Plan B

Mike C. - Photo courtesy of: http://www.alaskaultrasport.com/race_stats.html



I know that some folks think I am sort of crazy in some of the things that I do, but I don’t think it is false modesty to suggest that folks don’t always see the strings, the wires that make it not all that it appears. I don’t mean to suggest that it’s not a real challenge or adventure, or that operating with a net makes it any easier or less crazy, it’s just that I may be more conservative than it appears at first blush.


And I don’t mind freezing the frame in order to point out the strings to those who can’t immediately see them.


Part of the reason I do these crazy things is not because I think it is a great accomplishment, but rather as proof that, because I can do it, anyone can do it. It is not a testament to me, but rather an attempt to give impetus for you to believe in yourself and to give life a try. Because you really can do it. And if I instead convey the sense that this is an incomprehensible feat, rather than something that YOU can do, then I have failed.


Take for example, my most recent ride into work. There was still a good bit of snow on the ground. And I didn’t know the status of the bike trail from Conshy to Manayunk. Sure I had the spiked tires on, but I also knew that they would only help on ice or slippery surfaces and not in deep snow or whatever else might be out there.


But what the heck, I didn’t want to wait until it all melted, so I went for it. Well, the ride down to Conshy wasn’t bad, except the studs on the street didn’t make for the most frictionally efficient rolling along. I was humming like a monster 4x4 on the highway.


When I first cut down off of Hector Street and turned onto the path, I was a little surprised that there was still a decent amount of snow on the path. As I rode by the train station, I was thinking that the foot traffic helped to make this maybe a little better than what I would find up ahead. How right I was.


The multi-use path looked like it had been plowed before the last 16” of snow had fallen. The folks had trudged through it after the next 16" of snow had stopped falling. Then the warm weather on Sunday had condensed it all. Then the cold weather had frozen it all into one long rumbly tumbly frozen moonscape. Needless to say, it was, as they say “rough sledding.” I tried to move out of the footpath and onto smoother stuff, but the snow had been piled up there so it was too deep and too frozen. It was a lot of work (and time) to negotiate just a mile or so of the path.


I had this next move in the back of my mind before I even started. Always gotta have an extraction plan. A "Plan B." So where River Road parallels the bike path, I bailed out. I hiked the 10 feet to the road and was happy to once again be rolling. I went down around the office park they build on the site of the old…something. Past another train station, then through the barrier that prevents River Road from being a through street.


This brought me into another part of Philadelphia that I had never seen before. Although there are a number of “riverfront communities” along the Schuylkill at various locales, this one was all trailer homes. Trailer homes in Philadelphia, who knew? So I followed River Road out to Shawmont Station where I normally drop down to the dirt path along the river, normally my favorite part of the ride. But this time, instead of heading down to the river I turned left, uphill, and followed the road around to Manayunk. It wasn’t a defeat, it was clearly the smart thing to do, but still I couldn’t help but feeling a little disappointed.



All the while I kept wondering how folks like Mike Curiak do it. Sure he’s got some more specialized gear and isn’t on his way to the office, but still, this is hard work! And when you’re pedaling your way to Nome in winter, camping out and carrying everything you need, what does Plan B look like? I'm not sure, but it sure is inspirational to think about the things that we can do, especially the things that we don't yet know that we can do.