Skip to main content

What Did You Say?

Finishing Strong
“Tomorrow my plan is to bike ride at least 60 miles, we’ll see how it goes.”

“What did you say?” asked Lori. “I thought we were riding 58 miles?”

Since my 50th birthday my self-proclaimed yearly goal is to complete a bicycle ride, in one day, at least my age, on or near my birthday. On August 17, 2014 Lori and I completed this years ride; a total of 63.5 miles in 5 hours and 17 minutes. A metric century!

With the advent of Facebook, Twitter, and other social media outlets I’ve been able to shout from the mountaintop my proposed goal to all who will listen. Even to those who could care less. This serves two purposes, to sustain a foundational fitness level as I get older. Cycling provides a exercise regiment and long-range goals to keep me motivated. Two, it challenges me to live up to my time commitments in daily activities and relationships. Yes, I truly love cycling. I’ve been a devoted bicyclist since about 15 years old.

The fact is, it’s not the ride that’s difficult. The challenge is - to do what you say you will do.

It’s a disarming thought, always do what you say you’ll do—simple but not painless. Show the world your commitment to integrity. More importantly, it is how you demonstrate dedication to yourself, your family, friends, and your community.

Believe me, after a full round of golf on Saturday, I struggled just to get out of bed that next day. Sore shoulders, stiff neck, stiff back, and I’m certain I could have fabricated a host of other excuses. 

As Socrates said, “Know thyself.”

Well, my legs felt fine. Those other aches and pains, nothing a couple of Advil can’t handle.

Surprisingly, I began to realize just how much everyone listened to my birthday proclamation. Friends and family began sending me messages on Facebook, texts, and phone calls.

“Happy Birthday Patrick! Are you going to ride your age???” from a fellow rider and close friend.

Saturday, 2:26 p.m. a text from my mother-in-law, “Are you through with your bike ride?”

From my brother, “Happy birthday Pat, big 60 gonna be a long ride.”

 And a phone call from my mother, “Aren't you tired? You'll cycle your legs off."

“Mom, the ride is tomorrow. There’s a lot less traffic on Sunday’s.”

So, the next morning I’m up at 5:00 a.m. preparing for our ride; checked the air in the tires, clean the chain, and inspect the gears. Now, what most people don’t realize is my best friend and wife, Lori, is right beside me.

With enthusiasm, she is up by six, has her coffee, prepares breakfast, and is ready to hit the road by 7:30 a.m.

As we roll away from the house she says, “I must be a crazy wife to participate in a stunt like this.”

“What do you mean?” I said, we play golf and do all the training rides together.”

Of course, she insists on taking photos and posting our progress on Facebook throughout the entire ride. Start time, rest breaks, food stops, and finishing times. 
Stretching

At our last rest stop, the 55 mile mark, her comment to me was, “I get to stop now - right? You ride home, get the truck, and come pick me up.” 

“What did you say?”

“Just kidding, I just need to stretch my back then I’ll be ready to go.” said Lori.

With the commitment of a trooper she rode ahead to take the attached photo titled, Finishing Strong. If you look carefully you will see our lunch attached to my handlebars.

Well, the next few days we will both take some well deserved time-off. Next weekend we will start preparing for next year’s ride.

“What did you say?”

The lesson learned is to always do what you say. No matter how silly and insignificant what you declare may come across at the time, people do remember.

“I call it selective absorption.”
Labels:
Location: Vista, CA, USA

Comments

Post a Comment

Most Popular of All Time

The Language of Home: Building a Sanctuary

This episode is  for anyone trying to find their footing in a new place—whether it’s a new city, a new job, or a new country. The light in Florence, Italy, has a way of making everything feel like a Renaissance painting—the golden hue on the stone, the steady rhythm of the Arno River, and the feeling that you are walking through a history much larger than yourself. I was there to give a presentation to a class of Gemology students. I was prepared to discuss color grading and refractive indices, but not to be outed as a language tutor . Feeling very much like a guest in a storied land, a hand shot up enthusiastically. "You’re the guy on the podcasts," the young woman said, her eyes bright with recognition. "You’re the one teaching us English." I laughed nervously. If you know my flat Midwestern accent, you know the irony here. I am hardly an Oxford professor. But later, as I wandered the cobblestone streets beneath the shadow of the Duomo, the humor faded into a powe...
Post a Comment
Read more

Practiced Hands: The 50-Year Warranty

What Doc Burch Taught Me About Staying Active. We talk a lot about "life hacks" these days, but most of them don’t have a very long shelf life. Usually, they’re forgotten by the next app update. But back in 1972, I received a piece of advice that came with a 50-year warranty. It’s the reason I’m still on my bike today, still chasing a golf ball around Carlsbad, and still—mostly—in one piece. The Kick That Changed Everything It started with a literal kick in the pants. A kid at school in Cuba, Illinois, was joking around and caught me just right. By the next morning, my lower back was screaming. My mom didn’t reach for the Tylenol; she reached for her car keys. "Let’s go see Doc Burch," she said. "He’ll fix you right up." Harry E. Burch, D.C., was a fixture in Lewistown. He’d graduated from Palmer College in ’59 and had been our family’s go-to for years. He was a man of practiced hands and steady eyes. After a quick exam and an X-ray, the mood in the room s...
Post a Comment
Read more

On the Fly–Taking Flight

In this special 500th episode,  On the Fly  is moving to a new home. Here’s why—and what’s staying the same. For a very long time (since April 2012),  On the Fly  has lived on  Blogger . Blogger has been a reliable host—dependable, quiet, and never complaining when I arrived late with another half-baked idea, a guitar riff, or a story that needed a little air. It faithfully archived my thoughts, my music, and more than a decade of curiosity. But the internet has changed. It’s louder now. Flashier. More insistent. Every thought is nudged to perform. Every sentence wants to be optimized, monetized, or interrupted by something that really wants your attention right this second. I’ve been craving the opposite. So today, On the Fly is moving to Substack . If you’ve been with me for a while, you know my quiet obsession: the A rt of Seeing . I’m interested in the moments we rush past—the Aversion Trap, the discipline hidden inside a guitarist’s daily practice, t...
Post a Comment
Read more

When Fear Becomes the Default

In this special episode, When Fear Becomes the Default. Early Sunday morning, I was cycling past a small veterans’ pocket park in San Marcos. The air was still, the streets nearly empty. On one corner stood a young woman, alone, holding a hand-painted sign that read: “Be ANGRY. ICE agents are murdering people.” I pedaled past, but the words stayed with me. I knew the context—the footage and headlines from Minneapolis the day before, already ricocheting through the country and hardening opinions. Even in the quiet of the ride, the noise followed. Two miles later, I stopped at a red light. A black car with dark windows pulled up inches from my bike. My heart jumped. My first instinct wasn’t neighbor —it was threat . I found myself bracing, scanning, and wondering if the person inside was angry, armed, or looking for trouble. Then the door opened. A well-dressed young woman stepped out, walked to the trunk, and pulled out a sign that read “Open House.” She turned, smiled brightly, and sa...
2 comments
Read more