Keep Pedaling
There was a week in February 19 years ago where I had a lot of crazy good stuff happen. It kicked off with a flight to sunny San Diego where we escaped the winter of Pennsylvania. Then we attended a black-tie dinner and awards ceremony and while dressing up isn’t my cup of tea it was awesome to see my sweetie dressed up and on my arm! I also received an award and Will Ferrell shook my hand backstage!
After rubbing elbows with Hollywood I had a few days to spend with Jan checking out the scene. Then she flew home and I stayed an additional few days ONLY to ride my bike and prepare for the upcoming race season. What a life! It was a pretty sweet week that’s for sure.
The rides of the week took me exploring all of southern California. I rode through glitzy neighborhoods and caught up with the local group rides. My biggest ride took me from the coastline and ended up on a 5500-foot peak called Palomar Mountain.
This ride was literally all uphill. I remembered navigating through fields, small towns, and basically into the great unknown for a few hours. Once I turned onto the climb I was greeted with endless switchbacks and persistent road signs telling me how steep the road was. I weaved back and forth for what seemed like a long time until the road flattened out and I was one mile higher than my starting point at the Pacific.
It was a lot of work. Even with my physical condition being pretty good I felt like I accomplished something massive that day. I was also chilly. All that work and I was greeted with goosebumps and a soggy jersey.
As luck would have it there was a cute, quaint general store at the top. If nothing else I could resort to the old cyclist trick of stuffing newspapers up my jersey to help insulate my core while flying downhill for the next few miles. This was a pretty common thing to see at the top of the big climbs in races where eager, encouraging fans would hand cyclists newspapers to help them. They were free of charge of course because the cyclists and fans were a team of sorts!
So I waltzed in and spotted the Sunday newspaper. It was Tuesday. Lucky me I thought, I would get the extra thick newspaper and it would be free! This is just like the Tour de France, except I get a cashier and not hundreds of fans cheering me on.
I plopped the paper down on the counter with my soda and I heard the total. I remember staggering back a bit because my total included the 2 bucks for the 2-day old news. I didn’t quite understand but I kept my yapper shut. In my mind I thought he might see the need I had but he didn’t quite see my world as the same as his. And I didn’t see his world as a general store cashier like mine! I fished out a few soggy dollars and I walked out with old news and some fresh fizz.
The Sunday paper bulged under my jersey and I started pedaling. Soon I was pointed downhill and my speed was high. My newspaper blocked every bit of wind as I pedaled, carved the turns, and covered more ground. The more I pedaled the less I thought about a difference in viewpoint in the general store. There was a road ahead that needed my attention. Once I made it to the bottom I found a trash can and tossed my days old news away and kept on trucking down the road. The more I pedaled the less I thought about the past. It was a good ride.
It seems like there are a lot of times we see things differently than others. Our needs are not their needs. We don’t always see their needs. There’s differing opinions and different ways to deal with those that think differently! But I think there’s something to “keep pedaling”.
Paying two bucks for old news is one thing. It’s kinda easy to pedal away from that situation because arguing over 2 bucks and two-day old news in spandex is plain silly. Plus I got what I needed! But there are bigger things that come along and yet I still think “keep pedaling” is the best advice out there!
Years ago I poured my heart and soul into a business. This was the equivalent to riding from the coast to the mountain top! I worked hard and long. There was an investment of my heart into the people and purpose of the business and it could be seen as a success I guess. But I developed a longing to get out of my partnership and out of the grind. My family was getting what was left of me instead of the best of me. I was depressed and spent. It was a long climb for a lot of years.
A bunch of things happened at the same time but I had an opportunity to sell my part and go. The store would go on without me but would exist with a team of the same and different owners. There was no doubt that this was the direction God was leading me but it also was a completely open-ended opportunity. There was no instruction other than to let go. The road ahead was a mystery! The unknown sounded better than staying.
My thought was that I would sign papers and leave with handshakes and hugs. Kinda similar to getting a free newspaper when I was freezing years prior! But it didn’t happen. I worked the last day and put my key on the counter and walked out the door. It was the first of a few things that made my heart hurt. You can walk away with freedom but still feel wounded.
Keep pedaling.
Life can get heavy and hurtful. Pedaling on has taught me a lot about letting go and an awful lot about forgiveness. On the best days an attitude of keep on pedaling has me enjoying the present and excited about the future. The days that I stop pedaling keeps me looking over my shoulder or wrestling with things I can’t control. It’s best to make our way down the road and see where pedaling takes us. Pedaling is an attitude, an action, and way to live-on despite life’s losses.
I’ve pedaled a lot in my life and I have no plans of stopping. I love riding. And I need to keep pedaling and gain perspective on my situations. Through it all, pedaling-on keeps me out of trouble, out of bitterness, out of anger, and out of the character traits I don’t want! It brings me out of infuriating incidents, unfair actions, and troubling times and into peace.
Pedal on, pedal far, pedal till your heart mends my friend.
