By James Durand
In the last few weeks we’ve all been through a lot.
The general mood has been seriously off as people are confused and unknowing about how to proceed.
It has been no different at my house. We’ve been worried about our kids, worried about our parents, and worried about our staff. It seems every time I turn around I am managing another stressed out human, or in some cases, causing stress with my own approach. It’s not good and it seems like there is no easy solution.
Last Thursday was a crazy day at Swicked and my blood pressure was higher than normal by the end of the day. I just wanted to go home and go to sleep, but I reluctantly got myself ready for our weekly group ride.
We had a great ride up at Radar Hill with a couple of hot laps on my favourite trails. As we returned to the shop, everyone in our small group was smiling and laughing, and we were talking about riding, not global pandemics.
Friday afternoon was getting a bit tense at my house. Rhyley is trying to understand all this with her nine-year-old brain and sadly all the fear mongering is not sitting well with her. As the stress level grew and a minor meltdown looked imminent, I decided a quick escape to the pump track was in order.
It was late and we only had 20 minutes of riding, but it was more than enough to distract us all and blow off some steam. We returned home with giggling kids in the back seat and bed time went smoothly.
This week on Tuesday, it was Chenoa’s birthday. It was also the day school closures were announced and the stress levels went through the roof. Like most of you we have to scramble to sort out work and life schedules to care for our kids.
I was on the verge of losing it and most likely ruining Chenoa’s birthday, so we decided to get out of the shop and pedal around in Snowden.
We rode some fun trails, checked out the new Pretzel Logic, and took a 20 minute break to relax on a mossy hill and soak up some sun. Stress gone, child care plan mostly figured out, and birthday saved.
So when everything is going sideways, life is a bit out of our control, and you need some “social distancing”, grab your bike and head out for a spin on your favourite trails. I honestly can’t think of a better way to relax, and we all need to relax right now.
I’m James Durand and I’m Goin’ Ridin’…