#30daysofbiking - No big deal?

Fall is my absolute favorite season. Crisp mornings leading to sunny afternoons, crunchy leaves, vibrant colors all around. This year, it feels like it came on all of a sudden. I don't know if it's because of the drought, but seems like I got back from my solo tour on Labor Day weekend and boom!, fall is here! All the trees are suddenly in full on autumn, it's COLD in the mornings, and wool sweaters are a must on night time rides.

Cliche as it is, the lyrics to Green Day's stupid song, "Wake Me Up When September Ends" keep running through my head: 

"Summer has come and passed
The innocent can never last
Wake me up when September ends"

Well, either I slept through the whole month of September, or it flew by in a total flash. I think it was the latter, because I definitely did some serious riding. In fact, I think I did more miles than ever before (except maybe in May for Bike to Work month...not really sure, because I don't really keep track anymore.) Anyway, it was a bonus #30daysofbiking month. I'm not entirely sure who is the official issuer of this challenge, but I saw it come across Twitter a number of times, and thought, "Yep, it's happening."  With a multi-day solo tour and BikeMS happening during September, it was a perfect month to be intentional about riding for 30 straight days. Both of my previous efforts to participate in #30daysofbiking were derailed by injuries, so I was pretty excited about another attempt.

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Day 3 of my solo bike tour found things to be a bit soggy.

I had so many intentions about writing up my adventures, including my tour (I swear, it's coming someday), but seriously, the month ran away from me. My weekends have been spent at The Bikery,  a non-profit bike kitchen where I've been wrenching and doing social media and week nights have been a flurry of riding and dating and all sorts of good things!

But, September is over, and success! I rode all month long, completed my first solo tour, my longest 1 day ride, and rode all 30 days! Here are my non-profound thoughts now that it's over:

• Fenders: A+. We all need them. Yes, you too dude in front of me riding down Capitol Hill.
• I don't have a need for speed anymore. I'm perfectly content letting the Cat 6 racers battle the cars in the morning (and each other) just to get to the next red light. 
• There's a police officer at 2nd/Union in the afternoons who helps cars exit the parking garage so they don't hit cyclists in the bike lane. I love this guy. Thanks for being there and always giving us the right of way.
• The sound of a car going over a center lane rumble strip is the best sound you can hear while riding down a highway. It means somebody is giving you lots of passing room.
• It's ok to ride an 80 mile charity ride on 42mm tires and a touring bike with a front basket. It just means you'll be the most comfortable one out there all day.

And now it's time for #coffeeneuring. #rideallthebikes

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Dinner with a view on Night 1 of my tour.

How I Started Riding Bikes

I get this question all the time. "Marley- how in the world did you get so into bike riding?" or "You commute to work EVERY DAY by bike? How in the world did you start doing that?" Honestly, it's the only happiness I've found in my adult life. I've been running away from a deep unhappiness, lonliness, and unfulfilled life for such a long time and bicyling is the only thing that has felt right. I don't know that will continue to fill this void in my soul, but for now, it is working.

With my bike, I feel like I can explore anywhere. I can just go. I am free. I'm not constrained by anything except my own body, and that I can refuel, rest, and keep going. Nobody else but me can disappoint, betray, leave behind, or screw over. I can learn to repair broken parts on my bike, I can pump up flat tires, fix the broken spoke, and I can keep going. 

Three years ago, I was married. Shortly thereafter I was divorced. Like, really shortly therafter. 6 months after. In practical terms,  my new situation left me living on Capitol Hill with a car that I never used. In emotional terms, I was an absolute disaster. Thankfully, I lived around the corner from a super cool bike shop, had a bunch of friends who rode bikes, and were way into it when I said I wanted to ride. I quickly bought a bike, sold my car, and it's been a quick spiral down the rabbit hole. Since June of 2013, I've owned 5 different bikes, plus my membership to Pronto Cycle Share. I currently only own 3 bikes, but always have my eye out for my next steed.

