Cycling is like life. Cycling with no goal is meaningless. What meaning is there cycling in circles? Or living aimlessly? Meaning comes from direction and destination. Join me in my life's journey on a mountain bike :)

Blogging since 2003. Thank you for reading :))

Wednesday, November 28, 2018

Change

November distance: 54 km

Upper Thomson, 20 km. Decades pass and little changes. Then someone, somewhere, decides to widen this two-way road one way. Don't know whom, don't know why.

Things remain the same, then, within a year, or even within the blink of an eye, so much can change.

Change may come about by accident; someone somewhere makes a mistake, and someone else may end up paying the price, be it careless driving or unhygienic food practices.

Change may come about because of an impulsive decision, or a life decision made after much agonising.

Because of change, what was once important becomes unimportant. Like km clocked in a year.

I used to cycle as cycletherapy, for my mind. Now, it's for physical therapy.


Friday, November 23, 2018

What goes around, comes around

Upper Thomson, 18 km. One reason I started running years ago was, I got tired of dragging my bike out, the accoutrements and paraphernalia. Running was much easier; just about the only equipment I needed (besides clothes) are running shoes.

Instead of cycling in trails, do trail running.

Then, the injuries came. Injuries that last and last from single-day ultra marathons, which I didn't suffer from mountain bike multi-day stage races.

I reckon it's better I get back on my bike, for physiotherapy more so than cycletherapy!
 
And so, my bike tyres are going round and round again.

Wednesday, November 14, 2018

Back in the saddle, looking back

Upper Thomson, 16 km. It's been nine months since I last cycled. Many days, few rides, few km.

Much has changed. Then, I had to look out for mobile phone zombies jaywalking across the road. Now, it's not only them, but also PMD users zipping past at electric motor speeds, from pavements to roads and all over the place.

The road I've cycled on for over a decade used to be two lanes, two way. It's wider now - and one way! What used to be a nice loop is no more.

When we were younger, life used to be mostly play. Then mostly school and some play (school holidays). Then mostly work and little play (annual leave). These life stages are undergirded by family, friends, health and financial matters, in varying proportions.

The time will come when work is no more and other things come to the fore. Like family and the meaning of life.

Saturday, February 24, 2018

Relationships

Feb distance: 118 km

Sembawang, 31 km. I cycle to my friend's house for the annual new year visit, instead of taking the train. The change in transport mode is a break in tradition, to make time to ride. There are fewer people there this year compared to past years and I ponder about relationships.

Blood relations: we don't choose our parents. To be able to choose, we've to be around in the first place, right?
Work relations: generally, we don't choose our colleagues. We join a workplace and "inherit" the workers who are there. Sometimes, we can choose. For example, if we like a certain team and ask to transfer there. Or that team invites us to start employment there.
Marital relations: generally, we choose our spouse, except in arranged marriages. We don't quite choose our in-laws; they're part of the deal.
Friendships: this is where we have the most choice. Even as kids, we choose who to play with. This isn't as straightforward as it seems. We might want to choose certain friends, but those friends have to choose us too. And friendships, like all relationships, may drift apart. So, roadies tend to ride with roadies, ditto with foldies. Indeed, the prerequisite to join some groups is, you've got to have that type of bicycle first.

The above categories aren't mutually exclusive. Say, we join a group of strangers and make friends. One of them asks: "My firm is hiring. Would you like to apply?" and friendship becomes work relationship. A workplace romance blooms, which leads to a marital relationship. Or we could start with work relations and after resignation, remain friends / get married. So how does one start a blood relationship? Oh, when the relationship turns bloody, you say? LOL

Saturday, February 17, 2018

Over hydrated, over wrought

Mandarin oranges symbolise abundance. This crime scene
(littering, feeding wildlife) has abundant abundance.
Woodlands, 87 km. Today is my first ride in 2018. I don't mean it's my first ride in the Chinese New Year, I mean it's my first ride in Common Era 2018. I apply sunblock but I needn't have bothered.

Less than an hour after I start cycling, thunderclouds block the sun, from one end of the sky to the other. Instead of cycling on the road, I feel like I'm cycling in a stream. Water pours down on me from the sky, gushes over my shoes (that's how high the spray from the front wheel is), sprays me from the side from passing traffic.

At Sembawang Hot Spring, people sit in the rain, using wash basins as umbrellas, soaking their feet in hot water, as cold rain pours around them.

I get lost (literally). Thrills and (almost) spills, as a truck brakes behind me instead of running me over.

So exciting! This is my first ride since Jun 2017, a break of eight months. It's my longest break from cycling since I started cycling.

Life is unpredictable. Perhaps that is why I cycle: it is mostly predictable. It involves physics and engineering. It is physical: push / pull the pedals, it turns. Something squeaks? By the process of elimination, I can find the cause and eliminate the squeak. It may be tedious and frustrating, but diligence will do the job. Emotional stuff? That is a different world, with a whole new language and culture ...