Morgan McArthur for Vetscript, 10 December 99

It's funny how a pain in your bottom end can sharpen your perspective on the top end.

I learned some things perched on the seat of my bicycle on the Great Lake Challenge, the 160 km bike ride around Lake Taupo.

Five thousand bikes and bodies of all configurations gathered in November to circumcycle the big pond. What an experience! When the gun goes off waves of lycra and aluminium whiz down the road, riders fresh and churning into the challenge.

The course is quite... well, unnnnndulating. About a third of the way into this helluva-hill festival momentum and motivation have separated riders into ranks. Some cyclists are struggling while others are sailing.

I asked myself ‘what's the difference between those who're slow and those on the GO?'

Preparation, for one thing.

Consider the basic requirements for success: Riders must discipline themselves to do plenty of distance before the day - that's training and experience. They must have a steady steely steed - that's adequate equipment. And by all means they've got to carry enough food and water to be able to crank for several hours - that's good sense. (Um, a spare inner tube isn't a bad idea either.)

There is another important performance factor, however: If you want to go farther and faster you can't do it alone.

Experienced cyclists know that a long journey is not only more enjoyable but you can go heaps faster when riding in a pack. The physics of it? Having someone else help break the wind reduces air resistance by 25-35%. This is drafting. This is cool.

It is buzzy stuff sucking along in a slipstream dangerously close to somebody's rear wheel!

It is even better when they know you're back there.

Drafting is akin to a parasitic relationship, though. If a rider only sucks wheel and never breaks (the) wind then he or she is a parasite and isn't contributing to the team effort. However, if every rider is willing to do some hard work by taking a turn at the front, helping break wind for the rest of the pack, no matter how briefly, then the group as a whole remains fresher, more efficient and faster. This is teamwork. And this is The Best.

In a pack that is doing the drafting + teamwork thing the mission and benefits of contribution are clear, there is palpable commitment to the goal and encouragement for effort is everywhere. It is an extraordinary pleasure to be part of this phenomenon.

Trouble is, it doesn't happen very often.

Individual riders may have their own agendas or different levels of commitment. Maybe they don't believe that they're able to make a contribution or perhaps their contributions aren't encouraged or recognised.

Therefore, in a bike race and in life people often ride or work in packs but seldom as teams.

Leadership makes the difference. Help the riders in your pack see a common goal (ie, a finish line). Know that nobody likes to ride into the wind but if everybody takes a reasonable turn at the front the group not only performs better but that the job is actually enjoyable. Throw around lots of genuine gratitude, encouragement and frequent are-we-getting-there assessments and you'll soon see things happening. Work becomes playlike. Stuff gets done. Your load gets lighter. People want to be part of the experience and a team grows right out of a pack.

It took five and a half hours in the saddle for this message to pound its way from my bum to my brain. But it makes sense to me that success through teams can be as simple as riding a bike. Go ahead, give it a spin.

Ride on!

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