"The Point of the Letter is Not to Scare You"

It's been my experience that when someone tells you "I am not trying to ________ you" (Fill in the blank: scare, discourage, threaten, etc.) that is precicely what he is trying to do. This morning I received the following email from the organizers of the Alyn bike ride that bears out this point.

Congratulations! We understand that you have signed up for the Challenge Route on the Alyn Charity Bike Ride. Perhaps you have heard through the WOL grape vine that the Challenge Route is completely filled and we have an ever-growing waiting list.

We’re sure you’re all charged up and fired to go, but, before the other routes fill up, we just want to make super extra sure that you know what lies ahead, aside from lots and lots of road.

The Challenge Route is intended for remarkably experienced and strong cyclists. Unlike the regular road route where riders basically ride at their own pace–some on road and some on off-road bikes--the challenge route is far more intensive and riders will be expected to keep up with the rest of the group. Unlike the other routes, which are also rather challenging, there are no ‘recovery ride’ days and far fewer pit stops per km/mile. In short: it’s called a challenge route, because that is exactly what it is!

The point of this letter isn’t to deter or even scare you. We just want to make sure there aren’t any misunderstandings later on. (emphasis added)

Having said all that, we want to welcome you to WOL’s latest route addition and wish the best of luck training and raising as much as you can for the great kids at Alyn.

Scaring people off the challenge route is precisely the purpose of this letter. It is oversold and the organizers are concerned that some riders (mainly those who have not done an Alyn ride yet), don't know what they are getting into and have bitten off more than they can chew.

(BTW, I have reviewed the list of riders who have signed up for the challenge. With the exception of one guy who needs to lose 25 pounds (and possibly me), all of the people that I know who have signed up are certainly capable of doing the challenge. I am actually very concerned about my ability to keep up and wonder whether I've gone off the deep end).

So, next time someone says, I don't mean to ________, you will know that the opposite is probably true.