Philosophies of bike touring
8 May - Ripley-Chillicothe: sunny, 70; 11:15-5:50, 59.6 miles
As we head (mostly) north, we enter a new variety of terrain. Now we hit land dominated by farms and gently rolling hills. Still scenic, though with more subtle beauty. (It's still much prettier than Kansas and eastern Colorado!)
I had two talks this morning. First I spoke to the sociology class Steve teaches at the community college. Talking to older students proved fascinating. We ran a contest, awarding a book to the person asking the most interesting question. The winner asked, "You mentioned how warmly you have been received. How do you think that reception would change if you were black, or Hispanic, or Arabic, or an old bald guy with a limp?"
Good thought! I had to admit that a segment of the populace would let prejudice color their reaction. Far more important, I suggested, was how you project yourself. If you treat people with suspicion (or even worse, fear), they will pick up on that and treat you accordingly -- making it a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you don't give them the benefit of the doubt, why should they bother trying to change your mind?
If you instead treat the people you meet with respect - in effect, tell them, "I trust you until you give me reason not to" - you will get that back. Granted, at some point someone will betray that trust and take advantage of you - but you must remain focused on the hundred good experiences, letting them overwhelm the bad one. This I most firmly believe.
Darcy arrange a talk at her middle school a half-hour later. We showed the To Tell The Truth video before I strolled into the gym, getting a huge ovation. The kids enjoyed the talk, peppering me with questions. Afterwards we took took pictures of Tim and I with our hosts before we rolled down the road.
Silly biker games - When you see a line of traffic coming at you, wave at every car and see how many people wave back. Actually, the only silly part would be keeping track of the return waves - often, glare on the windshields keeps you from telling whether they're waving, but I wave anyway. I look at it as being a good ambassador on a bike, showing motorists that bicyclists are nice people (sometimes) and deserve a share of the road. Perhaps they'll treat the next cyclist they see with respect, or ask about their trip. And as we learned on the walk, sometimes a person you waved at will seek you out later and make your day.
As we head (mostly) north, we enter a new variety of terrain. Now we hit land dominated by farms and gently rolling hills. Still scenic, though with more subtle beauty. (It's still much prettier than Kansas and eastern Colorado!)
I had two talks this morning. First I spoke to the sociology class Steve teaches at the community college. Talking to older students proved fascinating. We ran a contest, awarding a book to the person asking the most interesting question. The winner asked, "You mentioned how warmly you have been received. How do you think that reception would change if you were black, or Hispanic, or Arabic, or an old bald guy with a limp?"
Good thought! I had to admit that a segment of the populace would let prejudice color their reaction. Far more important, I suggested, was how you project yourself. If you treat people with suspicion (or even worse, fear), they will pick up on that and treat you accordingly -- making it a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you don't give them the benefit of the doubt, why should they bother trying to change your mind?
If you instead treat the people you meet with respect - in effect, tell them, "I trust you until you give me reason not to" - you will get that back. Granted, at some point someone will betray that trust and take advantage of you - but you must remain focused on the hundred good experiences, letting them overwhelm the bad one. This I most firmly believe.
Darcy arrange a talk at her middle school a half-hour later. We showed the To Tell The Truth video before I strolled into the gym, getting a huge ovation. The kids enjoyed the talk, peppering me with questions. Afterwards we took took pictures of Tim and I with our hosts before we rolled down the road.
Silly biker games - When you see a line of traffic coming at you, wave at every car and see how many people wave back. Actually, the only silly part would be keeping track of the return waves - often, glare on the windshields keeps you from telling whether they're waving, but I wave anyway. I look at it as being a good ambassador on a bike, showing motorists that bicyclists are nice people (sometimes) and deserve a share of the road. Perhaps they'll treat the next cyclist they see with respect, or ask about their trip. And as we learned on the walk, sometimes a person you waved at will seek you out later and make your day.
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