Faithful Nest

I never expected this. But my core is grounded. I am fresh off of my very first RAGBRAI (Register’s Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa) cycling trip and the experience continues to aerate my mind. I am changed and I hope it sticks.

Backstory, for weeks I’ve felt stuck in a rut. It was becoming suffocatingly routine to begin my day with breakfast, walk, sudoku, internet wandering, lunch, dog park, make dinner, bike ride, and sleep. Sleeping my way through the days.

As boring as that is to read, it was worse to live it. I was not depressed, just numb and didn’t know it. A cloud of concerns, platitudes, events, minutia blocked my vision. I hadn’t written anything fresh in weeks.

The focus of a long cycling trip worked on a knot that was building. Every day required forethought into the next. Weather, equipment, clothing, energy management (food), hydration, and hours of daily cycling take a lot of focus. That re-oriented my thought cycles.

Nobody talked about the war or ice (unless you needed some in your drink) or bills or anything that didn’t involve today or tomorrow’s route. Yes, those are all worthy and mandatory things to consider. Just not in this moment. They have their place and it was not between Onawa and Dubuque.

The knot eroded. New friends were made. The amazing features of Iowa, the land, the people, and fun little quirks of RAGBRAI revealed themselves. If you don’t know Mr. Porkchop or Beekman’s, you are missing out. If you think “Bike on” means to carry on, you are missing out. If you think you need to spend thousands of dollars on a road bicycle, you are missing out. I’ll cover more of that in a future entry.

The people of RAGBRAI come from all the different paths of life we have in the US and even from foreign countries. And that is all right. Common courtesy was so common you could feel it in the air. Hold the KYBO door (IYKYK) for the next person. Wait in line for your turn to purchase and then to pick up. I saw one angry person in seven days and thousands of other happy folks. I didn’t feel the need to respond. Let me carry that to my grave, please. I do not need to respond in kind.

After arriving home, a friend mentioned RAGBRAI brain. As much as it was most likely meant as a liability, I think it was a revelation. I can ride 430 miles in a week. I rode among thousands of others and made it to the end. Most of all, I couldn’t hear the rat race. My confidence was renewed.

My windswept brain, heart, and ears were hearing the drumbeat of peace. May you find your rhythm of self-reliance and self-regulation. May your brain be windswept by just such an experience.