Why are you thankful for bicycles?

[spdcyclist]

The great friendships I've made riding with a club. :)

[Bruce K]

Health, camaraderie, quiet time, and fun.

Not to mention the joys of cyclocross: mud, blood, chocolate, waffles, and beer.

BK

[mnoble485]

The 25 pounds I am no longer toting around, the chance to spend time with my buds and to hear the click of pedals and feel the wind on my face.

Mike

[fuzzalow]

Comraderie of kindred souls, vehicles of mechanical beauty.

Cadence, pulse, velocity. Freedom of spirit and temper of will.

[firerescuefin]

Best place to think, not think, smile, expend, relax, talk, be still.....

[thegunner]

i used to have high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and be extremely overweight (think 100 pounds or so). cycling fixed all of that. i truly am thankful for good health :)

[AngryScientist]

i'm thankful that something i love to do is actually healthy. cycling can be both time consuming and expensive, but the benefits of falling into a healthy lifestyle are enormous. i'm thankful that the obesity epidemic does not reside at my house.

i'm also thankful for all of the wonderful buddys i've met through the years on the bike, and in this great forum.

[phcollard]

Buddies - in person or online, physical AND mental health benefits, freedom, escape, happiness, suffering sometimes but still smile about it, discover new things about myself, realize that I can do much more than I thought, many many things!

[54ny77]

at varying times: mental distraction, physical benefits. not necessarily in that order.

plus i don't really know how to do anything else other than maybe shuffleboard.

[Liv2RideHard]

Keeps me fit, healthy, of clear mind. Allows us to spend time as a family. My kids love to ride their bikes. Whenever I come in from a ride, they are ready to go for their ride with me. Love to see the joy on their faces and the bikes are part of why they are so happy and we are so happy as a family.

Guy

[Jeff N.]

Without cycling I would probably be on my second or third heart attack or maybe even dead. I was a total slug before cycling, so you could pretty much say that cycling saved my life...I'm 63 and all systems are "go". There's many other things for me to be thankful for with cycling, but I think that's enough. Jeff N.

[oldpotatoe]

Mechanical meditation.

[rounder]

Famous quotes on why we ride our bike.


I thought of that while riding my bike.
-Albert Einstein, on the theory of relativity

http://kba.tripod.com/quotes.htm

[shovelhd]

Riding saved my life. Returning to racing saved my soul.

[texbike]

The hum of the tires at speed, the soft resonance of a sweet Ti frame, the wind in your face, the sound of the birds, and the sights and smells of being outside.

Texbike

[Chance]

When out on a long solo ride it reminds me of my childhood when riding far away from home was my desire but wasn’t allowed to. Back then a mile or two from home had to do. Now there are practically no limits. There is just something about traveling 30 to 50 miles from home on your own power that feels liberating. Maybe it's feeling a little like a kid again.

Often wonder if being told repeatedly not to ride away as a six year old is what makes it more special today.

[velotel]

Because I can ride them and go lots of very cool places, I can beat myself up from time to time when the need arises, can send my head traveling I never quite know where when the effort and the blood pouring through the tubes electrify my brain cells, escape from lots of stuff, and maybe even send me to wherever when I have a total heart attack or something during a hard, good climb that I'm feeling wonderful on. Also they look amazingly cool, or at least my bike does (no eye-blinding graphics or colors).

[William]

I'm thankful for all the fun adventures, travels, excitement, discipline, pain, love, and friendship that I've found on two wheels.:cool:





William

[veggieburger]

Many years ago I read Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, and recognized a lot of parallels with cycling. You're actually part of the landscape, not just looking through a windshield.

Not only are you traveling, but doing something great for your body and great for your soul. And yes, you get to have fellowship with your mates who share and understand your passion.

[etu]

feeling healthy and fit

sense of adventure when i get to go on a one-way ride, either a tour or overnighter

learning (still) to "let go" on the descent

pain releasing endorphins that amplify one's appreciation of breathtaking scenery

realizing that most advertisements and marketing claims are not true

shared experiences with friends

[David Kirk]

Cycling and bikes have given me most of what I value in life -

I met Karin while riding. I get my clearhead time on a bike. I get my fitness and health on a bike. I make my living with bikes and have all my adult life. They make me smile every time I see or ride one.

I'm thankful and fortunate to bikes, riding and my customers that allow me to do what I do.

Thank you all.

dave

[dan682]

The satisfaction of passing huge lines of gridlocked traffic commuting through a rainy Seattle rush hour.

[the man]

Make me so damn happy. If I'm in a funk, I can always count on hopping my bike and cheering up. Go to the bank? - bike. School? - bike. Dancing downtown? - bike!

[Black Dog]

Almost all of the above, seriously!

Taught me how to suffer, persevere, discipline, work hard, self reliance... Perspective and living in the moment.

