CI 2300-A Day Without Technology

A day without technology is a pretty tough thing to do but it also comes with many new surprises and realizations. Since I could not use electronic technology for 24 hours I decided to send my phone, TV, and computer on some quick vacations. My phone took a quick vacation to the Bahamas and sipped on some nice mixed drinks in the sun (of which I am super jealous!). 

I went from around midnight Friday evening to midnight Saturday evening without the use of my electronic technology. One of the biggest challenges was that my parents were coming up to the football game on Saturday so if they had really needed to get in touch with me it would have been super hard especially since I don't think they could understand my smoke signals that meant they needed to bring extra beer for tailgating.

This got me thinking about how surreal it is to be able to contact someone at almost any minute of the day, almost anywhere in the world. Not only can I call almost anywhere in the world but I can also Skype which allows me to see my cousins in Australia on my computer screen in REAL TIME! 

Did I spell this wright? I was leaving a note for one of my roommates and all of a sudden I realized that if I didnt spell something right then it was just going to be wrong. I was going to have some red line pop up below it to show me that something was wrong. 

Its crazy to think I used to use a house phone (sometimes in horrible colors) when I was a kid to call my friends or to plan trips to the park. I mean if you wanted to talk to some cute girl you had to call her house and pass the test when her father or mother answered the phone before you could speak to her. It almost seems life was so much more personal than today with all these messages on screens now that show no real life expressions but instead just say LOL or OMG even though I hardly laugh out loud when I use that as a response. 

Since I was challenged with no technology for a day, I challenged my parents to do the same once they arrived for the football game.They left their phones in the car the entire time they were in Boone. Looking back on it now, it was so much more enjoyable to be without distractions while I enjoyed quality time with the family. We seemed to be way more engaged in conversation and attentive to what each person was talking about. We didn't have distractions from Twitter and Facebook updates. I guess you could say we were acting "old school".

Luckily I knew how to get us to the stadium for the football game because who knows how to use a map these days that doesn't show you your current position and give you turn by turn directions from Siri.

One of the biggest things I noticed was the fact of how much more social I ended up being throughout the day. I was engaged in all my conversations and was definitely more creative in  the sense that I was really thinking deep about what people were saying and trying to give back in depth thought provoking ideas that resembled their thoughts. It almost seems that we use our technology to hide from life and personal questions by staying on our phones or computers until an awkward situatioin passes. Could this new technology be the death of our social skills?

Overall it was a tremendous experience and one that made me feel more alive. All these things we think we need and we think make us happier are actually just substitutes for the more meaningful things in life. I mean how much more enjoyable is it to see your loved ones actually laugh instead of LOL or smile to your face compared to :). So many times I feel people hide behind technology because they are afraid to go and try something in person but instead make up excuses that they are busy when they are just hiding behind a phone really not busy at all. Technology can be good for many things but if used the wrong way it really can compromise our full potential to be real human beings. We just cant let our dependence on technology keep us from living because life is meant to be lived and lived to the FULLEST!

Zeb King

Quote of the Day:

Overcoming Obstacles And Light At The End Of The Tunnel!

