January 29, 2024

Freedom:

In our complicated society a simple machine becomes the means of liberation that let's you free your body and free your mind quickly and efficiently. The bicycle and you create a personalized tale of freedom every time you turn the cranks.
When I was a young teenager the bicycle was the preferred method of transporting myself and my friends around the neighborhood and eventually beyond to other cities. The best jumps were one town over and that was about a 6 mile ride one way to get to the spot. We did this regularly with no food, no water. Often times there was a friend with us that had money. After some haranguing and begging we'd get them to buy a giant gas station soda for us to all share. After this carbonated refresher that ended with a burp session we'd pedal home. It's amazing to think back at those times riding a 20 inch BMX bike that far. One speed, horrible seat to crank position, and we just did it. The goal was to have fun and we achieved this regularly. Then one day we discovered that taking the bus with our skateboards to different places was acceptable and much less taxing on your body. This transitioned to the BART train system (you could take your bike onto the last train car) of the SF Bay Area and that let us go much much further without driving. The adventures of these days are now a distant memory but the fun we had will always be there.
Fast forward a few decades and we get to the point of having jobs, mortgages, and familial obligations that require careful planning so you can keep the freedom flowing with bike rides of a different type. By different type I mean you're riding bigger wheels, going faster, further, and doing it with friends you may not have grown up with, but the stoke is the same. One of my favorite rides is to load up my bike with as much water and food I can carry and to head out for 8 to 10 hours. It can be a flat long 60 miler, or uphill all day. Doesn't matter to me what the terrain. Forgetting worries and leaving perceived problems behind lets you focus on the task at hand, just riding. It doesn't matter if the garbage can needs to be moved off the street or a tool is left on the workbench. What does matter is you're unencumbered by the trivialities of life for a few hours or less. Escaping the complications society has heaped on us shouldn't be the goal, but in many ways it is. Perhaps it is time to review our versions of day to day operations around us and make some adjustments. For me that means more time riding, less time dealing with crap that just doesn't matter. You can define crap in your own way. Have a great week!

Peace,
Paul