The Battenkill Valley has become almost as famous for its plethora of fast-pedaling, lycra-encased team bicyclists as it is for its hills and covered bridges. OK, but I’d like to suggest an alternative for those of us who take a more Zen-like approach to life.
Slow Pedaling.
It means you wear comfortable clothing, sit upright on a comfortable bicycle seat, keep your head up and your senses engaged and bike slowly, even reverently, though the Battenkill Valley.
Nobody will keep time. Nobody will count your miles or the number of rotations you pedaled or how long and how hard your heart rate was raised. And nobody will give you an award when you’re done. Slow pedaling is, after all, not about you. It’s about the wonder and the beauty of the place you are passing through.
And that sounds pretty refreshing, don’t you think?
