How long have I been back now? Just over three months and how often have I ridden around on the sinewy roads around Amsterdam and the foresty lands around Arnhem? About 15 times?
The people I encounter during my rides are rude.....so far I've had one or two responses in my greetings to the riders I face. It would have been nice to say 'encounter' but I don't 'encounter' anybody, because they're so rude.....The 99% percent majority of men don't want to recognise that cycling can be done with pleasure...that the joy of riding can be visibly on one's face or in one's attitude. They are grumpy men, who take themselves extreeeemely serious. The 1% of ladies I meet does say hello....in strong recognition that we are a rare breed.
I always say hello when I 'encounter' a different rider, be it a mountainbiker or roadrider....it's the way we do things in France....in saying hello, we acknowledge the pleasure of being outdoors, we recognise the passion of riding bikes and in saying hello we also acknowledge that in case of emergency we help eachother....It's the way it should be.
But here, in the Netherlands, we just want to outsmart eachother on our bikes....Greeting eachother would be the equivalent of actually enjoying your surroundings....of acting as if riding under grey skies and rain is part of the deal here, but that our passion is stronger than our mood or desire to have another stroopwafel and cup of coffee on Saturday or Sunday morning.
In all honesty people....lighten up...don't worry and be happy....enjoy the ride and show it.
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