Praying on a bike

Our loving neighbour Sister Alice was another person who disapproved of my participation in the Across Canada cycling tour. It was during our buffet lunch before Christmas that I told her about the tour and my intention to take part, and she echoed my wife in suggesting that I shouldn’t, saying that the tour would be too much of a challenge for me. It was perfectly understandable that the 81-year-old senior would have concerns about my wellbeing should I embark on the long journey which she considered hard and risky. It would have been reassuring to have her endorsement, but I appreciated that the disapproval was out of love and concern.

It was heartening that when I told Sister Alice in April that I had signed up for the event despite her well-meant advice, she said that she fully respected my decision and was happy that I committed myself to something that obviously meant a lot to me. I was even more grateful that, a couple of weeks later, she gave me a copy of an article called Praying on the run, on which she wrote “on a bike” under the words “on the run”, which clearly expressed her meaning that what the article says about running is applicable to my biking trip. I also saw this as a gesture of her support to the trip.

I read the article and found it to be an excellent piece. The central idea is that the “great-to-be-alive” feeling that comes with regular, vigorous exercise stimulates the brain centre and determines our spiritual receptivity to God and our fellow humans. As per the title, the “regular, vigorous exercise” the article focuses on is jogging, but the message applies to other kinds.

According to the article, there are three main reasons why a regimen of jogging can be beneficial to our prayer life:

1. It is helpful for the total disciplining of our lives. 2. The astringent effect of physical exertion provides a stimulus to our intellectual and emotional faculties, resulting in a more perceptive and warmer devotional spirit. 3. A great deal of pleasure is derived from jogging, leading to the general sense of well-being that accompanies the conditioned body.

The writer argues that our “spirit, soul and body” are interrelated aspects of our being. The weakness of our body is the cause of our inability to meditate and lift our hearts in prayer. Despite a thousand lovely thoughts, we often fail to act. The point is supported with the following quotes:

“The spirit is willing, but nature is weak,” said the Lord. (Matthew 26:41)
“Hell is paved with good intentions.” (Samuel Johnson)

So we need to move from the good intentions to the real starting line of physical and spiritual fitness. Rejuvenating the body through physical exertion will invigorate the soul, bringing us the created closer to the Creator. Such effort is necessary for, as these lines quoted from The Kneeling Christian says:

“God will not do some things unless we work. He stores the hills with marbles, but he has never built a cathedral. He fills the mountains with iron ore, but he never makes a needle or a locomotive. He leaves that to us. We must work.”

The close relationship between spirit, soul and body and how the improvement of the body leads to that of the others are ideas which dawn on me these days when I physically exert myself every day to get ready for the cycling tour. Very often, I pray on a (stationary) bike and reap the benefit of it.

Reading and getting ready for «Distance Cycling»

Since coming back from Hong Kong, I have undertaken to prepare for the Across Canada charity cycling tour (and, as a by-product, tackle the expanded waistline). I have joined a local gym as a member. I have also been re-reading the excellent book «Distance Cycling» by John Hughes and Dan Kehlenbach. I am under no illusion that the ten-week tour will be easy and certainly do not underestimate its demands on my physical fitness. The last thing I want is to be a burden to the group so I have to get myself 110 percent ready when the event starts in June.

Based on my reading, I realise that the training is to be targeted at improving both endurance and power, enabling me to overcome long rides and steep climbs. For these, the body has two different energy systems to tap into: the aerobic system (metabolizing carbohydrate and fat for energy) and the lactic acid system (metabolizing carbohydrate to form lactate and regenerate adenosine tri-phosphate (ATP)). Both systems have to be improved.

Obviously then, I need to do aerobic base training to build the necessary endurance and resistance training to enhance muscular strength and power.

Among other things, the aerobic base training is to enable:

• the muscle and liver to store more carbohydrates 
• the respiratory system to bring more oxygen to the circulation system 
• the heart to pump more blood to the workout muscles 

The resistance training will be targeted at the specific strengths required for cycling, namely, core strength, leg strength and upper body strength.

