The best ride of my life.

The other day I went cycling with my friends Ilya and Andrew.
For those who don’t know, I love trying new sports and yet road cycling was still unexplored territory for me.

The longest distance I’d ever cycled by myself was around 20 km, so imagine our riding squad on the day:
two seasoned cyclists gliding ahead… and me, a glorified tourist on wheels, trying to catch up.

I’d done a few longer sessions in the weeks prior as “preparation”, but nothing came close to what we were about to attempt.

After about an hour of cruising through flat-ish terrain, chatting and warming up, we finally reached the foot of the mountain.

And from that moment on, everything shifted.
The road curled upward, the air grew denser, and even the wind seemed to hold its breath.
The ride was about to really begin.

Ahead was an 8 km climb, and our motto became a determined: “push-push”.

With Ilya pacing right in front of me like a champ, we agreed to test my limits.

As we made our way up the slopes, the climb stopped being a workout and turned into a negotiation between my legs and my willpower.

For the first 10 minutes, everything felt manageable.
My heart rate jumped from 130 to 170 bpm. And stayed there.
Then the breath grew heavier, heat rushed to my temples, my legs began to burn… and so did my mind.

Intrusive thoughts came running straight at me:
“Slow down.”
“You can’t do this.”
“This is going to take forever.”

Twenty minutes in, I was caught in an internal battle. Half of me insisting I could do this, the other half begging me to stop.

Then came the wakeup call.

Ilya kept repeating:
“Come on, Ben — you got this! 7k to go!”
Then 6.
Then 5.
Push-push.
Good job. Keep going.

And so we did.

As we reached the top of the mountain, Ilya respectfully let me overtake him and push myself to the absolute limit.
What followed was an unparalleled sense of achievement, pride, and joy.

And it left me thinking that few things are as helpful as encouragement from someone who gets you.
It challenges your beliefs when necessary. And it helps you push through the friction with good intent, leaving your comfort zone behind and stepping into a world of boundless opportunities.