Danielle
Bent over gasping for air sweat dripping down my body. This has been a part of my daily life since I was six years old. It started with a team, a field, and a black and white ball. Now it's me, a bike, and a community.
I've had a bike as long as I've had that black and white ball, but up until the last few years my focus was on the soccer field and the team I was a part of. My only identifier was my jersey number and that still was on a "team" jersey. Three years ago I stepped off the college soccer field for the last time. I found myself lost, without a team, or an identity. Who was I? Was I still an athlete? Where do I belong? A few months later the pedaling began.
I moved to Minneapolis after college and found the bike community. Minneapolis is one of the top bike communities in the U.S. and it's easy to tell why. The city is geared toward cyclist, between the greenway, a paved trail that can get you pretty much anywhere in and out of the city and the love the city has for cyclist on and off the path; it was easy to catch the pedal fever.
I initially brought my childhood bike from Iowa up to use, it was obvious early on that my skills and what I wanted to do weren't possible on my old friend. I began looking for bikes. I found one on craigslist of all places, a love match website couldn't have paired anyone better than me and my new found love. I started to find myself. My place in the world. Happiness. My bike became my best friend, my counselor, teacher, chaffer, and my ticket into a community of people who felt the exact same way.
Through this growth within myself I decided it was time to accomplish one of those goals most people only are able to talk about. I moved half way across the country, away from my loving family, my friends, everything I had ever known. It was wing spreading time. I wanted it, went for it, and got it done.
I could not have made a better decision. Colorado, Denver in particular is my home. I am truly my self here and I am surrounded by friends I call my family. I owe all that I am and have found to my bike. I love spreading that joy with anyone who is open to it. Biking and the community it opens to you is full of people from all walks of life, it allows connections between people that are so fundamentally different in every way it's often under appreciated how much a common passion can truly unite people.
There is never a better day then when I am on my bike, I love the individual ride nothing but me and that pavement (sometimes dirt), I love the group ride, the couple ride, the community ride. I love the moment when you see someone on your bike and they they join in. You can hardly go anywhere in this city without running into someone from the bike community and isn't that what it's all about. Connections.
I want to share this passion and connection with the world. This is who I am, this is who my friends are.
This is DenverSheDevils. Pedal on sisters and brothers, I'll meet ya out there.
I've had a bike as long as I've had that black and white ball, but up until the last few years my focus was on the soccer field and the team I was a part of. My only identifier was my jersey number and that still was on a "team" jersey. Three years ago I stepped off the college soccer field for the last time. I found myself lost, without a team, or an identity. Who was I? Was I still an athlete? Where do I belong? A few months later the pedaling began.
I moved to Minneapolis after college and found the bike community. Minneapolis is one of the top bike communities in the U.S. and it's easy to tell why. The city is geared toward cyclist, between the greenway, a paved trail that can get you pretty much anywhere in and out of the city and the love the city has for cyclist on and off the path; it was easy to catch the pedal fever.
I initially brought my childhood bike from Iowa up to use, it was obvious early on that my skills and what I wanted to do weren't possible on my old friend. I began looking for bikes. I found one on craigslist of all places, a love match website couldn't have paired anyone better than me and my new found love. I started to find myself. My place in the world. Happiness. My bike became my best friend, my counselor, teacher, chaffer, and my ticket into a community of people who felt the exact same way.
Through this growth within myself I decided it was time to accomplish one of those goals most people only are able to talk about. I moved half way across the country, away from my loving family, my friends, everything I had ever known. It was wing spreading time. I wanted it, went for it, and got it done.
I could not have made a better decision. Colorado, Denver in particular is my home. I am truly my self here and I am surrounded by friends I call my family. I owe all that I am and have found to my bike. I love spreading that joy with anyone who is open to it. Biking and the community it opens to you is full of people from all walks of life, it allows connections between people that are so fundamentally different in every way it's often under appreciated how much a common passion can truly unite people.
There is never a better day then when I am on my bike, I love the individual ride nothing but me and that pavement (sometimes dirt), I love the group ride, the couple ride, the community ride. I love the moment when you see someone on your bike and they they join in. You can hardly go anywhere in this city without running into someone from the bike community and isn't that what it's all about. Connections.
I want to share this passion and connection with the world. This is who I am, this is who my friends are.
This is DenverSheDevils. Pedal on sisters and brothers, I'll meet ya out there.