I carry the minimum when I ride. 

My minimum. 

House key, debit card, and a piece of ID. 

No phone. 

I carry the minimum for a reason. 

I like to make every ride, more than a ride. 

I like to make every ride an adventure. 

I like to return home from a ride with a story. 

I like to get myself into ‘situations’ on my rides. 

‘Situations’ where I have to figure things out. 

Getting into ‘situations’ is when the fun begins. 

Getting into ‘situations’ is when the story begins. 

It brings in a different dimension to my rides. 

Where am I? 

How will I fix this? 

How do I get home? 

How do I get out of this? 

What direction am I going in? 

There is no one around, I am all by myself.  

But you know? 

It always works out. 

I love getting lost. 

I discover new places. 

I discover new routes. 

I meet new people. 

I stop and ask directions. 

Everyone is always more than kind. 

It adds another dimension. 

It adds another emotion. 

There is something about it. 

The ‘lost’ on a bike is different from the ‘lost’ in a car. 

In a car, it is ‘losing time.’ 

On a bike, it is ‘adding time.’ 

I am lost, but I am still riding. 

If I am still riding, I am still riding, but riding lost. 

I think I know where I am, I think I am going in the right direction, but I kind of know I am not. 

Then the farmhouse with the beautiful white fence shows up again, and I realize I made a big circle. 

I try the road I questioned earlier. 

I head down, and after a while, I say, ‘Yeah, no, this is not it.’ 

I am in an area that does not see cyclists, so the man working on his roof is thinking, ‘That is the fifth time I have seen that guy.’ 

Being lost seems to come at a time when I have gone far enough, or too far, and should start heading home. 

I slow down. 

Try and figure things out. 

I wander down the other way, then the other way, and a minute later, I realize I found my way out. 

I just had to slow down. 

Slowing down is always my solution. 

I always forget that. 

The best thing? 

The next time I am there, I know exactly what to do. 

…But I keep riding until I get lost again. 

‘Why I Ride Naked’ 

Insert emoji with a magnifying glass here. 

‘There is another way to ride.’