Marika’s perspective on being a beginner
As someone who has never been involved in sports and absolutely dreaded going to gym class as a kid, I would in some ways be one of the least likely candidates to take on a job that involves being physically active almost 24/7. When I began this position last July, I had never rode a bicycle more than 10 km, and probably not since I was in elementary school.
Really excited about the adventure – can you tell?
On my first day of cycling we rode from Chester to Bridgewater, about 50 km. This is a good distance for a seasoned cyclist (like Tucker), but enough to make a beginner (me) not want to try it again. I did however end up cycling again during the summer, as we planned to cycle from Bridgewater to Yarmouth.
Roughing it on a cool morning at Ellenwood Provincial Park
We reserved four days to get there, riding about 70 km a day, and I surprised myself by growing to enjoy this method of transportation and becoming comfortable with it. You may think that in order to do certain types of recreation you need to have expensive equipment and formal training, but as I discovered with cycling and so many other physical activities this summer, it’s possible to more or less dive into it!
At Cape Forchu, near the end of our 70km bike trip. I did it – and loved it!
This part of our summer adventure was something that I would have never imagined myself doing. However, I love to try new things and decided that there was no reason I couldn’t take this up as well. I’m so glad I did, as cycling is now one of my favourite things to do! So, I guess my advice would be: if you’ve ever wanted to try something, or if you get a chance to try something new, go for it – don’t let being a beginner stop you from your next adventure!
–Marika
