My favorite place in Columbus, Ohio is to be outside on my bike cycling through some of the best parts of the city. Columbus offers cyclists some gorgeous and safe options to navigate the city.
First a bit about myself.. I ride a Trek 5200 that I have been riding for over 10 years. I have participated in the Great Ohio Bicycle Adventure for nine years, which is a 300-mile bike tour around Ohio with 3,000 other cyclists. On GOBA, I traveled through towns including Mt.Vernon, Lancaster, Athens, Marietta, New Philadelphia, Bowling Green and Newark. Although I do not routinely participate in many organized bike tours anymore, cycling is still a very important part of my life.
My interest in cycling extends beyond the physical training aspect and into the culture of bicycling. I have always been interested in the bike messenger service and the subculture that the messengers belong to. I even thought about being a bike messenger for a few years after graduating from college. I think that messengers are part of a unique group that comes to know the ins and outs of their cities. Every city has its own, unique identity, which represents and influences the personalities of the messengers. Travis Hugh Culley, a bike messenger from Chicago, once said, “Who I am is a parallel pursuit, a city and a man.”
A successful bike messenger, or cyclist, must keep a rhythm and a cool temper. Finding the rhythm of the city requires time, patience, and spirit and is unique to each cyclist. Keeping a cool temper means finding inner strength and order and not becoming lost in the chaotic city. These skills allow the cyclist to reach their destination successfully, while dealing with anything that the city may throw at her without letting it interrupt the rhythm.
After many years of cycling, I think that I have found my rhythm in my city, Columbus, Ohio. I know which roads are the best to ride on, which roads to avoid, where there is construction or detours, where the angry dog lives, which corners to take slowly, where the bike paths are and where to go when I run into a dead end.
One of my favorite corners of Columbus is one of my regular bike routes (I build this map with an online tool called MapMyRide - it is shareable!):
#CbusCorners
This project brought to you by the Columbus Social Media Cafe
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