Being from New York, it's funny how I hadn't heard about the TD Five Boro Bike Tour until I moved to Cincinnati. Maybe it wasn't on my radar because I didn’t ride a bike then. Even so, with thousands of riders (this year had over 32,000) and the roads closed to traffic, I'm surprised I didn't know about it sooner.
I never thought of myself as an athlete. Not when I trained to walk a marathon or walked/ran countless 5Ks, or when I started hiking and did close to 50 hikes with the Atlanta Outdoor Club. Not even when I joined a boot camp and went consistently for 6 months.
Depending on the circumstances and my mood, I tend to respond with the same energy I'm being met with. It is easy to be cheerful when someone is being pleasant. It can be just as easy to respond rudely to someone with an attitude. In some instances, matching other's energy may establish a connection or show empathy. At other times it takes away your power and affects your internal peace by bringing you down.
My husband and I had our first bikepacking adventure this weekend. It was an overnight credit card bike tour through our cycling club. It’s called a credit card tour because you pay for your food and accommodations with cash or credit cards (rather than camping and cooking your food). Packing light, we brought only what we needed and could carry on our bikes.
Sometimes, I have to remember to give myself props for my progress since learning to ride a bicycle two years ago. I went from a recreational and casual rider who used to think 10 miles was far to riding with a slightly faster group and completing my first metric century.