Front Range Tour 2019 is off to an on usual start.
Saturday, we get rained out. In seven years that’s never happened. Part of the group got in a little bit of a ride later in the day, but we had to cancel Cheyenne to Fort Collins.
Sunday we got started about an hour and a half late, again because of the rain. About an hour into the ride, the skies literally opened up on us. We rode through a torrential downpour that just soaked us. Then, just as the rain subsided, Gary slipped in some mud on a corner and went down really hard. Smacked his hip, head, and shoulder on the pavement. 911 call and an ambulance ride. Thankfully not too serious, but Gary’s out of the tour.
I’ll confess, at that point a bunch of us were wondering if we should keep riding. Gary’s accident and the cold rainy weather had us really shook up.
But then we remembered why we’re here. This isn’t a pleasure tour, something we’re doing just for fun. We’re riding to bring hope and freedom to a bunch of kids who’ve endured some pretty horrible circumstances. So we got ourselves together, climbed back on our bikes, and kept going.
I’m not trying to make this sound like something heroic, because it’s not. It’s just that we’re here to be part of a story bigger than ourselves, and sometimes that means doing uncomfortable things. So we ride in rain and cold when normally we would head back home to some hot chocolate in a warm blanket. Because the kids we’re riding for don’t always have that luxury.
Doing his tour is a blast, but today was a reminder the cause is serious. Following Jesus sometimes means being uncomfortable or going into difficult places.
Because that usually where we find people who need us.