I had the blessing of riding through part of Yellowstone NP on day 21 of my ride. Day 20 was a hard day on the legs so I planned on taking my time and relaxing during the ride. The beauty of the park is hard to describe. I also had a perfect day! Blue skys with a few puffy clouds and mid 60’s for temps. There was a lot of car traffic as this is the start of the visiting season. But the drivers were all attentive and the roads were in pretty good shape. I did get my 9th flat from a nasty Little Rock that was shaped like a spike. However, as I changed the tire, I was blessed by watching a buffalo wander in the valley below and an osprey cruise above looking for fish. I was pretty distracted by the scenery!

One thing that struck me is the difference between Yellowstone in a car vs a bike.  I was rode an average of 10.2 mph through the park. A little faster downhills and a lot slower on the steep ups, but it was an easy pace.  As I rode I heard the frogs, woodpeckers, ducks flying beside me and then landing in a pond.  I heard wind in trees and grass and small streams running noisily from the snowfields to the rivers.  All the while I was passed by hundreds and hundreds of cars who had windows up and were sailing along from scenic overlook to attraction noted on the maps. My 10.2 pace compared to the 35-45mph car pace gave me a much better experience to hear and smell the intracies of God’s creation.  We all stopped to see the bison on the roads, the elk in the fields, the coyote eating or the Grzzle mom and cub crossing the road.  But it was the in between times that really made my day at Yellowstone something special.  I even decided to extend my time just to sit and be present when off my bike. Not on my phone or distracted. Just present in the moment. Just visiting with folks as we looked at the beauty.  Something about these places gives freedom for folks to chat!  Of course lots of questions about biking.  But one couple wants to give me extra food.  A man from Germany and I talked cycling.  A woman came to me as I was sitting in the shade and asked if I had a tool or knife. She had just gotten a big splinter in her finger. My multi tool worked great.  I then met her husband and daughters and we talked cycling and faith!  Turns out they are believers from California. One little girl told me she was going to go home and ride her bike too!  I met so many people because I was at a 10.2 pace today.  

I started thinking how often we do this in life ourselves.  We rush from one thing to another and miss the gifts God has for us in between.  I know I will be using this lesson he taught me today after the ride.  Enjoy all of what He has for us in life.  Not just the big events.  Keep your windows down, the music off and listen to his creation sing.  Most importantly be present to talk to others.  Ask how they are doing, like the woman gathering up courage to look at a canyon (she is VERY afraid of heights) and then encourage them!  She did look over the edge finally lol.  

Anyways – this is what I learned at Yellowstone today. 10.2 is just right!