The Bike and Other Stories
Cycling adventures around London, New York City, and Berlin.
Geoffrey Armes
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HI HELLO
Modular
Geoffrey Armes - 2020-04-25 22:07:46+02:00

Like most cyclists I think, I see my routes as modular... they consist of various sections I can piece together in various orders in order to achieve various aims. For example, I want hills, or I need distance or to avoid traffic. This also means, at least sometimes, now that I know these roads well, I can go on instinct, feeling the state of the road ahead vis a vis my own needs and purposes. You know, if I need elevation I head to Schaeferberg or Angerburger, or to spin and cover distance I return via eBay, if I want all of it I go around the Lake via Krampnitz, maybe returning via Willi. Etc.

I often read books that way. But then, I rarely read fiction.

Sometimes though, it is important to cleave to an intention made back in the house. Once on the road ideas and wishes pull.... turn this way, stay out longer, make it shorter, sprint on the hills, freewheel down... but where is or was the conscious decision? Made at home an hour ago, or now, received in the moment with the clarity only a road warrior can have? I drifted from what this para is supposed to be about – honouring intention. Whether it was a favourable feeling or not to complete a certain circuit is secondary – what mattered was a consistency of purpose. Make a decision, any of those roads will bring you forward. Then best to stick with it.