Cycling
I enjoyed over twenty years of vigorous cycling activity before degenerative spine disease forced me off the bikes entirely. During those years, most of my photography was done while on bicycle tours. In addition to many two-week tours, predominantly in the western states, I also crossed the continental United States two times: west to east on tandem and east to west on a single. Great fun, and among the highlights of my cycling adventures. (Brag Note: another highlight was earning the California Triple Crown of Cycling, the year of my fortieth birthday.)
It all seemed so effortless. The hundred-mile days, the mountains, the vagaries of weather - none of it was a barrier to the joy of traveling by bicycle. None of it was a hardship to the journey. It was all part of being alive. And I rode.
I do other things now, but miss the joy, freedom, and sense of accomplishment that I got from cycling. And I look at the photographs, and recall the adventures and, sometimes, I wonder if I really did all that. Only when it was over did I realize how lucky I was...