Life is a crazy thing but a good thing indeed. It will throw many surprises at you, and at times you might not expect it. Just over three months ago it threw a surprise at me and it was a big one. My roommate Derek and I left our house to meet some other teammates on campus for a bike ride, then next thing I knew I was waking up in a helicopter. They told me I had been hit by a car then back to being blacked out I went until I woke up to a guy putting stitches in my face. By the time they had finished stitching up my face Mom, Dad, Simon and a car full of friends from Boone had arrived to see me. I was super confused at the entire situation since I had no memory from the accident and still do not to this day nor probably ever will. Soon the doctors would tell me that I had a subdural hematoma on my brain, punctured my lung, broken five transverse vertebra in my back and had twenty or so stitches in my face. From the moment the doctors broke the news of all my injuries I knew I was going to be faced with a painful uphill battle but as I was laying in that ICU room I promised myself that I would get through this and come back stronger than I had ever been before and I am still working to make that promise a reality today. Little did I know, was that the stitches, broken bones in my back and the punctured lung would be the least of my problems. A few days after the accident I would realize that somehow through the accident I had become overpowered with panic attacks and anxiety in every situation. Due to the panic attacks and anxiety I have had the most difficult three months I could have ever imagined. I had always heard of people saying how bad anxiety/panic/depression could be but I never believed it even close to the extent that I got to see it first hand. When I say that it takes every bit of fun out of the world, I am not exaggerating. It makes every single situation, even of the things you love, become miserable. It takes your ability to function and your want to live to a level of zero. I would say that I am usually the goofiest, most upbeat, excited, loving kid that I can be but the anxiety brought me to the darkest corners of life and places that I thought I would never experience. At the peak of it, even I thought it would be better to be dead than to live with this. When its at its peak it literally changes the person you are and causes you to think the craziest thoughts where even death seems like a plausible answer. Though I never would take those thoughts serious, it was scary to have those images and thoughts cross through my mind many times a day. When your dealing with it at its peak you feel as if it will never go away but now I am finally getting through it and seeing light at the end of the tunnel. It has been the toughest thing I have ever had to deal with and that I can say without any hesitation. The head and mind is a very crazy thing and even now as I look back at it at its worst, I still cant even try to make sense of how or why it was like it was. One thing I do understand is the support I had from day one of the accident and that I have had my entire life has helped me get through this.  I can't begin to explain the support that my Mother has shown me my entire life and how supportive, understanding and comforting she has been through this horrifying part of my life. She is my best friend and the person I can go to in any situation regardless of what is going on. My brother for his wisdom he has even at a young age and the inspiring notes and song lyrics he left for me when I was home, my father for always finding a way to motivate and encourage me to keep going and my extended family have done everything in their ability to help me get through this. My friends have been there to listen and support me as well in every minute of need especially my roommate and great friend Derek who was with me when the car hit me and has lifted me up ever since. Also my coach/mentor Sean Weddell for showing support, understanding and teaching me there is way more to life than bike racing though we both get distracted with that at times.  I cant begin to name every person who has helped me for I would still be typing this blog months from now if I did so. One thing I can say is that I am thankful for each and every person who has assisted through this situation or anytime throughout my life. Last but most importantly I would like to thank God for helping me get through this and making me a stronger and better person because of it. I have always prayed for as long as I can remember but since the accident my prayers have grown more and more. The more I saw myself praying to get through my situation the more I saw of myself praying for others. Life is about love and helping people and prayer is one of the easiest yet most effective ways to assist others. Every person you meet is fighting a battle and deserves to be shown love regardless of how small or large. God is really that rock that you can build your house on and be the security you need for your life. Now as I am becoming myself again and feel all the love that life has to offer I can once again smile uncontrollably and hopefully make it contagious. For life is sweet and should be lived to the fullest. I really believe that God will never give us a situation that we can not handle and that is one thing that I repeatedly reflected on as I fought with the anxiety/panic/depression. Now that the light is back on I can get back to chasing my dreams, dreams that are taller than mountains but ones that are attainable if I commit myself to them and allow God to lead the journey. Life does get difficult at times but always remember that you can get through any tough situation and continue to chase your dreams. Once again I would like to thank every single person who has helped me get through this horrifying part of my life and know that I am forever thankful for it. GO CHASE YOUR DREAMS!

Quote of the Day: "Things turn out best for the people who make the best of the way things turn out" - John Wooden

Back to chasing my dreams this past weekend (4/28-29) at the Pro/1/2 Tour de Moore 110 mile road race and Brick City Criterium!

