Car Free = Care Free

Last week was national bike to work week  and I decided I was going to ride my bike to work every day. After the first day, I decided I was going to go completely car free for the week. It was not an ideal week to do this. I had nightly rehearsals for a dance recital, volleyball games to get to, friends to meet with, errands to run and a not so short commute to work.

I could have easily decided I just didn't have time to ride my bike everywhere. There was just too much going on and I needed to work in the evenings. Then I realized there is always going to be too much going on.  If I didn’t make the time, it was never going to happen. The decision was made and I somehow managed to get everywhere I needed to be by bike. 

As the week rolled to a close I came up with 10 things that made going by bike pretty sweet. 

1. I could eat way more without becoming a total blimp
2. Saved me all sorts of money on gas 
3. Took care of working out for the day.
4. I slept way better
5. I was surprisingly more productive
6. I got to eat more. I realize I already said that, but I kind of love eating so I am going to go ahead and count it twice.
7. I learned all the back roads. So, on those days when I must drive and there is a major traffic jam, I now know the super secret  back roads to get around it. Plus I never had to worry about parking! 
8. I got to be outside and enjoy the beautiful weather on a bike with friends 
9. I GOT TO RIDE MY BIKE EVERY DAY!
10. Way less drama and stress  

Aside from all the obvious reasons for riding a bike, the one that I wasn't expecting was for life to actually get less stressful.  A large chunk of my time was going towards commuting and I simply ran out of time for drama. If there was something bothering me I had a solid ride coming up to work through it. Amazing how a few miles on the bike clears the head and whatever may have been eating away at me became less significant.  

There are endless reasons I could give as to why riding a bike to get around is better. I could come up with a counter to almost every excuse there is. All, but the not enough time excuse. All the convincing in the world isn't going to work,  until you decide to make the time for it. Life is never going to slow down. "I'm to busy." and "I don't have enough time."  will always be excuses to not do something. Unless YOU MAKE the time, it’s never going to happen. 

How many things in your life are you not doing because you don’t have time? How many people are you neglecting because there is just too much going on right now? Seasons end, people move on, and eventually you are actually out of time. So stop now! Decide who or what is important to you and make time for it, because eventually it will be too late, your time will be up and you may have missed out on something really amazing. 

Make Time. Ride Bikes. Live Well 

My Relationship with my Bike

They say falling in love is one of the most incredible and intense feelings; and I would have to say I fully agree. Every spring I fall in love. I really can’t help myself, especially after the painful breakup that happens every winter. I can feel it coming. Days get shorter, temps drop and I spend less and less time with my bike.  Soon the day comes that my mountain bike is stowed away for the winter. We break up and the dry spell begins. If I’m lucky I may get a random hook up over the winter on a vacation to a sunny place, but it will only last a few days and I am back home longing for better times when I could bike every day.  

Then one day the snow starts to melt, the ground starts to dry and there is hope that maybe soon the dry spell will be broken. Then it happens. The trails open. All day all I can think about is that first ride and nothing else seems to matter. Every muscle screams and the lungs burn, but my bike and I have been reunited. All I think about is the next ride and all I want to do is ride every waking hour of the day. All other activities are completed more efficiently to make more time for my bike.  

I ride until I can’t think anymore, until the entire world disappears, until all that is left is me, my bike and the trail and I fall in love over and over and over again. 

What's your Truth

There are a lot of things in life I am unsure of, but one thing that is always true is biking. Good day, bad day, rain or shine, a bike ride is always going to make the day better. When I need the world to disappear, I find peace on my mountain bike. One of my co-workers put it best “You can’t worry about your problems when you are worried about not hitting a tree.” When I need to sort out the questions of life I find peace on my road bike. Nothing like miles and miles of open road to clear the head. Riding with friends or solo, biking is the one thing about myself that I know is true. 


I don’t ride so people will like me more. I don’t care what speed I average or what stunts I did or didn’t ride. I don’t have to be anyone or feel any certain way when I am on my bike.  I ride because its who I am. It’s the one thing that stays true when everything else stops making sense. 


What’s your one true thing?