Seattle to Portland 2017

I started cycling in June of 2017. A friend, and cyclist, had past away. In his honor we decided to ride the Seattle to Portland (STP). This is a 200+ mile journey that we wanted to accomplish in a single day. Cycling brings a lot of peace and meditation while on the saddle. Cycling has reinforced the following:

Setting Goals

If you put your mind to something, the possibilities are endless. I started training 6 weeks before the ride and it was the first time I had been on a bike for years. There were many times I questioned if I could make it 207 miles in a day. Each week I pushed farther. The goal created the mental picture of success.

Persistence

Reaching your goals is not easy. There will be setbacks. But these situations are not setbacks, they are the building blocks of the success.

Patience

While riding from Seattle to Portland the urge was to go all-out early. This comes back to the sage advice of the tortoise and the hare. And it is on the journey as you patiently wait that the small things in life may be the most rewarding.

Flow

Flow is just a term for a steady pace. In life, there will be ups and down. There will be emotional lows and highs. During the lows you can use the mental picture of being on the saddle to remind yourself that life is a journey not a race.

Partnership

I continue to work on this aspect of life. In cycling you draft of others and take turns to go farther. Best to daily remind one’s self of the golden rule. That childhood lesson is still one of the best.