ACC Conference Mtn Bike Race #1

Not only has summer ended and classes begun but the 2011 collegiate mountain bike season is now also under way. Our first race of the season was this past weekend in Wilkesboro at the Dark Mtn course. The weekend was hosted by Campbell University. It was nice that they decided to have their races in Wilkes since it is basically in our back yard. The first race of the season was the short track race which is a 30 minute race plus one lap. The course usually varies from a half-mile to a mile in length and riders do as many laps as they can within the 30 minutes. I didn't know how my top end speed would be since I had not raced since the first week of July at the Tour de Toona' in Pennsylvania. Since July I had taken a few weeks off the bike then put in a good bit of hours in August. I knew my base miles would give me some fitness but I had no hard efforts in my legs yet. With a few of the Lees McRae riders coming over to race in our conference, I knew the race was going to be anything from easy. From the gun Lees McRae rider Brad Perely (who outside of collegiate cycling races for the Cannondale/Champion-System Pro Mtn Bike Team) took the lead and never looked back. I was able to pass everyone on the first climb and go into the single track in 2nd and right behind Brad. After 3 laps of following him I blew up! I couldnt handle his pace with my early season form. I eased off the pace and started to drift backwards. The second half the race was extremely hard for me since I had gone above my ability on the first half. I suffered through the remaining 15-20 minutes but was still able to hold on to take a 5th place finish overall. Racing a little smarter I could have most likely finished a few places higher (or maybe not) but I was just trying to give it everything I had to test where my current fitness is at this time. Overall it was a solid race for ASU with Clayton, James and I all finishing in the top 5. Later that afternoon was the Super-D race which is a leman start race (meaning everyone starts away from their bike then runs to it to start the race) with a slight uphill start then a downhill to the finish with lots of jumps and rocky technical areas. With many of us having running backgrounds we managed to get to our bikes before most everyone else and the rest is history. We made an ASU train on the front of the race as we took spots 1 through 6! Saturday evening after we all got back to Boone we went out to eat with my parents at the new Mellow Mushroom which is SO good! We all destroyed the pizza after working up a hunger from riding bikes all day. Sunday was the cross country race which was a 3 lap race for us (21 miles). We were all sore from the previous day which we knew was going to make the 21 mile race seem like double that. We all had a great start and were at the front of the race as we went into the first section of single track. After the first two mile climb it was all ASU and Jake from Virginia Tech at the front of the race. Unfortunately for Jake he flatted near the end of the first lap which left only ASU riders at the front of the race. Each lap we continued to widen the gap of the racers chasing us and ended up over ten minutes ahead of the next closest rider to us that was not ASU. Derek (my roommate) took first on the day while Clayton and I took 2nd and 3rd respectively. Overall I was pleased with how I felt this weekend. Our lap times yesterday were a lot faster than they were on the same course in May and most of us are not even close to our "race shape" yet. With a few more weeks of racing and hard training rides we should be back into top form. This next weekend we will be racing at Virginia Tech which always has some very tough trails. If we keep riding like we are capable then our goal of finishing top 5 at mountain bike nationals is not to far out of reach. We have a little under two months till we fly out to Angel Fire, New Mexico at the end of October for nationals and these next few weeks will be good indicators of how we will do out west.
-Zeb

Going up the climb

Digging up the climb

Quote of the Day: "God always gives the best to those who leave the choice with him" -Jim Elliot

Still A Kid......

