Fuzzy Edges: Life Without Caffiene

Fact: Bikes and Coffee pretty much go hand-in-hand. No time of year is this more relevant than in Fall when the weather cools, Cyclocross begins, and every weekend the comfort of a warm cup of coffee in any form is a mandatory companion for one of my favorite times of the year.
For the past few years, September 1st has marked the start of a pilgrimage to the ‘Cross. This readiness is a constant state of being – final training preparations, bike scheming, part ordering, and net surfing for video tidbits and anything remotely ‘Cross related. Another September 1st tradition is the annual caffeine purge: a cold-turkey abstinence from coffee, the only legal performance enhancing drug and lifeblood of cycling culture.
The goal is to regain the edge – a giddy buzz that a spring and summer of progressively larger and more aggressive coffees has made impossible to achieve. Over the last few months, my caffeine dependence has gotten so bad that I was insensitive even to the “Shot in the dark” dosage. Rock bottom was the week I took my French Press to work, the proceeded to drink an entire carafe before 10am.
For those of you who have never attempted it, going cold-turkey is painful and unpleasant, and a lot like having your head in a vice for the first few days. It gets better - you can drink decaf for the placebo effects which are actually quite strong, but the magic just isn’t there. Your brain languishes on simple thoughts and fuzzy edges surround every activity and emotion. By the end of the second week (where I am now) you are sustainable, and in the third week you actually start to feel alive again.
And then week number three ends and the first race is just around the corner. By now your tolerance is completely reset to zero, you have to remind yourself how good a coffee is, because your body has all but forgotten the sensation. All your preparations are falling into place, and the days before the first race are filled with anticipation and speculation.
The morning of the first race, you have your first coffee. I cannot describe how good this tastes – the rush of blood to the brain and the tingling sensation all over. ‘Cross season has arrived.