gpolakow
09-18-2008, 10:16 AM
Riding the Dragon
There is a kind of easy rhythm you get into
With a few dozen curves under your belt
Your head pivoting left and right and left again with each
Of the 318 successive turns that make this road
An absolute dance, just you and the bike and the road;
And the next turn, coming up fast, like most of them is blind.
So maybe you tap the brakes just before you enter it,
Then release (it is all about release) and you lean into it with the bike,
Your pegs flirting with the asphalt, kissing it even here and there,
And maybe you touch the throttle a bit, leaning hard now
As the turn tightens beyond what you were expecting;
Yellow lines coming closer, not good,
You think, lean less but don’t get too close to the edge,
There is no forgiveness here for that sin,
And then quickly you’re out and right away
You’re setting up for the next one, a hard right,
Eyes following the line -- the corner seems to go on and on
As it tightens like a Chinese knot; add some throttle now
And feel the bike respond and by god you’re out of that one
And leaning into the next one, giving those twin yellow snakes
Enough room so you don’t scrape your mirror off on the truck
Approaching you from around that next curve and
Suddenly looking close enough to high five the driver,
Focus now, focus -- next corner looks sharp,
Kick down a gear and bank to the right,
Spine shiver as that lower gear brakes your rear tire too much,
You feel it skid as the motor takes hold harder than you meant,
But, sweet, the bike recovers and you grease it
Through another turn, now you’re really into it,
You’ve got it nailed down tight.
A few turns further and you feel, ****,
I own this road, I ****ing own it!
As the purest joy rises in your chest,
a perfect gladness that you know you can never explain
To anyone who has not danced with their bike
On a road like this, turning and turning;
The perfect wholeness of it.
And you realize, though you can’t put it into words,
This is exactly how it is meant to be,
And you let your heart lean into that thought:
The feel of simple, unexpected geometries -- the journey,
The way each turn brings us closer and closer
To ourselves.
There is a kind of easy rhythm you get into
With a few dozen curves under your belt
Your head pivoting left and right and left again with each
Of the 318 successive turns that make this road
An absolute dance, just you and the bike and the road;
And the next turn, coming up fast, like most of them is blind.
So maybe you tap the brakes just before you enter it,
Then release (it is all about release) and you lean into it with the bike,
Your pegs flirting with the asphalt, kissing it even here and there,
And maybe you touch the throttle a bit, leaning hard now
As the turn tightens beyond what you were expecting;
Yellow lines coming closer, not good,
You think, lean less but don’t get too close to the edge,
There is no forgiveness here for that sin,
And then quickly you’re out and right away
You’re setting up for the next one, a hard right,
Eyes following the line -- the corner seems to go on and on
As it tightens like a Chinese knot; add some throttle now
And feel the bike respond and by god you’re out of that one
And leaning into the next one, giving those twin yellow snakes
Enough room so you don’t scrape your mirror off on the truck
Approaching you from around that next curve and
Suddenly looking close enough to high five the driver,
Focus now, focus -- next corner looks sharp,
Kick down a gear and bank to the right,
Spine shiver as that lower gear brakes your rear tire too much,
You feel it skid as the motor takes hold harder than you meant,
But, sweet, the bike recovers and you grease it
Through another turn, now you’re really into it,
You’ve got it nailed down tight.
A few turns further and you feel, ****,
I own this road, I ****ing own it!
As the purest joy rises in your chest,
a perfect gladness that you know you can never explain
To anyone who has not danced with their bike
On a road like this, turning and turning;
The perfect wholeness of it.
And you realize, though you can’t put it into words,
This is exactly how it is meant to be,
And you let your heart lean into that thought:
The feel of simple, unexpected geometries -- the journey,
The way each turn brings us closer and closer
To ourselves.