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Ride Your Own Ride
I first started riding a bicycle in 1974. While I thought I knew how to ride a bike, my first 2 years showed me how little I actually understood about riding a multi-gear bike. Once I started learning more about my bicycle, my enjoyment and appreciation grew by leaps and bounds. Some things made it more challenging, like riding with other people. I learned that other people were not happy to just ride along. They wanted to race me, or encourage me to ride faster than I would on my own. Fortunately for me, I quit riding with other people and rode on my own for the next 13 years. What I discovered riding by myself was priceless. I learned a lot about gear usage, handling, starting and stopping, gravel, heat, wind, distance, dogs and more. I rode on trails and roads and sometimes even sidewalks. What about you? Have you learned how to ride your own ride? Do you worry about keeping up? Holding up your fellow riders? Do you stuff down your own wishes and kill yourself trying to impress other riders? Have you been trying to get stronger, only to find that you are losing fitness? Try something different. If you always ride with others, try to get out at least once a week and ride on your own. Get on a trail and go for a casual ride (if you never go slow). The next time you see a hill, get after it and see how quickly you can climb that hill (if you always take them slowly). If you always blow up when trying to climb a hill, try using lower gears and taking it at a softer pace. The idea here is to feel comfortable exploring your cycling experience. When you are by yourself, you have the chance to experiment and explore. Give it a try. Get out there and find your ride - your OWN ride. When you do that, the fun will rise up to meet you!
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