For the training to be effective, there are different principles to follow. To me, the three most important ones are:

• Training overload – When asked to do something it cannot, the body adapts so it can handle the new workload. 
• Progressive overload – The body adapts best when the overloads (both in volume and intensity) are introduced progressively. 
• Stress and recovery – Most adaptations occur when the body is resting, not during the training. Recovery is an integral aspect of conditioning. To keep improving, the body needs time to rebuild. 

In sum, in the next two months, I am to undergo a strict and specific training regime to achieve the goal of improving my endurance and power so that I may survive the 7,515 km trip across Canada in summer.

Out of the comfort zone, into the tires

I would be lying if I said I jumped at the chance of taking part in the Across Canada charity cycling tour. The truth is that it was after quite a length of internal struggle that enough mental hurdles were removed for me to muster the courage to express my interest to Michael, my friend and one of the organisers of the event.

The whole idea, for all its appeal, was simply overwhelming. The physical challenge itself sounds mighty formidable. Cycling Across Canada, in the wilderness, rain or shine, for ten weeks, covering a distance of over 7,500 km, averaging over 120 km of trudging per day. It simply doesn’t look like something I would be able to do. My previous ‘greatest’ daily biking achievements were all under 100 km and attained with total exhaustion, dead muscles and sore butt. Naturally, I had great doubts about my ability to achieve this mission impossible.

My wife’s initial response when I tested the water by sounding out the idea to her was far from encouraging. She made it starkly very clear that she thought the challenge would be too much for me and she didn’t support my participation. My hope of getting her endorsement to this grandiose commitment was immediately dashed.

The financial commitment is no less daunting. Apart from the CAD4,000 registration fees, which would cover some expenses for the trip, such as accommodation and some meals (which means one has to pay for the others), each participant has to raise CAD6,000 for charities. Any amount one cannot raise, he has to make up for it himself. Not taken to lobbying others for support, I had no confidence in securing donations anywhere near that amount, meaning that a big hole will be burnt in my pocket. I could also imagine that a lot needs to be spent on the gear and supplies to enable me to survive the ten weeks in the wild and being exposed to fickle conditions. That certainly would enlarge the hole in the pocket even further.

But commit myself I did, after much struggle. The opportunity was just too tempting to turn down. I have always admired people who have the courage and toughness to take long journey on a bike. And while I don’t think I will ever be able to emulate those who do it on their own, such as the Hong Kong young man who took 209 days to cycle 14,000 km from Germany back to Hong Kong in 2012, at the back of my mind, doing something similar, even remotely similar, remains a pipe dream that I secretly harbour. When I learnt about this event in which ten participants will cycle across Canada together, including some who have the experience of doing it before, and there will be a vehicle to support the trip, I knew this would be as close as I can ever get to achieving my dream. It is certainly going to be challenging, but what better way is there to push myself to new limits and get me out of my comfort zone than to take on this monumental journey?

There are other benefits, such as being able to see a lot of Canada on two wheels and raising money for charities, but they are just icing on the cake. Committing myself to pursue a dream, no matter what, in the hope of becoming a stronger and braver person, is a goal that tops it all.

A riding lesson

Today, as I was on my bike, making the difficult steep climb up the hill like I do every Saturday morning, I thought to myself: “Instead of thinking about how much more upward distance I still have to cover, I should just focus on every single step I make.” That change of mentality did make a difference. Instead of being concerned about the future, I was more focused on the now. The task became less daunting because all I was thinking about was just one next step.  My capacity for enjoying the ride was also increased. The singing of the birds, the caress of the breeze and the fragrance of the plants, which usually were screened out, made their ways into my consciousness, and what a pure joy it was.

So the lesson I have learned today is that by taking one small step at a time, I will get the big thing done in a less intimidating and more enjoyable way.

A driving license or a cycling license?

It was only during a recent cycling outing with friends that I learned that the point reduction penalty for drivers also applies to cyclists with a driving license. In Hong Kong, if a driver commits a serious traffic offence, such as speeding or ignoring the red traffic light, it would lead to a deduction of points. An accumulation of 15 points would result in suspension of the license. According to my cycling friends, if a cyclist commits such offences, points will be deducted from his driving license, if he has one.

