Lessons in Riding

You learn so much about life from riding motorcycles. If you are a motorcycle rider, or any type of rider, really, you know what I mean. Maneuvering motorcycles is just like maneuvering... life.

Motorcycles taught me the importance of looking ahead; wherever you are looking your motorcycle will follow. In the Motorcycle Safety Course, I learned how to enter and exit a curve. Implementing this for the first time at Bear Mountain, New York, at 23, was a daunting experience. The turn was about 20 meters in diameter. Not making it meant beeches and birches for me, or the parking lot ahead if I get lucky.

At first, I couldn't let go of the deep desire to stay in control of the bike. I tried the turn a couple of times and I found that the harder I tried to be in control, the more difficult the turn became. It didn't matter how much I knew how to do it, I simply just needed to look where I was going.

This concept of arriving at your destination by fixing your gaze at it is applicable to both riding and life. Visions are powerful. They are magnetic and they drive us to get to a place we want to find ourselves in. Sometimes, things don't make sense and the only thing there is - is our dream. From riding, I learned that when you know what you are doing and you feel that you know you can get there, just trust the process and lean into it. Fix your gaze and the universe will work with you on your journey.