So tomorrow morning I will start my third year.....not of elementary, middle or high school but of college. It seems just yesterday that I was starting kindergarden crying to my teacher about being away from my parents. That will be fifteen years ago tomorrow morning. So where did all that time go? What have I learned? But most importantly I ask who have I become and what difference have I made? Fifteen years ago cell phones were the size of cars and now they can tell you more than you could ever possibly want to know within a second. Fifteen years ago the price of gas was a $1.25, which is a third of what it is today, at best. Fifteen years ago Bill Clinton was winning his second Presidency term. A lot has changed in these fifteen years but I am still Zeb King. I am so different yet still the same. I still enjoy each moment of life for everything it is worth and I still believe in my biggest dreams. I once heard Michael Reno Harrill sing that, "The Journey Is Where Your Going But Also Where You Have Been" and this could not be any truer. I am just a small town kid with the ability to set goals higher than any sky scraper man can build. Everything I have done in my past, both good and bad, have made me the person I am today. I still go at each day with as much enthusiasm as I did from day one. I have been taught to love and love unconditionally and this I try to show each day. I realize how blessed I am to have the best family and friends I could ask for. Life is hard at times and it will knock you on your ass time and time again. It will push and shove you until you fill as if you cant take it anymore. You just can't stop fighting regardless of how hard it gets. We all learn throughout our lives but many forget important lessons (including myself at times) that could really help us out. We try to loose sight of our childhood at times which is the key to the future. Kids in my opinion are the smartest group of individuals we have. Kids are full of questions, ideas and most importantly the possibility that ANYTHING is possible! They can teach us that no goal is to high and no problem is unsolvable. They are full of belief which makes all things possible. Belief in God and yourself are two ingredients that start all great things. God is all around and always accessible. He is love and bleeds love for each of us. He believes in us!

So here in a few more hours I will be walking to class but at the age of 20 and not 5. I will take what I know and use it to ask many questions tomorrow. I still have no idea what my future my hold but I do know where I have been and who I am. I will try to show my passion and love for life to hopefully inspire others that feel they have lost theirs. But most importantly tomorrow morning I will still be a kid without a fear because I know that I still have the ability to dream and accomplish anything that I set my mind to. Our possibilities are endless as long as we give it a shot of everything we have! So I encourage everyone to wake up tomorrow morning and say why not and go after the dreams they have been holding back from because if you do not go after them, then no one will!

Quote of the Day: "Can't Never Could" -Anonymous

The Summer of Bicycles!

So where to begin.....Well the title tells everything for the most part. Thanks to the support of my parents (my #1 sponsor and fans) I have been able to pursue my passion and travel all over the place to race bikes this summer. Just like most things in life, experience is key to success and this is no truer in cycling. Unlike running where the strongest guy always wins, cycling is very strategic and it is usually the smartest guy who wins. With their support I have been able to travel to Oklahoma, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania to name a few places this summer. Many of these races are NRC (National Racing Calender: Calender for Pro Teams) races which brings out huge fields up to 100 or more and some of the biggest competition in the United States.

Tulsa Tough:
 My first 100 person field came in June when I flew to Tulsa, Oklahoma to compete in the three day race event called Tulsa Tough. My first race was Friday evening and I was probably just as nervous as excited! The city takes huge pride in this annual event and it seemed the entire city was out to watch. There must have been over 5,000 people out to enjoy the racing (and the wrecks) and the local vendors selling food and brews. After few warm up laps it was time to line up and give it a go! ASU cycling Coach Sean Weddell was there with me and also his wife Melissa and many of my friends and family were watching the live stream online so I knew I needed to try and put on a show. The bell rang and we were off. Heart beating out off control as we flew into the first turn, wheels rubbing wheels and shoulders leaning on shoulders. Every chance I could I was trying to move up and find a new wheel to follow. Every lap it got faster and people started fighting more and more at the front of the race. The faster it got and the closer to the end it got, the more people were willing to take chances and lay it all on the line for a win. This always increases the chance for wrecks as the emotions overtake the idea of safety. For most of the race it seemed I was hanging on the very back but I was actually mid pack unable to see the front of the race nor the end of the race. Sean kept yelling for me to move up and I was giving it everything I had to try. It was painfully fast and hot as hell (97 degrees) and the idea of dropping out definetely crossed my mind a few times but I have never been able to accept quitting as an option. I had no idea how I could move up when I was in 50th and needed to be riding top 10 going into the last few laps especially when the front of the race was an entire turn ahead of me and out of sight. I thought about how privileged I was to be here and about my future aspirations and somehow found some hidden strength and dug real deep to kick it up another gear. During the last 5 laps I consistently moved up a spot every chance I saw an opening. It got super hectic and I continuously heard the sound of wrecks behind and beside me as carbon and metal slid across the road with people attached.  The bell finally rang for the last lap and there I was sitting top 10 ready to give it a go for the win! Unfortunately one of the guys leading the race wrecked in the next to last turn and I lost a few spots but still managed a 12th place finish which I was very ecstatic about! It was a true experience in and of itself.  It gave me confidence going into the next two days of racing. On Saturday I tried a few times for a breakaway but never managed to get to far away from the field and had nothing left in my legs at the end finishing 50th. Sunday had the famous "Cry Baby Hill" and I knew that it would be an extremely tough race from the start. Every lap the field would lose a person or two and by the end half the field would be gone. I stayed top 5 for the majority of the race and tried everything I could but just didnt have enough on the final lap to take the win finishing 15th. Reflecting back if I had raced a little smarter I could have more than likely won the race and collected a pretty huge paycheck but hindsight is always 20/20 right? None the less I was proud of my accomplishments having finished top 15 in two out of the three races in my first test on the national level without any teammates!

