Bike Riding & Community
I rode bikes a fair amount in college. I was into mountain biking for a while, but I was going to school in west Tennessee, the flattest part of the state. Not a ton of mountains out there. So I traded the mountain bike in for a road bike. I rode some with my roommate, but also a lot by myself. I would say, “I love just getting out there and riding, by myself or with someone else.” I must not have liked it that much, because after college, I pretty much gave up biking
In the last couple of months, I’ve picked it back up. I ride three times/week. Twice it’s a shorter sprint, and once/week is a long ride. I’m loving it! And I’m sticking with it. Why?
I experience community when I ride my bike.
You see, I don’t ride alone. I ride with three guys from my community group, one of their sons, and my uncle. Somehow, in riding 30 miles with people, life happens. Significant conversations happen. The distractions of normal life are stripped away, and riding through the country opens up the heart. I’ve built great relationships with these guys, and I look forward to our rides together.
Biking alone is ok, but I get tired more quickly, I don’t have the motivation to keep going, I don’t have the motivation to get up early and push myself, I get bored, and I end up going shorter distances, quitting earlier than I intended. When I bike with the guys, I am encouraged to get up early, to keep riding, to push myself even harder, and to finish the ride.
That’s what authentic, God-honoring community does.
And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all. -1 Thessalonians 5:14
You were a dedicated collegiate rider…tell them the truth, everyday, sun up to sun down…seriously though, i find the same thing is true in running that is true in biking…will go longer and harder when i’m with someone…keep up the hard work!
You should check out this website: http://www.freespiritadventures.com/
They’re awesome bikers (not the Hell’s Angels kind, the Lance Armstrong kind). They ride all over the world, and they run a great bike tours business in one of the most beautiful perfect-for-mountain-biking places in the world: Greenbrier County, West Virginia.
If you ever want to take a fun, inexpensive vacation and do some mountain biking, they are your local ticket to an unforgettable experience.
They’re also very personable, and good about trying to understand what activities you like and want to do, and then proactively trying to make that happen. Check ‘em out.
Thanks for painting a different picture of history than I remember. Actually, I think that Nathan was much more committed than I was. And I’m pretty sure he still is.