In the spring of 2020 the world kind of shut down a bit.
As COVID-19 took everything we know down a peg, things like going for a ride with your buds became a lot more difficult. Swift Industries, put together an event that would bring back the spirit of camaraderie to riding, only virtually.
I signed up for the event, and set out into some wet spring snow early on a Saturday morning. The week before had been hell, having to deal with working as a newspaper reporter in a time when people are both rabidly consuming the news while at the same time demonizing the people who are reporting it and trying to navigate a 300 km move with a ferry en route took its toll on me. Getting up early on my first real day off was probably not a great idea, but I felt the ride would help.
Like a lot of people who have bikes in their lives, going for a ride is a form of therapy for me. Finding a way to be ok in a time like this is exceedingly important, and I feel fortunate enough in my area of the world and in my circumstances in life that going for a ride is something that is still possible. I also feel fortunate that I have this outlet, where I can turn off everything that is wrong with the world and just zone out to my pedal strokes. I know a lot of people do not have that, and I am grateful bikes are a part of my life.
On the Social Distance Ride, I pedaled away from the world. I pedaled into one that is more familiar to me. Of grey, rain, dirt, gummy bears, tired legs, photography, and a few hours of silence and thought. Riding for me is an escape from the nastiness of the real world and almost a trip into a paralel universe where the rules are a lot simpler.
The snow stopped, but it rained on and off. I got all my pictures, Strava’d my ride and submitted it to the club page. But I didn’t do it for that. I did it to get away for a while, before I had to come back.