Why We Ride

Brian: I ride because it's awesome. In fact, I don't understand why people don't ride. What I don't understand even more is people who used to ride, but don't anymore. I ride so I don't have to see unworthy people. I ride to stay in shape. I RIDE BECAUSE IT'S AWSOME!

Tracy: If you are someone who pursues a sport or an activity, you likely understand how that activity simply speaks to you. Whether you are competitive or not, your activity has chosen you and there is not a lot you can do about it now. Quitting, probably, is not an option. Biking, for us, is a form of addiction. And the pleasure comes from the high of being one with the bike. Of being outdoors, being active, taking the drop-off you didn't think you could take, startling and being startled by the deer on the trail, being stared down by wild monkeys in an orange grove, letting water run down you face in the humid summer heat...it is all these things.

I don't race, and I don't want to race. I don't compete, and I don't want to compete. If someone is riding better and faster than I am, I don't try to keep up; I don't want to keep up. I don't want to lose the purity of riding. I don't want to get caught up in trying to be first, to beat the other person's time, or even just trying to beat my own time. I don't need to be better than myself, I want only to be as good as myself, and riding for pleasure is the best way for a someone to see how good they can be.

That said, there are people who love their sport, and who benefit from competition, perhaps setting a series of goals for themselves. A marathon runner friend of mine has been training vigorously for the past year or so. His dedication, and the level of his addiction, are commendable. If you have been feeling unmotivated, or demotivated, read his blog to see how he has changed his life through marathon training.