Fuller Bike Adventure 2023 Take 2

This is the first time I’ve done two Fuller Rides in one year. As I write, I’m on the train from Boston to New Rochelle, NY to join the ride.

I honestly don’t know what pulls me back to these rides. The cause, the “living simply” experience, the camaraderie of my Fuller friends all play a big role. Honestly, the riding itself, while enjoyable (mostly) plays a smaller part of it.

This ride is different in a number of respects. It’s shorter than others. I usually do two weeks. This is only one week. Three hundred and fifty miles. I will be riding through my home region, New England, though not close to Boston, sadly. One big positive difference is that I don’t have to pack my bike in a box for air travel. I’m joining and departing the ride by Amtrak. Packing the bike is literally my least favorite part of these rides. It’s a huge relieve not to have to disassemble, pack, unpack and reassemble the bike twice, which was the case for almost all the other rides.

This ride also has more than the average number of riders. The average is about 15 to 20. This one has more than 20, I think. That’s mostly good news. But the bad news is that real estate on the church floors goes way up in value with more bikers and, consequently, more demand. Those of us in the back of the pack coming in at the end of the day don’t get the prime locations. Given all my gadgets, I put a premium at being near electrical outlets, as do many others. So, for this ride, I brought a long, commercial grade extension cord. Other factors include, away from foot traffic; close – but not too close – to the bathroom; near a wall to prop pillows. These are the top priorities of daily life in Fuller world.

Back to the good news, seeing old buddies who I only see on these rides. The camaraderie among Fuller riders has become a very special part of my life. While I never served in the military, I’ve seen a lot of war movies. Joining a Fuller ride evokes those scenes in war movies when soldiers who have fought together and then gone separate ways are reunited. There is a unique bond created by an intense, shared experience that people in our normal lives can never fully appreciate. Add to that the fact that, given the mission, the Fuller Center tends to attract good people to their programs, including and especially the bike adventures.

So, I look forward to the reunion. It will be brief and warm. And then I will return to worrying about 80 miles on Monday from New Rochelle to New Haven and asking myself, “What the hell were you thinking?”

Tags: Bike, Biking, Fuller Center

Category: Biking, Fuller Bike Ride, Uncategorized