Life lessons from Lookout Mountain hill climb

Greg Daniel saved something for the end on Lookout Mountain

Lessons from racing a bike almost always apply to life in general.

That’s why junior cycling helps kids build more than healthy practices and fitness. They learn how to bounce back from setbacks and disappointment. They learn the value of hard work and commitment. They learn how to work with others to create success.

Adults also benefit from cycling’s life wisdom. Saturday’s 4.5-mile Lookout Mountain hill climb offered lots of it, but a couple of lessons in particular stand out.

The experienced starters knew going too hard too early depletes precious energy reserves and can leave a rider crawling to the finish line, especially when the road there tilts uphill. So they paced themselves. They saved something for the middle and something for a final push at the end.

They knew it’s a good idea to keep the big picture in mind, and sometimes you have to slow down to speed up.

Lookout Mountain hill climb gallery