Live the power

I felt confident on my bike when younger, in the Peace Corps, riding all over Talamanca, up and down and across gravel roads. Those were the days of poetry and wonder, living on the South Caribbean, in Puerto Viejo, when it was an undiscovered paradise, with two cars in the whole town. My Honda XL 125 was my ticket to freedom, to work, to having ease of transport in a place where buses only ran three times a day.  Yes, the power of my Honda took me up many mountain roads and across many rivers. I trusted it completely.

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Seeing a woman on a motorcycle was unheard of in those days, let alone a “gringa.”  Here is a poem I wrote about riding in Talamanca in those years:

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During those years, I only fell once, and that was because my pants got stuck on the footpeg as I was going to get off my parked bike. Right in front of everyone at the Municipality of course! Hahaha.  Love it.

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Flash-forward to picking up riding again, and it is only recently that I am regaining that sense of self-confidence, that trust in myself and in my Honda. That wonderful feeling of living the power of riding a bike.

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I’ve had a few falls these last six years. Silly ones mostly. Usually turning on curves or corners, locking the front brake. Once I went into one of these famous Costa Rican ditches. Yes, on a curve. That was the worse. My husband had pointed to something on the left. I took my eyes off the road and the oncoming curve. A more-practiced rider would have avoided this easily. I looked straight into the ditch, and that was that.:-) We go where we are looking.

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These falls, combined with the resurgence of some old trauma (PTSD) responses, made riding a bit tense for me, quite often. I would freeze on downhill, hairpin curves. The winds and highway noise would cause me to brace my body and shoulders. I couldn’t keep up with my husband when he passed trucks and buses and split lanes. Out in the country, on the mountains, I was relaxed. In other situations, I was often tense, insecure, afraid.  Fortunately, I persevered.

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I am generally relaxed on my bike now. One trick that helps me ride on highways is wearing earplugs to reduce the ambient noise of the wind and large trucks. I can still hear, but the loudness is reduced. This has really helped my body relax. And, I suppose time and practice has restored me to a sense of being OK. I love the way the motorcyclists  in Costa Rica (and I) stay “cool, calm, and collected” while on the road, regardless of traffic.

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Yes. I LIVE THE POWER.

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For me, I especially enjoy this feeling when several factors are happening: when the road is smooth and the curves easy; when there is little or no traffic; when the skies are blue and the sunlight is beautiful; when I have slept well; when I am feeling confident and at ease..

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Then, the magic happens. I ride like the wind! That feeling of “power” flows through my veins: a sense that I am the owner of my destiny, that I am capable, at one with the world. Riding fast, or uphill, or around other vehicles with this sense of “I can and I do” is so energizing and satisfying. It is one of many reasons that riding a bike is so fulfilling (or “full-feeling”). 🙂

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Live the power, love the ride.

And the Honda Power has worked for me going up dangerous mountains, like Tapanti. I learned in the Peace Corps to just keep giving it gas, no matter what. No. Matter. What. And, up I go. The fact that I traversed this terrible terrain unharmed is a miracle.

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Between Bajamar and Guacalillo there is an extremely-difficult uphill road full of large rocks and fissures. I made it up. My husband did not. I know it was because of the gift of my Peace Corps days of riding. That is Honda Power. It gets you UP those mountain roads.

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Yes, I am glad and grateful that my self-confidence has returned, always with a sense of care and humility to know that I need to not push my limits or the road’s limits. I am careful. I respect.

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And I LIVE THE POWER! 🙂

(“Who feels it knows it.” Bob Marley)

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What does “LIVE THE POWER” mean to you?

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Song: Ride like the wind.