My Ride From Hell! (Blessings in Disguise)

This ride is from the 2019 Monkey Butt 100 in Western NY. A friend had told me about this "Dual sport" event and he said that it was a difficult ride, but I shrugged him off because I just came off of another event in Canada called the "Rock Hound" and I felt really confident because I did so well there. Boy I should have listened to him. I rained the night before and that changed the trails quite a bit. They were slick as ice and root salad was on every hill awaiting me. I must have dumped my bike over a dozen times on every steep hill. The DRZ is a pig on hills and it is not a joy to maneuver on a hill or pick up at an incline. There was one super steep hill that I was stuck on for over a half hour that I just couldn't get up. I was frustrated and sapped of every ounce of energy I had. I got out of the section as quick as I could - riding like a drunk because I couldn't concentrate. I pulled over on the road and had a cigar and was just about to go home defeated and my confidence lowered. Then Mr. Jay pulled up and asked me how I was doing. He told me that he was once in the same position, about to give up, and that someone had encouraged him to keep going. Well, he encouraged me to keep going, even though he was in the same spot I was in and about to give up, being drained from having a heavy bike on slick muddy trails. We rode together the rest of the day sharing our stories and turning a crappy experience into a good memory. That's what I like about this sport, the people are great and you create great comradery and friendships. A stranger stopped to help and it was just the shot in the arm I needed. Yes this was the worst ride of my life. Yes I learned that the DRZ was not the right tool for this ride. But at the end of the day, I'm glad that I went through hardship to create a good memory.