The Call of the New And Cycling
This weekend I cycled 160 kilometres with the Bike Club Switzerland Group via Meetup.com. In the process I find that I appreciate the community more and more. I appreciate that the groups are small, but also that people are like-minded. By like-minded I mean that people are sporty.
Today we went for a Moderate recovery ride and it took some effort to keep up. I was at the limit of my comfort zone, but not out of it. I enjoy cycling with people because talking with someone, while riding alongside them is enjoyable. On the right stretches of cycling paths, and roads, it’s as good, if not better than hiking.
Consistent Participants
I found the same with Meetup hiking groups. I like that the event is organised, we participate, and then if we meet again, tant mieux, and if we don’t, tant pis. I like that we build familiarity through participation in events, and if we want to connect we can, but if we don’t, we wait until the next event.
So Called Choice
This weekend I could have done two hikes. One that was on Meetup and GoSocial, and the other that was on GoSocial exclusively. When I saw that it was on GoSocial too I lost interest. For me there is something unhealthy about a community that uses a chat client to organise events.
The Intimate Network that Filled with Strangers - Whatsapp
Whatsapp, until the pandemic, was an intimate network of friends who knew each other well, who could chat and converse, about anything. As we knew each other well we knew the nuances we had, in character. We know what was genuine, what was just a thought, and what had depth or baggage.
Yesterday I saw people discuss, in person, adding each other on Whatsapp, and I considered asking to be added as well. I didn’t. It’s not that I don’t want to add these people and connect in a more permanent manner. It’s that I prefer to know people, and for people to know me, before we connect.
I hesitated between hiking and cycling on Friday, but only because I accidentally signed up for the hike, rather than because I wanted to do the hike instead of the bike ride. Yesterday when I saw that I could join a cycling group today I didn’t hesitate at all.
Different Expectations
On GoSocial you might meet a few people regularly, but most of the time you walk with a group of strangers that you can chat with on Whatsapp. The paradox is that you’re not allowed to chat. If you’re a chatty extrovert, during an event, you’re fine, but if you’re not you’re in a crowd of strangers, and you’re told off when you show signs of being a textrovert.
I was told off today. I expressed an opinion in a Whatsapp group. It wasn’t hateful, or personal. It’s a thought I often share in person, including today during the bike ride.
If something prevented you from sleeping until 3am from Wednesday to Sunday morning you would rant to. Plenty of streets, especially in the old town had “The less we hear each other, the better we get along”. There was nothing wrong with my comment.
Being an Introvert/Textroovert in an Extrovert Society
In an ideal world I would be an extrovert, rather than a textrovert. In an ideal world I would live with people, rather than in solitude. In the real world I could be as negative as everyone else, in private, rather than in public. I am not negative. I am solitary, and trying to cope.
In the end I prefer to sign up to an event, via meetup.com, participate, and then establish more permanent links via Strava, Komoot, and other sites, after meeting people a few times. I find that automatically creating Whatsapp communities is flawed.
And Finally
This weekend was excellent. Today’s ride was more strenuous than I had expected but the entire group managed to keep up. I am happy that I joined it last night, and participated this morning. It was a small but dynamic group, so the ride was ambitious, without being exhausting. That’s ideal.
Yesterday’s ride was also ambitious, but more relaxed. I cycled one hundred and two kilometres and I felt I still had some energy left over for today. With these group rides we do have breaks, but they never feel superfluous. They’re always pleasant.
“No hate allowed in this group … if anyone hates anything please keep it out of the group.” In the coming week, because of Caribana I will suffer emotionally, physically and psychologically because I will not be able to sleep which means I will be too tired to go for ambitious rides and hikes. Noise pollution is considered, by the World Health Organisation, to be a serious issue.
Conclusion
My positive experiences via Meetup groups is pulling me away from the toxic experiences I have had on the Meetup site. I am happy that I have a riding group with which I can go for two to three rides a week and another group where I can organise hikes. I have access to tools that are designed for this purpose. Without Whatsapp today’s post would have been entirely positive. I need to Kondo Whatsapp.