The Joy of Riding

Fall is here for those of us in the northern hemisphere and a lot of us bikers are putting the two wheeled fun machines into the garage for winter.  That’s fine.  I get it.  It’s cold.  It’s wet.  There isn’t enough sun out and frankly, I don’t blame you.  But I’m out there.  I’m not boasting here, mind you.  I’m just saying that I really enjoy being on my bike.  I find a particular joy in being on the bike and feeling the wind rush past my face no matter how cold it is.

It’s hard to stay in this mindset though.  Just the other morning I went to get on my bike to ride to work and discovered that my chain bought the farm and decided that it didn’t want to be out any longer in the cold weather.  Disappointed?  Yes.  I had to use alternative methods to get to my job and for me that meant a car.  This concept might seem backwards to some, but to those that know the joy that I’m speaking of, they understand.  They don’t care what the weather is like outside or how they’re feeling or what brand of fun machine they currently have supporting their rear end.  They just like that they are out on their bike.  Riding wherever they are going and getting there when they get there because it is fun.

There are lots of different factors that affect our feelings towards riding a bike and for me these didn’t evolve into the positive aspect that it is today.  I started seriously commuting by bike a few years ago and it took me a long time to work into my current groove.  I dreaded some mornings when I first started.  I missed the comforting, soft, heated leather seats that I had in my car.  But I pushed on.  There were reasons that I had to do this and reasons that I wanted to do this.  The combination of those reasons pushed me to where I am today.

Today when I get up in the mornings, the first set of clothes that I grab are my riding clothes.  Then, it’s down the stairs to get some breakfast and look at the weather.  I’ve tried planning my trips around the weather predictions that my smartphone gives to me.  I’ve found that time and time again it’s best to just look out the door and see what the weather is.  Even in the cloudy/rainy climate that I live in, I can ride 80% of the time and not get wet.  And those are odds that I can live with.

So the next time that you find yourself wishing that you were riding your bike more, stop thinking about it and start doing it.  Don’t go for a super long ride.  You’ll kill your spirit before you get back home.  Just get out and ride and find the joy in it.


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