Going up "Cry Baby Hill" with the lead pack at Tulsa Tough.

Tour of America's Dairyland:
Mom and I took off on a two week vacation (maybe you can call it that?) to America's Dairyland aka Wisconsin. I was taking part in ToAD which was a 10 day stage race featuring 8 criteriums, 1 road race and 1 time trial. This would be an entirely new experience racing for 10 straight days with no breaks. I went to the Tour hoping to get three top 10's. The first few days, the racing was hectic and guys seemed to be wrecking and doing silly things for no reason. This was frustrating along with the fact I was not getting the results yet that I was hoping for. Finally on the third day I broke through and grabbed a 7th place finish and gained some confidence and reassurance that I am capable of racing in these huge fields in which every rider is as strong or stronger than me. I would also go on the grab two more top 10 finishes in the next three days with a 6th place in the Shlitz Criterium and a 6th place in the Ripon TT. During the Downer Classic in Milwaukee, I was riding with sky high confidence with my recent results and the fact that my collegiate teammate Clayton Omer was racing with me. Either one of us or both of us were in every breakaway of the day and both of us were riding extremely well with a high finish quickly approaching. Unfortunately a wreck took out at least a third of the field with three laps remaining including myself. Clayton was able to avoid the wreck and go on to finish 9th. The 10th stage and final race was the Madison Capital Criterium which was laps around the state capital building. I was set to get a break to stick on the final day and attacked with 2 others on a preme lap in which they sat up after the preme but I decided to test my legs and go solo. I spent quite a few laps off the front giving it everything my legs had left in them after 10 days of racing but it was not enough to stay away and I eventually got reeled in by the field with 5 laps to go. All together it was a great 10 days of racing and spending time with my "cheesehead" family that lives in Green Bay. My goal of three top 10's had been accomplished and my experience seemed to grow each day.

Following collegiate teammate Clayton Omer (Papa Johns) wheel in criterium.

Zooming through a turn!

                                          Leading the pack!

                  Prior to huge wreck at Downer Classic in Milwaukee.                    

Aunt Katherine, Mom, Me and Uncle Mike after a race.