The rationale, I was told, is that cyclists are road users and they should abide by traffic regulations. While this may sound fair, I do have a couple of fundamental reasons for contesting the linkage of a cyclist’s traffic offence to the driving license he may possess. First, a driving license is exactly what the name suggests – it’s a license for driving, not cycling. One gets it after passing a driving test. The whole process has nothing to do with cycling so why should cycling have anything to do with it? Second, why should a cyclist in possession of a driving license receive additional penalty for committing the same offence as another cyclist without the license? Third, if a cyclist is a road user because he is cycling on the road, is a pedestrian not also a road user when he crosses the road? Is there a difference between a cyclist ignoring a red light and a pedestrian doing the same? If not, shouldn’t a pedestrian in possession of a driving license receive the additional penalty because he, too, is a road user?

The whole thing doesn’t seem to make sense to me. I wonder what the court would say if a cyclist being so penalised were to take legal action one day.

A bicycle or a wheelchair?

As a biker, I do pay attention to people who share the same interest. When I see a fellow biker on the street, I would keep an eye on him, maybe to see what type of bicycle he has.

But I was wrong today. It was when I got closer to the “biker” that I realised that what he was pushing wasn’t a folding bike but a wheelchair. Obviously, it was not for this young and healthy guy but someone he was about to help - someone who cannot walk normally like we do. I was thinking, what a big difference between using a bicycle and using a wheelchair!

There will always be some people who simply prefer neither - not doing exercise and expecting to stay healthy. Maybe this does happen, but I would argue that using a bicycle regularly minimises one’s chance of using a wheelchair. Of course, it takes some commitment and determination to develop and then keep up the hobby of bike riding. But once the initial difficulties are overcome, the fun and freedom one can enjoy are simply beyond words. The gain definitely outweighs the pain.

Would I prefer a bicycle or a wheelchair? It's a no brainer.

More not necessarily better

The sharp pain I have been feeling at an inconvenient spot after biking in Taiwan for three days led me to another piece of life’s little ironic truth.

When I go biking, there are always three layers of clothing over my bottom. Apart from the biking shorts, I also have three layers of garment over my bum – the biking shorts (naturally), the short pants I wear on the outside (because I wouldn’t like to go around looking like a ballet dancer in tight outfit) and the underwear underneath (which, I believe, would give my bum even more protection). But still, after three days of biking, that sensitive spot was badly scraped, leaving me to wince in agony whenever the open wound rubbed against my undergarment. In the midst of the torture, it dawned on me that there was a reason why I’ve been told by fellow bikers, more than once, that they only wear biking shorts but no underwear. Underwear has sharp seams which may cut through the skin if the biker sits on the saddle for a long time, and that was exactly what happened to me during those days in Taiwan.

More is not necessarily better.

Haiku

bewildered biker

bewitched by sublime beauty

in idyllic world

Be a biking nation, not a viking nation

As the logos show, this DSB (Danish State Railways) red S-train compartment is for prams, wheelchairs and, yes, quite obviously, bikes. Better still, bicycles have been allowed to travel free since 2010. Before that a bicycle ticket cost 12 kroner (about USD2.25). Making it free was just a move to encourage more people to use their bicycles.

Being a flat country with the highest point (Møllehøj ) being merely 171 metres above sea level, and being a country that puts much effort into taking care of its environment, Denmark is well positioned to be Europe's prime biking nation.

And being a biking nation is definitely better than being a "viking nation", a page of history which showed its people terroring Europe by looting and raping, a page which some Danish people still talk about with a bit of shame.

Biking to Luk Keng

I took a day off today and spent the morning doing my favourite biking route. The route is 28 km each way, including 20 km on Hong Kong’s most popular cycling trail – from Fo Tan to Tai Mei Tuk and 8 km from Tai Mei Tuk to Luk Keng. The 20 km part has zero difficulty, but there is some danger during the weekends and holidays when lots of non-regular bikers cram the route and cycle out of line, causing accidents on themselves as well as others. That is why I would only do this trail during off-peak time. The 8 km part is much more rewarding. Not only is it much more scenic, the fairly steep climb also puts off most of the holiday bikers rewards those who persist with enough exercise trudging uphill and the thrilling (though rather fleeting) experience of careening downhill in a daredevil manner. One must fix his grips firmly on the brakes, though. If ever an accident occurred, it could be fatal.