A few years ago, I thought I was just dealing with a foot injury.
It turns out I was also dealing with a body that was tired, a mind that never shut off, and a life that had quietly become too centered around conference calls, deadlines, and sitting still.
For years, running was my reset button. Then came sesamoiditis, Morton’s neuroma, hip pain, back pain, and the slow realization that my body was starting to negotiate terms with me.
At the same time, life itself got heavier.
My mother got sick. Then she died.
Work expanded in the way work often does when you’re competent and people trust you. More responsibility. More meetings. More people relying on you. Somewhere along the way, I realized I was spending most of my time helping everyone else move forward while I slowly stopped moving myself.
Then I got on a bike.
Not because I had some lifelong dream of becoming a cyclist. Honestly, at first it was mostly because it hurt less than running.
But something happened out there.
Long rides have a way of stripping things down to the essentials. Your breathing. Your thoughts. The sound of tires on pavement or gravel. The realization that your body is still capable of carrying you farther than your mind sometimes believes.
Cycling became less about fitness and more about rebuilding.
Rebuilding strength. Rebuilding health. Rebuilding peace. Rebuilding a life that actually feels like mine.
That’s what Wild Spokes is about.
Not elite training plans. Not pretending to have life figured out. Not inspirational quotes slapped over mountain photos.
This is a place for the messy middle.
A place for long rides, gravel roads, photography, setbacks, quiet victories, overthinking, recovery, travel, endurance, getting older, getting stronger, and trying to build a meaningful life before time slips too far ahead.
I’m 50 years old. I’m rebuilding my health. I’m learning as I go. Some days I feel strong. Some days my back hurts picking up my dog.
If you’ve ever felt restless, burned out, stuck, injured, exhausted, or simply aware that life is moving very fast and you’d like to be more present for it, you’re probably in the right place. Know that you’re not alone.
I don’t know exactly where this road leads yet.
But I know standing still wasn’t working anymore.