People's Community Bank Omnium:
A few friends and I went to Tennessee at the end of May to race the People's Community Bank Omnium that included a road race that finished with an 8 mile climb up Roan Mtn, a individual time trial and a downtown Johnson City criterium. I was going into the race with pretty good fitness following the collegiate season and thought I had a legit shot at winning the omnium overall. Saturday morning was the road race and we camped on top of Roan Mtn on Friday evening to be real close to the start of the race. The field stayed together to the base of the climb beside a break away of three (that would all die on the climb as we went flying past them) but unfortunately my legs sucked and a few guys rode away from me a few miles into the climb. I then got in a rhythm and went my own pace but they were long gone. I finally made it to the top of the climb at 6,000 ft in 9th place and was glad to see a buffet of food and drinks waiting my arrival (my roommate Derek had a great day finishing the road race in 4th). Not doing as good as I was capable of in the road race meant I had my work cut out for me in the remaining TT and crit. If it wasn't already hard enough for me to have a chance to win the omnium after the road race then missing my start for the time trial by 25 seconds didn't help either. Luckily I am pretty decent at TT's and my legs were feeling good unlike the road race and I was able to finish 7th even though I started 25 seconds down compared to everyone else. After the first two events I was sitting 7th overall in the omnium and knew from calculating the points that there was only one way to win the omnium was to win the criterium the final day. It was a big task but coming into the race winning 3 out of my last 4 criteriums (Duke Crit, Wake Forest Crit and Matt Witting Memorial Crit in Wisconsin) I was confident that it was still an achievable goal. After riding a few warmup laps I could tell that it was perfect for a breakaway if the right people got together because there were some tight and turny sections that a breakaway could go through much faster than the main field. During the first few laps of the race I sat on the front and tried to make it fast but no one else seemed to want to help. I then decided to sit in for a lap and recover then put in a strong move and try to ride off the front. So on the 5th lap I attacked the field and got a gap of 30 seconds or so. When I came back around on the next lap I saw that the lap counter had been put up and we had 22 laps remaining. SHIT! Here I am needing to win this race yet I am in a breakaway by myself with a lot of laps remaining. I was stuck in a tough spot trying to decide if I should go back to the field or if should try to go solo for the remainder of the race. I decided to go for it! I put my head down and just started pushing my pedals over as fast as I possibly could. Every lap hurt more and more but each lap was one closer to the finish line and one in which I was still in the the drivers seat headed for the win. Suffering is one of the hardest things to describe but to me it is like the name of John Mellencamp's song "Hurt So Good". It was hurting to be in a solo break but I was damn sure that winning would feel so, so good. I just kept finding things every lap to motivate me just that little bit more and it worked! I came across the finish line 40 seconds ahead of the field for the solo win! Not only did I win the criterium but I also won the omnium! My first omnium victory!

  Solo win in the crit with no field in sight!

Tour de Toona:
Just this past weekend Reid, Derek and I went up to Altoona, PA for the International Tour de Toona which is the largest Pro-Am bike race in the United States. We were doing a 75 mile road race on Saturday with two huge climbs and a total of 6,000 ft of climbing throughout the race. Doing a lot of hour long criteriums all summer made the length of the road race become a real shock to my legs. It was extremely hot and lack of food during the race caused me to have to fight cramps off in the late stages of the race. A breakaway of two had escaped early in the race but I was in the first chase group of 10 riders. We were unable to catch the two but came real close. I was unable to contest the others in my group for the sprint because of cramps so I coasted in for 12th place which I was pleased with considering my conditions. Derek would finish 26th and Reid would finish 6th in his race. The following day in the crit I had no cramps and was active at the front the entire day. I ran over a nail half way through which flatted my tubular so I had to grab a Zipp wheel from SRAM's neutral support and was able to hop back into the field with no penalty. I then tried a breakaway with Jacob Aber, a Virginia Tech rider but after a few laps we were reeled back in. The field ended up staying together setting up a field sprint for the win. I was sitting perfectly in 4th place in the final turn ready to sprint for the win when all of a sudden the guy I was following slid out causing me to wreck at 32 mph but luckily when I flipped over him I was able to embrace my fall by landing on a wall of hay. So what could have possibly been a victory and a shot at the omnium ended real quickly in the final turn. But that is how it goes sometimes, you win some and you lose some.

Covered in hay but not a bit of road rash (luckily)! 

So I am taking a little break from cycling right now which is needed after months of racing without a break. Now with spare time I am doing some summer school and currently doing this instead of studying for upcoming test. More stories to come soon that involve things besides bicycles, though there are not many things in my life now that don't involve bicycles and racing in some form or another.

Follow me on twitter @Zeb_King for more up to minute stuff.

Quote of the Day: "Dream Big and Make it Happen!" -Carla Swart

Racing Conference Championships at VT (with pink cast)

Leading Team Time Trial