When we connect our senses with the bicycle, it becomes an extension of our body. It can communicate its condition to us – what it currently needs – and interprets the impulses it receives from the rider's brain. This instinctive dialogue begins the moment we learn to ride a bicycle, often without even realizing it. From a Zen perspective, riding is this dialogue.

The bicycle allows us to achieve a much richer state of mind than one might typically think possible. Once we ride it, we can experience a feeling akin to that of meditation. The movements of our legs, the energy flowing through our body, the cadence of our breathing, and the floating awareness of what is happening around us and in our minds all create a similar state to what we achieve when we sit with our eyes closed and let our thoughts drift naturally. In Zen, this is called mindfulness.

“The life energy of the universe contained in the air is transformed into human energy.” – Taisen Deshimaru, Japanese Zen master

Juan Carlos Kreimer is an Argentine author, journalist, and publisher. He has ridden a bicycle in every city he has called home: Buenos Aires, New York, Paris, London, Rio de Janeiro, to name just a few. He was the first to write books about rock music in Spanish. Since 1982, when he began to meditate regularly, he has lived a strong connection between Zen and cycling.