Feeling ALIVE!

 Healing

Moring rides are getting.....cooler by the day. But, man - are they beautiful days. Last week got away from me with client demands. Only one ride, regardless of how much I thought otherwise.  Add to that the storm that blew through, it was not a productive week.  Several projects all coming to a boil at the same time made for many late nights working on my computer. Last night in particular I had my back against the wall with a deadline and details that were not easy. Going to bed well after 1:00 AM, felt like the college days all over again. This morning was a must ride morning, if for no other reason than to reset my sanity. Exceptionally cold, the blast of cool air with shorts really heightens the senses. As uncomfortable as it may seem, you really feel alive in every sense of the word. Nothing special, just the usual 40 mile out and back loop - but today it felt a little different. The leaves are falling fast in the Valley and the sun is getting lower on the horizon by the day. It feels oddly comfortable. In a way, these kinds of rides allow for a little healing - call it self controlled therapy. Probably not a better way to start any day at the moment.

How things change

It doesn't seem to be many years ago that I would ride directly out of my garage into North Fork and never see another bike this time of year. Of course there weren't hardly any developed trails, but it was still great. Time flies but I guess it was about 15-years ago my better half an I would go out at dusk with a couple lights on and ride the service roads through the cold and dark evenings. There were a few times you'd see a fleeting shadow bolt across the road, just outside of the headlight itself - making for some chilling excitement. Now days that park is non-stop bikes - everywhere. As much as I love riding in the dirt, it kind of gets hard to find the enthusiasm to be in that kind of a crowded environment. As such, the full-sus still hasn't been back out on the old stomping grounds, as it is much more relaxing to pile some cross county miles on the hardtail. Depending on what this week brings, maybe I'll buzz up top of the mule - because I still can.

I've started to wonder why things, pretty much everything, seems to change or be changing? Knowing a familiar place, person or circumstance sure makes things predictable. But maybe those changes need to happen to keep us from getting bored. Perhaps it is necessary to keep us from getting comfortable - and being comfortable will get you killed if your not paying attention. So why is it we resist change? We know it is part of the growth cycle and should embrace it, but we fight it. There are those things we can't stop when it comes to change - like getting older.  Have you ever reminisced about a time in your life when you thought things were truly golden, all while forgetting the hardship associated with that same period? Sure, we remember bad times, but do we always remember ALL that happened associated with "the good times". Truth is, as we age, we get better. Okay, maybe our bodies can't cash those checks anymore, but we know so much more than we did before. We are better equipped emotionally and mentally than we were when we were younger. But yet we still resist change unless it is of our own making. There are probably a billion analogies like "one door closing is another door opening", but we don't always see it that way. Things change because of the normal order of things. Embrace change and the opportunity that comes along with the new vistas - while you can.

Embrace that of which you have...while you can

It won't be long and there will be 4-feet of snow piled up on that road. We'll have those stretches of nothing and then the seemingly endless days of storm after storm. Riding will be pretty much "not a thing", unless dragging a bike somewhere else. Although I did inherit that stupid snow-bike this past year. Maybe I'll see what that's all about. Meanwhile, the thoughts of mile post 44 and the misery of climbing back from Woodruff will be a fond and wishful memory. Never mind the pain and suffering that comes along with that golden memory, I'll long for that pain and forget how it really feels before you get back to the top. Remembering only the satisfaction of passing MP44 on the way home, knowing there is still a solid hour of grinding to get back to Huntsville. During that time, I personally will lament ever wasting a minute not making the most of those past opportunities - committing to do better next season. Forget about next season only for a moment and live for the here and now. The big races are always won during the off-season, but eventually those off-seasons will come to an end. Look forward, not with procrastination, but with vigor and energy toward your next monument. Take inventory and decide what you can change, what you can't, the assets and liabilities. Look at the horizon and chart your own course - while you can. Don't be limited to a dream, but compelled by your own ambition to make it real. Shake it up and make it work!

Time to pay tribute - next post.....

I need to think about this one for a while....

Click here for "What is Life" George with the Wall of Sound.

Pulling for Reed! Ride because you can......