A large flock of geese fly overhead while I am cycling. Cycling solo, no drafting for me in other words. This shot is one section of the big V of geese. A peloton of birds if you will. Individuals doing what is best for the group – which just so happens is also best for the individuals.
I rode in a large peloton once, like you see in the big stage races. A mass of cyclists all tightly packed together into a cohesive group, riding as one. What one does affects all so you do nothing without considering the effect on everyone else. It does not even require thought, you simply know it and make decisions from that place. Every one else does too. All for one, one for all.
It is actually a beautiful thing to co-exist together in a group, as a group. An incredible experience on a bike because you are capable of speeds you simply cannot do on your own. Not for a sustained period.
That experience happened for me on Lance Armstrong’s “Ride for the Roses” in Austin. To date it’s the most fun and biggest thrill I have ever had on a bike. We flew! Almost effortlessly. Up and down hills, a buzz of gears and breath and tires.
You go faster with less effort when riding in a group, the bigger the community of riders, the bigger the benefit. The bigger the responsibility too, their safety relied on mine and vice versa. That is true in life as well, but maybe not as obvious as it is in a peloton or a group of geese in a big V in the sky.
Working together as one unit has benefits, geese know it, cyclists know it. Regular humans it seems, not so much as evidenced by the craziness surrounding wearing a mask to protect against Covid-19. Wear a mask, it benefits you and everyone else. All for one, one for all.
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