have to work around and accept as one of my handicaps.

Most of the people I ride with have no idea that I have an illness that has a major effect on my health, but don't mention it as I ride with one guy that has a brain tumor and seizures that causes him to fall off his bike in the middle of rides sometimes! And another guy that shouldn't even be riding after almost dieing in a car crash and still needs to get a couple vertebrae fussed. And many riders that are twice my age and I'm sure have one chronic aliment or another.

For me it's hard as my blood pressure is all over the place and somedays I feel like shit and when I ride, but after seeing what other people are dealing with, I am grateful for the health I do have.

One day I will inspire you I hope to reach new levels in your life or your riding etc. that you thought maybe weren't possible!