Stages

I have been a serious recreational bicyclist for over five years now.  In a "good" year I'll put between 2000 and 2500 miles on my various bicycles.  Most of those miles I ride by myself.  This weekend I will participate in my fifth consecutive Ride Across INdiana or RAIN ride, in which over 1000 cyclists ride over 160 miles, across the state of Indiana, in a single day.

As part of preparing for the RAIN ride, I've spent the past several weekends increasing my mileage.  I start with 30-40 mile rides in the spring and by this time of year, I'm usually getting in a "century" (100 miles in a day) most weekends.  Last weekend I rode 120 miles from my home in Danville to West Lafayette, Indiana.  The route I took wasn't particularly scenic, hilly, or interesting.  In fact, at one point, I realized that after I turned left onto a four-lane state highway, that I would be riding 30 flat miles without any turns, hills or any place to stop for water or supplies.

After a mile or so, I found myself focusing on my breath.  I occasionally noticed a car passing a bit too close or a bird flying through my field of vision, but mostly I focused on my breath.  When cycling, my breath is a little more labored--not extremely so, but it's still a little more than when I'm walking or at rest.  Several minutes later, I realized that I had ridden several miles without realizing that time had passed.  I wasn't asleep or unaware of the road during that time, but time didn't pass as it normally did.  In fact, at the end of the ride, which took almost ten hours, I realized that the time passed very quickly.  It made me think about the types or "stages" of meditation that I have studied.  It made me wonder if I had experienced a type of "samadhi," one of the points in meditation in which you become intensely focused and the mind becomes still and concentrated.

Although I'm not a huge fan of bicycle racing, the Tour de France happens to be going on at the same time that I'm training for the RAIN ride.  In "The Tour" each day is called a "stage" and is made up of a different type of riding.  Some days are mountainous, some days are made up of "time trials" or sprint-type races.  Each day is focused on a different type of riding, demanding different skills and strengths from the riders--all of which are challenging.

All of this made me realize that I've been retreating to cycling for the past five years or so as a source of retreat.  Prior to cycling, I was an avid gardener.  Prior to gardening I enjoyed fly-fishing.  Each of these activities happened in solitude and took several hours.  I think I have been using these activities as a meditative retreat, for many years, without realizing it.  I think that, although I've only been formally practicing Zen meditation for a year or so, I've actually been experiencing something very similar for all my life.  Not too long ago, I disclosed my Buddhist practice to my sister.  I sort of expected a surprised reaction from her.  However, her reaction was not surprised at all.  After I explained a few of the key components of the practice, she said "Bub, I think you've been a Buddhist all your life and you're just now realizing it."