I remember the day. 

I remember the group I was with. 

I remember exactly where I was. 

Out of the corner of my eye and across a field, I could see a spectacular home.

It was built on the edge of a cliff overlooking the Saint Lawrence River.

I could tell it was an architectural marvel and not something to be missed. 

But I did miss it, and so did everyone else. 

We were in a part of the province that was new to us and one that we would not be returning to any time soon. 

I asked if anyone else had seen it, and no one knew what or where I was talking about. 

Do you ever think about what you are thinking about while you ride?  

I began to think about the other things I had missed. 

I was riding in a way that would guarantee I would keep on missing things. 

Did I want to keep missing things? 

No. 

Okay, okay, I know I am in a group, and a group is not out to admire the scenery.

I get that, but there has to be some type of balance. 

On day four of that ride, I politely asked if anyone would mind if I did my own thing that day. 

I needed some balance. 

I found it. 

It was possibly, no it was, the best day I have ever had on my bike…ever. 

Everything came together. 

If someone asked me if there was a day when I realized ‘There is another way to ride,’ it was this day.

I am trying to think of an example, and I think a Greek Salad is a good one. Let’s say you love Greek Salad, and you have one whenever you see it on a menu. Then one day you are in Greece, and you have a Greek Salad, and you say to yourself, ‘Oh, this is a Greek Salad.’ 

I had a Greek Salad in Greece.  

I noticed everything, rode everywhere, stopped everywhere, and, best of all, made an incredible new friend. You can see four beers in the photo, two are his.

I decided not to miss anything anymore. 

Do the group rides, they are fantastic, but a couple of times a week, head out on your own and wear what you are wearing. 

Do you know what the best part of that day was? The night. It was a hot, sunny day. The kind of day you know that at some point there is going to be a storm. It came around eight, just as I was heading back to the place I was staying. The place I vaguely remembered and did not know the name of the street. Oh man, did I get lost, and oh man, was it storming. Then I saw this Movie Theatre, and I remembered it, made a left, got lost again, hahaha, and finally found my place…and knocked on the wrong door. 

‘Don’t miss it.’ 

Insert emoji with wide eyes here. 

‘There is another way to ride.’