Not to plan

Well that didn't go to plan.

As you may recall the plan for this afternoon was to take part in a paddling race. It didn't quite work out that way.

Paddling, like many sports can be significantly influenced by the conditions. Like open water swimming an event in rough or difficult water can make the experience pretty unpleasant or even, at worst, a little dangerous. Like many sports, knowing your limits in those conditions is pretty important. Today I found some of those limits.

As I mentioned the other day I like to think that I don't let the fear of something stop me from trying it. With that in mind I went down to the race today to give it a go despite the conditions looking far from ideal. However, there is a line between giving something a go and going outside your limits and that was the situation I was in today.

Nobody likes admitting defeat and withdrawing from a race. It feels very much like taking the easy option, which is something I have always tried not to do. However, today I was forced to admit that I was out of my depth and that the best and safest thing for me to was to record a DNF. It is still a decision I am not that happy about, even though I have no doubts that is was the right one. Withdrawing never feels good.

Still, no cloud is without a silver lining, and this cloud has one too. This race was a very low priority event, taking part in it for me was really in the name of learning, which is something I certainly did. Taking part in the event has really helped highlight the areas I need to work and improve on. Falling at this hurdle has also given me a bit of a jab of motivation to keep working. I won't lie, I am pretty annoyed how out of my depth I was today, I thought I was doing a bit better than that, but I can accept it as a fair reflection of the current state of things and get on with the work of getting better. The only way from here is up.

Not the best day, but not the end of the world either. Often the difference between mediocre and good is the ability to get back up after a disappointment, over and over if necessary. I will certainly be getting back up after today.