[BumbleBeeDave]

. . . has helped me learn so much in and about life. I'ts helped me keep a clear head when I needed it, deal with heartache when I wasn;t sure how I could, and stay fit and proud.

In a world where it seems so much of what we live and do every day is being done to us rather than by us, it gives me a special time when I'm in control. If I have a bad ride it's all on me, but if I have a really good ride and workout, it's a personal victory I don't have to share with any committee or pay any taxes on.

I've never been on a ride where afterwards I wasn't glad I went no mtter how hot or cold or how good or bad the weather. Even the ride when I crashed and broke my neck, because the aftermath of that ride has taught me so much about what is really important, how lucky I am, and how much I have to be thankful for. I will be thinking of that tomorrow when I head out of my driveway.

BBD

[pitonpat]

Thankful for:

The solitude, the physical workout & the endorphin release therein, the view of the natural world unseen by the occupants of whizzing cars, the warnings (pain) that biking gave me when my artery was clogged before I had a major blowout, the chance to spend quality time on the road with my two adult children who also ride, the opportunity to indulge the gear geek in me, the exhilaration of speed upon reaching escape velocity on a fast descent, I could go on......Oh yeah, and 'meeting' all you good guys & gals here on the Paceline forum!

Thanks, Pat

[thwart]

. . . has helped me learn so much in and about life. I'ts helped me keep a clear head when I needed it, deal with heartache when I wasn;t sure how I could, and stay fit and proud.

In a world where it seems so much of what we live and do every day is being done to us rather than by us, it gives me a special time when I'm in control. If I have a bad ride it's all on me, but if I have a really good ride and workout, it's a personal victory I don't have to share with any committee or pay any taxes on.

I've never been on a ride where afterwards I wasn't glad I went no mtter how hot or cold or how good or bad the weather. Even the ride when I crashed and broke my neck, because the aftermath of that ride has taught me so much about what is really important, how lucky I am, and how much I have to be thankful for. I will be thinking of that tomorrow when I head out of my driveway.

BBD

I couldn't have said it nearly as well. That pretty much covers it.

Oh... plus the positive feedback of getting mechanical things working nicely.

[BobbyJones]

"because I can't afford conventional therapy."

not mine, but worth noting.

[john903]

Thankfull for cycling's ability to make me feel alive and to be a part of life that is happping around me instead of just being in the audience watching life go by. Being aware or "in the moment" as you feel the wind, smel the air, and hear the tires humming along the pavement. Of course meeting other like minded people who "get it."
Thank You for a great post I really enjoyed reading everyones comments we all seem to mirror each other as far as cycling which is another cool thing we can all be different in politics, religion, work, but when it comes to cycling were all just out going for a ride.

[chuckroast]

It's where I do my best thinkin'

[soulspinner]

Seratonin

[giverdada]

it is the vehicle of so much more than mere transportation. my dad got me into bikes, real bikes. i built my first wheels in the summer after grade nine, for my first road bike. my hands are always stained with grease, and this has opened countless doors with troubled youth, manual laborers, shop gurus, and anyone else who might dismiss me for all the other things i appear to be. i have always had the privilege of working through my problems, heart and head, on a bike. i fix my bike, my bike fixes me. the love of my life rides with me, and farther, and faster, and she has made two more loves of my life, who will soon do the same. i firmly believe that bicycles make the world a better place, for so many reasons already listed, and so many more. they are therapy. they are community. they are learning and connection and beautiful and environmentally friendly and efficient and fast and whoosh.

thank you for this thread. this is the important stuff.

[Llewellyn]

Thankful to cycling for....

proving to myself that I can get to the top of that b****y great steep hill after all, even if it's slowly,

making me healthier then the average 49 year old, and

showing me that I can fix something mechanical without making a complete balls-up of it.

BumbleBeeDave....profound words indeed :)

[ultraman6970]

They keep my sanity!

[travis bickle]

The absolute best way to stay in shape. Plus, it is the most fun.

[drewski]

Figuratively and literally bicycling is a delicate balance.

From my perspective there is a certain duality that exists in riding.
Because I ride a bicycle to work most of the time, I feel a certain sense of vulnerability from sharing the road with car traffic.

However the choice I have made allows me to enjoy the peace of being one with nature and enjoy a sense of vitality that comes from going from the a office chair to a Brooks saddle.


I am thankful for the thrill of riding and for the consideration of people on the road.

[rugbysecondrow]

Funny enough, it has never occured to me to be thankful for a bicycle.

I am not.

[Bob Loblaw]

Keeps the men in white coats away.

Even after everything, it's the best sport in the world.

BL

[joep2517]

They give me the time needed to clear my mind and help me get healthy.

[bennie222]

They give me the time needed to clear my mind and help me get healthy.

I agree with this... it's my ME time.. which is hard to find at home with 3 kids.