I finally found the courage – and determination – to follow through with something I’ve wanted to do for a long time: dust off my mountain bike and begin to ride.
The desire has been growing in me for years. My husband Chet bought us both inexpensive mountain bikes when we were married six years ago and we have barely used them. Each year, it seemed like too much trouble to me to drag the bike out of the basement, fill the tires, adjust the gears, find a suitable bike path, etc. I don’t think we took them out more than once the last couple of years.
We did have one flash of excitement (and realism) when we were nearly engaged the summer of 2001 when we rode in the Colorado Courage Classic Bike Tour. Actually, a friend of mine (Dawn) dazzled me with her passion and practically strong-armed several of us, including an ace rider Bill and another friend Janice, to sign up. As a group, we “sorta” trained in the weeks prior to the ride. Chet also rode with me some before the big event to help train and encourage me.
But when the big weekend came, Chet and I chose the path of least resistance. We decided to join the riders in the middle leg of the three-leg ride in Copper Mountain/Frisco/Keystone
Breckenridge/Copper Mountain indulging in the overnight camp-out part with all the other harder core riders. It was the easy, less hilly leg. But it was still very hard for us, especially me. We were both puffing and panting up the few hills, watching the others in their colorful spandex whiz by. Those sag support vans looked very inviting.
One leg, one day, and we were pooped!
And so, with our busy lives, our bikes continued to lie dormant in our garage or basement…until this year…
Do you struggle with a desire to do a particular thing, but just don’t seem to have the gumption to “Just DO IT!” as Nike tells us? Have you been procrastinating because the obstacles seem more ominous than the rewards? Would you like to press through those obstacles and discover the joy of accomplishing even the smallest of feats? They may seem like such tiny baby steps that you are loathe to tell anyone for fear they will laugh at you that this thing was so hard!
Well, read on, dear friend, for over the next few weeks, interspersed with other stories, I will take you on my journey to “get back on that bike and ride.” I will open up about my candid “aha” moments – silly things – and maybe, in the process, you will be inspired to follow your dreams, trembling sometimes, but willing to walk – or ride – your way out of your comfort zone.
Know that I am riding tandem with you on your journey to pedal toward your dream.
