Stick or twist?
Today I should be tired – with a tinge of accomplishment. Because today should be my first day back in the UK after my inaugural cycling retreat in Andalusia.
Instead, I am in Bedfordshire, deep in a big week of online client delivery. Fulfilled with work but slightly yearning for the low-level aches that come after several days of riding in the mountains.
This story starts back in the Spring. Once Breakaway Andalusia had formed as a solid idea – I set a date and lined up a brilliant local partner. Together we started planning what Breakaway’s first multi-day retreat could look like, basing ourselves in the gorgeous UNESCO world heritage town of Ronda.
Then practical reality caught up with the ambition.
The thing is – it takes time to line up the logistics for these kinds of things when quality matters. The right hotel, price, structure, routes. And by the time we did, people had already made plans for 2026. The numbers weren’t there and time was ticking.
A decision needed to be made.
(I wrote more on making decisions a few weeks ago on LinkedIn – and linked it to Ferris Beulller’s Day Off – you can read that one here: https://shorturl.at/PPNJX!)
Sorry – I distracted myself there. The decision. Do I push ahead with a compromised version to hit the date I’d already told people about or wait and build something I’d actually be proud to put my name to?
Do I stick or twist?
The answer to that question is never easy – and never the same. And sometimes the gamble is worth it.
For example – take Primož Roglič; four-time winner of the Vuelta a España (Spain’s version of the Tour de France). In late July he was facing the impact of crashing his bike mere weeks before the race – the grand tour that he’d publicly set his sights on for 2026.
He was the one top level rider who’d trained to peak at that race – a late career attempt to be the first rider to win five Vuelta titles. Having told fans that was the target, he then faced the prospect that if he did start, he may not even finish if he hadn’t recovered enough.
Of course, the reality is the gamble ever so nearly paid off. His performance was decent enough to finish second to Spaniard, Enric Mas. These are the close decisions that top-level performers make, all the time. For him, ploughing on worked.
Speaking of top-level performers – back to me. 😂
I didn’t plough on; I chose to wait. There was too much at risk.
So here we are today. The day after the original planned retreat. And the great news is that it is back on for Spring 2027.
We’ve lined up a new hotel (secretly the one I’d always wanted) and I am excited about doing this with Andalucian Cycling Experience - a business that has over 20 years of experience running rides out of Ronda.
I believe it will be better for the delay, not despite it.
As the founder of my business, being decisive doesn’t mean just pushing through or deliver at all costs. As I learned during my time as a leader in a FTSE100 business, sometimes the better decision is to know when to stop something and do it properly.
Maybe this resonates?
When you face the kind of decisions that need more than a cursory “pros and cons” discussion – how do you create the space to think? To make sure that you know whether to push on, or find a new road forward…?
It could be as simple as blocking out time each week.
Perhaps you have a group of friends that you check in with.
Or maybe you jump on the bike for a few hours of quiet thinking.
Whatever you do, remember that you don’t always have to stick with the decision you already made. Sometimes it’s better to twist and shout, baby.
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If you have some big decisions ahead and want some proper time to work that through – time that’s structured, away from the office, laptop, phone and with a group of peers who are facing the same kinds of challenges and also love their bikes, then drop me a line.
Breakaway Andalusia is definitely for you.
29 April-3 May 2027.
Maximum of six leaders.
20% early bird discount for the first two people to sign up.
