coffee, cycling, and rituals

My friends and I have a ritual that we go through every time we go out cycling.

Someplace, approximately half way through any given ride, we pause for coffee.

We are not interested in bad coffee. In fact, we plan our rides around the presence of coffee shops who manage to procure the real deal.

Then we get to know the owners. By name.

I usually have an espresso drink of some kind and some kind of filling yet light snack (not a contradiction) and my riding partner has what he has.

We take turns paying.

It is part of the ritual.

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Like most cyclists, ritual plays a significant part in the pre-ride.

Check tire pressure.

Check gear functioning.

Gather together gloves, helmet, repair kit.

Did I remember my shoes?

Wallet? Phone? Keys?

Sunscreen?

I have a mental check list I go through each and every time I ride and have done so so frequently that it has become a ritualized part of what makes a ride tick. When I fail to review my mental list, when I skip my ritual, I forget things...

***

It is not the coffee so much that matters as it is the pause in the ride, the pause in the activity. It is a moment of stolen civility out of the traffic and noise of the ridden road. It is a chance to visit, to catch up on the week, and to just sit.

When the ride is a cold, it is a chance to let the warmth of the cafe seep into frozen limbs. When wet, a chance to get out of the damp for a moment or two.

During the dry of summer's heat, it is a chance to sit and enjoy a breeze, or perhaps the steady draft of an air conditioning unit.

In all cases, it is a chance to watch the world and those which people it go by.

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The rituals define us, and are a part of our process. They are what make the ride complete.