I snapped this picture around 6am, on my way to Chelsea Piers this morning. For the past year and a half I have been working out at the CP Sports Center and just last July I joined the Full Throttle Triathlon team. We practice 5 days a week, starting at 5:45am. Swimming, running and weight training at the Piers and when it's above 30-something, riding up to Central Park to do a few laps before they let the cars and yellow cabs swarm through.
I've always loved the early morning. When I used to ride and show horses, the most amazing memories I have are of walking through the quiet stables at 3 and 4am listening to the quiet munching and snorting. Elegant and muscled show horses slowly turning circles in their stalls, padding down the hay and bedding to make soft nests for themselves. All of them seemingly oblivious of the mayhem that would descend on the show-grounds as dawn quickly approached. The experience felt so private. Time was suspended. It was bliss.
I get that same swelling emotion on my walks to the Piers. The city is so quiet. A little village. Especially after a snowfall. My favorite stretch of the walk is by the boat docks. The clanging and swaying of the sailboats remind me of my early morning walks through the stables. A fresh dusting of snow insulates me from the world. A whole new kind of bliss.
