Today is the Autumnal Equinox. I've always "celebrated" equinoxes to some degree. I'm not sure of the exact reason why, but I find the idea of balance fascinating. This one was a little extra special for me.
In an odd coincidence, I'm still holding on to my longest consecutive streak of riding a bike at least once a day (currently at 185 days), a streak that has nearly spanned the last two equinoxes. The Spring equinox had passed three days prior to March 22nd, the day when Ohio Governor Mike DeWine issued a shelter-in-place order due to COVID-19, the day when my life was first altered by the events of 2020.
It's been exactly 6 months since that day, and I've been on a bike for every day in those 6 months. For those of you who have regularly visited this blogspace, you may have noticed that I haven't actually checked in here in quite some time despite all that riding (stats may follow later if I feel up to it), and there are a couple reasons why:
- Most of my rides aren't anything special. It could literally be a lap around the block in the morning or evening just to get my legs moving or to wind down at the end of the day. "Nothing to write home about" in the most literal sense of the phrase.
- I'm not riding a bike to create content for the blog. In fact, I've rarely done that in the 5+ years I've kept this blog going.
So why have I kept on riding? Sanity. It's that simple. Even if I only get 5 minutes a day, 5 minutes of sanity is sometimes all I need. You could also call it balance. You might also know that I totally planned on hitting 6 months of consecutive riding on the equinox, the ultimate day of balance. OK, maybe not. Anyway...
As I mentioned above, most of my rides haven't been spectacular, but there have been some good moments. Rather than go through a lengthy photo stream of the past 6 months, I decided to pick my favourite photo from each month, plus a photo from this morning:
A beautiful, crisp late March morning in Grove City, several days after the streak started.
I stumbled upon this temporary plastic sheeting mural in the Hilltop area of Columbus on a ride home during 30 Days of Biking in April. Side note: this was the first 30DoB I've ever spent solely in one state.
Social gatherings were still limited in May, but since it's pretty easy to be socially distant on a bike, some friends and I decided to have a small group ride with a brief end stop for an outdoor adult beverage at Grove City Brewing.
In yet another 100% planned event, I found myself in Manhattan on day 100 of this streak. Thanks to CitiBike for helping me keep it alive through the end of June and into July.
I ended July with an all-day 60-mile solo adventure around Columbus. It was sorely needed on many levels.
I'd somehow visited three states during this streak before August rolled around, but I visited one of them again (Indiana) when my girlfriend and I decided to take a camping/float trip to our neighbor to the west. By the way, camping is another great socially distant activity.
Make that four states, as the family and I visited my hometown on Labor Day weekend after nearly 6 months away.
And finally, a view of my bike inside the warehouse after my morning commute. The sunrise was much more beautiful than the picture would indicate. An industrial park isn't necessarily the most photogenic of locations, but you get the point.
I'm not going to go too in-depth on riding stats because a) I don't feel like it. b) I'm not sure you actually care, and c) I'm not actually training for anything...but I
did want to share one number with you: 200. Because of all of these mostly small rides adding up, I'm about 200 miles ahead of my distance from last year at this time, and just over 200 miles away from my total for all of last year (with thanks to
Strava). Doing the littlest of things can make a big difference.
Beyond that, like I said before, it's about finding that peace of mind every single day, even if it's only for a few minutes. I still struggle to find that on a daily basis, as I'm sure many of you do. I encourage you to find a way, whatever that way is. And celebrate the smallest of victories when you find them. Riding a bike every day for 6 months may not mean much to anyone else, but on this day, I'm grateful that I've done it, and I see no end in sight. Happiest of Autumns to you.
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