It's more than a ride

I feel a connection to the world around me when I'm cruising under my own power on 2 wheels. I don't feel this way about any other form of transportation. Winter, summer, cold, rain or humid heat, there something about a good long bike ride that is unmatched. I can go fast enough to cover ground at a reasonable rate, but still not miss anything.

I can look down a long open road and know that it's not just exercise, it's an experience.

I can see the haze over the field as the sun beats down from high over head. I can breath in the humid air and taste the mustiness of the wheat, brought to me by the wind over the field. I can pass some evergreens and smell the pine that immediately takes me back to my time in Colorado when the sent of mountain pine was so wonderful that I never want to forget it. Smells make great memories.

I hear the cry of a Hawk and stop to look up at a pair roosting on top of a pole. They look down on me as if I'm some strange being in this mechanized world.

I can pass a corn field and stop to stare at the dark green color. I might consider it black green.

The road is lined with spent grass and chicory with it's light blue flowers. Every mile has something to give.

And as the occasional car speeds by, I think to myself how thankful I am to be the man on the bike.