I recently watched a video by world-renowned portrait photographer Annie Leibovitz who famously photographed John Lennon on the day he was assassinated. She was talking about her work and one thing she said really struck me: “I’m not a technical photographer… If that’s what you’re thinking about then you’re not taking photographs”.
For me, her words fit perfectly with the supposedly simple pleasure of riding a bike. Today we complicate that act with so many other extraneous factors that the uncomplicated suddenly becomes convoluted. We become so obsessed with the bike we ride, or the data we collect on that ride, that we forget that we are riding our bike.
I do accept that for many people the technology that surrounds the world of cycling is a big attraction for them, but that can’t be the only draw, else they wouldn’t stay cyclists for very long.
Perhaps for some that might be the case. I know of at least one ex-rider who was obsessively immersed in riding their bike, cycling all around the world, but now rarely touch a bike. This person had done everything they wanted to do on a bike and were now looking for new challenges, struggling to comprehend why I would want to ride the same roads and trails more than once. It reminded me of a book I once read about a Munroist. Once they had climbed all Scotland’s peaks above 3000ft, they never set foot in the hills again.
I recently had an opportunity to ride around Loch Morlich in the Cairngorms in between work commitments. I didn’t have any cycling shoes or bike specific kit, but I did have a bike. Never mind, I thought, the sun is shining and so I set off on a short ride around the loch in jeans and a T-shirt.
I didn’t record the ride for Strava, I had no idea what my heart rate was and the bike I was riding wasn’t meant for off-road cycling. However, I rode with a smile on my face. The warmth of the air brought out the smell of resin from the Caledonian pine trees and for that short time as I pedalled around, I felt like I had completely switched off from modern life – if only for half an hour. It was bliss. My mind wandered, and I thought of nothing in particular. I have never meditated, but by the time I had completed my circular ride, I felt I had cleansed my mind.
The sensation was difficult to explain and I doubt my ex-riding friend would ever understand, but I was riding my bike, not for fitness or to get somewhere, or any of the other reasons we cycle, but instead purely for the simple act of pleasure.
I like nice new, shiny cycling kit as much as the next rider and find I am increasingly drawn towards the technological advances of cycling, but I hope that I will always find pleasure in just getting on any old bike and pedalling off without a care in the world. Paraphrasing Annie Leibovitz, in those minutes I pedalled around Loch Morlich I wasn’t a technical cyclist, I was just riding my bike.
Join the Blazing Saddles Strava Club at: www.strava.com/clubs/BlazingSaddlesWeekendCourier
Where to ride: Loch Morlich – Cairngorms
Start: Glenmore Visitor Centre – Glenmore Forest Park
OS Landranger 1:50,000 Map 36 NN975098
Distance: 7km/ 4 miles with 55m of ascent
Details: The area around Loch Morlich is a fantastic area for off-road cycling, catering for all abilities. Higher up on the slopes above Badaguish there are single-track and downhill tracks suitable for more experienced riders and down by the loch are an abundance of tracks that are ideal for families with even the youngest of cyclists. The track around Loch Morlich starts and finishes by the amazing beach on the eastern shoreline and follows the clearly way marked trails around the circumference of the loch. It is worth stopping lots as the beautiful Caledonian pine forest of Rothiemurchus is packed with wildlife and great places to stop and take in the views.
