Why we ride

On the surface, we ride for a wide variety of reasons.  To keep fit, to race, for the adrenalin rush, to save the planet ect.  But when it comes down to it, those are all variations on the real reasons we ride.   When it comes to riding while all the above reasons are great, they don't really justify the pain of road rash, homicidal motorists, heat stroke while climbing a never ending hill, bonking while miles away from home, shredding your knuckles on your bike while performing some maintenance, emptying your bank account for that new bike you've been lusting after, and the many other things that drive us nuts but don't stop us from getting out.

So again, I ask the question.... Why do we ride?  Well we ride for the feeling it gives us.  That rush as you set a new personal best time up that brutal climb, the sound of the wind rushing past your ears as you bomb down the other side.  The burn in your quads that tells you you're accomplishing something.  The silence as you ride out early in the morning to just the sounds of your wheels on the ground and your chain clicking through the gears.  The euphoric feeling after pushing yourself to your limit and the endorphin rush that follows.  The familiarity of your favorite helmet and gloves. The crazy tan lines.

I could go on all day, but when it comes down to it, we ride because it's fun, even when it's not.  It's that enthusiasm of a kid riding away from mom & dad without training wheels for the first time.... It never leaves us.  So next time you're grinding up a nasty hill, or commuting to work in the pouring rain, and start asking yourself why you do it, remember the excitement of your first solo ride and realize, even at it's worse being on a bike is better than being on the couch.

So I leave you with words of wisdom from my father (pictured on the triathlon bike above)

"Keep the air in your tires, and the wind at your back"