Bike touring is my latest adventure, and honestly, where I've found the most enjoyment. Open roads, endless possibilities (except I usually have to be back at work by Monday), starry skies above my campsite. More to come as I find more and more to love on two wheels.

Bike Month 2015 Wrap Up

Holy Moley! May is over and what a month! I biked every single day of the month, which is definitely a record for me! For the first time ever, I tracked every single bike ride. Here are my #s for May:

92 trips

543 miles

34 commutes

3 camping trips

FAR TOO MUCH FUN TOO COUNT!

Seriously though, this is WAY more than I've ever biked in one month. 2014 was the first year I'd ever seriously participated in Bike to Work month, and I did a decent job of biking to work. I got 42 miles in, which with a commute of 4 miles round trip, is pretty darn good! This year, however, I made an effort to Bike Everywhere, and it really paid off! My longest trip was 52 miles, which was to Ben Country, but other than that, most of my trips were 10 miles, 15 miles, or even shorter. Just lots and lots of short trips to here, there, and everywhere!

I wonder if I can rack up even more miles as the months go on?

Community Through Biking

Thursday night I crashed on my bike...twice. Thankfully, neither of mine were very serious and I was able to ride away from both of them, albeit with a few broken spokes, bruises, and an out of true wheel. One other good friend I was riding with that night got into a much more serious crash and both broke his collar bone, four ribs, and some additional injuries requiring a number of stitches. Since Thursday, we've also been coming to grips with the news that the daughter of one of our friends that we ride bikes with has perished in the earthquake and landslide in Nepal.

The aftermath of Fred's crash and news of Bailey's death on our community have been hard, to say the least. But they've also been an opportunity for our community to come together as a group and show our support for each other. At Harborview on Friday night, we overheard nurses talking about how Fred was the most visited patient they'd ever had. Riding the elevator to his floor playing "The Boys are Back in Town" helped remind us about the fun we had just had the weekend before, taking logging road shortcuts and dirt trails to Ben Country. Fred is an integral member of our community, and it hurts all of us to see him in pain and hurting. 

While at the hospital, we realized that because Fred had somehow called 911 for himself the night before, the fire department most likely still had his bicycle. Using Seattle's Real Time 911 service, we tracked down the fire department who picked him up, called them, and confirmed they still had his bike. Madi, Dan, and Kyle then went to the fire station and hauled his bike back home. Seeing Madi's instagram post (below) that Fred's bike was safely back in our hands was a very proud moment and really hit home that we have a community that truly cares about each other. Gives me a lot of hope.

As I mentioned earlier, our community is also reeling from the news of the death of Bailey Meola. Bailey is the 19 year old daughter of Scott Meola and Rachelle Brown and was trekking through Nepal's Langtang Valley when the earthquake struck in late April. This article talks about their great trip and the search to find them. I did not have the chance to meet Bailey before her trip, and have just recently gotten to know Scott and Rachelle through bike riding. As their family deals with this tragedy, our community has rallied to support them, first financially with an Indigogo campaign for a mission to search for them, and now emotionally (as best as we can) through what is sure to be an unbelievably horrendous time.

What all of this has shown to me- from the friends helping pick me up off the street when I crashed, to rallying around Fred at Harbrorview, to bringing him ice cream as he heals, to sitting together meditating on Sydney and Bailey, is that there is community through bicycling. The outpouring of love and support that I have seen for my fellow bicyclists over the past week has been like nothing I have ever experienced in any other community. There is truly something special happening here. As I continue to process everything that has happened over the past week and what exactly this community is capable of as we come together for each other, it was important for me to put these feelings of gratitude and appreciation into words. All too often, I think we forget how great of an opportunity we truly have and how blessed we are with the amazing folks around each other. This is my way of saying thank you to those people I ride with. You all make Seattle a better place to be, and a better place to ride bicycles.