Moving at the Speed of Life

“Nothing compares to the simple pleasure of riding a bike”

– John F. Kennedy

“Melancholy is incompatible with bicycling”

– James E. Starrs

Greetings!

Welcome back to our tidy little corner of the World Wide Web of the Internet.

Well, friends…this is it…The End.  Fall is almost upon us and it won’t be long before we have to strap on our workin’ boots and rejoin the masses in the pursuit of the almighty dollar, dollar bill.  Some of you may recognize this as the part of the show where I put on my Doogie Howser lab coat, fire up the word processor, and type out the whimsical epilogue of this summer’s adventures.  But before I get too far into what should probably be titled, “What I did on my Summer Vacation”, allow me to edify y’all on one simple topic.

There’s an important lesson to be learned in life: We’re programmed from an early age to believe that just because you CAN do something, doesn’t always mean you should rush out and do that thing.  Common examples include marrying your sister, belching the letters of the alphabet at the dinner table, listening to Bette Midler albums, and playing the accordion. Social conventions dictate that if we all listened to our inner voices, the very fabric of society would tear apart at the seams and the streets would descend into anarchy…Or would they?

Every now and then say “What the Fuck”.

“What the Fuck” gives you freedom.

Freedom brings opportunity.

Opportunity makes your future.

– Miles (Risky Business (1983))

Anarchy.

Pure anarchy.

I’m not advocating the pursuit of illegal activities – robbing the Kwik-E-Mart just because you feel like it is definitely a bad idea – nor am I suggesting you propose to your sister or probe the sticky depths of Bette Midler’s musical catalogue.  What I am suggesting is for just a brief moment, say “What the Fuck”, step outside your comfort zone and DO SOMETHING!  It’s no secret that the world is made up of talkers and doers.  I highly recommend you embody the latter.

Speaking of doing things, our last blog entry saw us getting busy in Cologne, Germany.  From Cologne, we had an important decision to make: Do we cycle along the Rhine river, or do we set out for an alternative objective?  My first exposure to the concept of bicycle touring came courtesy of Neil Peart’s book, “The Masked Rider”.  In it, Neil tells the story of his bicycle journey through Cameroon in western Africa.  I’ve read it a number of times and recommend you check it out.  After being inspired by Neil’s story, I began researching cycle touring.  This was back in the mid 90’s when the internet was shiny and still had that new car smell.  With my Intel 486 hitched up to a “space-age” 34k modem, the one thing that kept coming up in my AltaVista searches was tales of the Danube river cycle path.  It sounded pretty cool and I told myself that one day I’d check it out.  Fast forward 20 years and whad’ya know, I’m sitting in western Germany trying to decide where to ride my bicycle and the Danube seemed like a no-brainer!  Rachel and I talked it over and she was cool with it, so we went to the Globetrotter store in Cologne, got the appropriate maps and booked a one-way train ticket for us and our bikes.

Since passenger rail service in Canada is almost non-existent, for me, riding the trains in Europe is exciting and special.  I always like to picture that there is an “Indiana Jones” style fight going on up on the roof of the train and that guys are getting knocked off every time was pass through a tunnel.  I get a kick out of the signs too that have been translated to English from another language.

Back home, prospective perpetrators would be threatened with a fine or maybe a trip to jail if they messed with the handbrake, but here in Germany, they promise you will be “punished”.  This sounds way more sinister, like these guys aren’t gonna call the cops, they’re going to make an example outta you with a public flogging.

We rode the train from Cologne to Regensburg, which put us about 150 km from the Austrian border.  The Danube path is one of the most famous bicycle routes in the world and thousands ride it each year.  This was intriguing (it must be that popular for a reason, right?) but the thought of that many people was also a bit of a turn off.  We agreed that we’d give it a shot and if it sucked, we’d just go someplace else.  After all, life is too short to waste on things that suck.

As it turns out, crowds were a non-issue and the riding was flat and easy.

All told, we rode about 450 km from Regensburg to Vienna.  The scenery was cute and pleasant but it wasn’t jaw-dropping and the riding was by no means challenging.  I began to realise that this path isn’t famous for the vistas, but more for the fact that’s it’s so accessible.  Indeed, we passed many families riding with small children and for them, it is a perfect choice.

The route did have its moments though, like when we suddenly found ourselves in the middle of a wedding party parade.

It was pouring rain but the bride had a huge smile as she made her way to the church.  I snapped a photo, gave them a big thumbs-up and a smile of my own.  You could tell there was no way she was going to let a little rain get in the way of her special day.

The river eventually delivered us to Vienna and it was there that we decided to end the bicycle portion of our trip.  We clocked around 2500 km of riding in 6 different countries.  I am so glad we made the time to take this trip.  Rachel and I had both been to most of these countries before. Sure, you can visit London, sleep at a Westin hotel and say you’ve been to the UK, but it’s not the same as riding a bicycle 1000 km across a country and sleeping in a tent.  Henry Rollins summed it up best when he said that before you can form an opinion of a place you really need to go there, get your boots on the ground, smell the air, taste the food and talk to the locals.  Once you’ve done that you realize that we’re all humans and we’re all the same, and things like xenophobia cease to make any sense…Wise words from Mr Rollins.

Now, I could show you some more photos of our wanderings but tonight, we have a treat especial!  Rachel has been slaving day and night over iMovie and has produced a kick-ass highlight reel of the shenanigans we’ve been up to this summer.  I think she did a great job and if you agree, be sure to give her a thumbs up!

Click here to view the video on YouTube.

Disclaimer: I’m a snow white virgin when it comes to uploading things to YouTube, so hopefully that link works.  If not, let me know and I’ll happily send you a hardcopy on either VHS or Betamax.

Now that we’re back home in Canada and I’ve had a few days to reflect on all that’s happened over the last 5 months, a number of emotions come to the forefront.  First is that Rachel and I have managed to stay together.  Almost without exception, we have spent every hour of every day of the last 5 months together…This in itself is no small accomplishment.  The morning we started hiking the PCT at the Mexican border, Scout, our San Diego host pulled us aside and said, “If I can give you one bit of advice for your journey, it’s this: Be kind to each other”.  Wise words indeed…Words to live by.

The thought of returning to work and the everyday hustle & bustle is a complex emotion. I understand the need to make money to survive, to pay the mortgage, etc, and we’re incredibly fortunate that our employer agreed to hold our jobs for us for 6 months while we went madly off in all directions, but I can’t help but feel incomplete.  I want to return to California and finish the Pacific Crest Trail.  I want to get back on my bike and not just visit 6 countries; I want to visit ALL the countries.  I’m terrified that I’ll run out of time in life; that I’ll spend so much time working that there won’t be any time left for living.  I don’t want to wait ’till I’m 65 to enjoy myself.  I wanna do cool shit now, while my body is still up to the task!!…But such is the enigma of life.  Rest assured, If I figure out a solution, you’ll be the first to know.

In closing, I want to thank you guys for checking in on us this summer and following along online.  It’s cool that we’ve been able to share a couple laughs and spread the love and positive vibes.  After all, what’s the point of life if you can’t share it with your friends?

Hugs & Kisses,

Rachel and Steve