In 2020, while the world shut down, I developed a ritual that probably saved me from spinning out completely: endlessly scrolling Facebook Marketplace. It was soothing. Predictable. A weird little digital treasure hunt in a time when everything else felt uncertain.
And that is how I found it:
A vintage 2010 orange Kona Jake the Snake cyclocross bike.
A bike I absolutely did not need, but absolutely needed to have.
I messaged the seller immediately. He agreed to drop it off for a small fee. And that is how one of the most significant health investments of my life began, not with a workout or a wellness app or a life-changing book, but with a bicycle transaction on the internet.
Enter Raymond Palmer, A Name That Pretty Much Promises a Story
When the seller arrived, he introduced himself as Raymond Palmer, a name so majestic it practically demands its own movie poster. I, being myself, instantly launched into conversation. I love learning about people, where they come from, and the way their history quietly shapes how they move through the world.
So I asked him a simple question:
“What are some of your fondest memories with this bike?”
And I saw it, that micro-pause where a person drops out of small talk and into something real.
For a moment I thought, “Great. I just killed the deal. He is about to take the bike and go home.”
Instead, that question unlocked three straight hours of conversation.
Three hours standing in the driveway, exploring life from every angle: music, travel, family, food – the things that make a life feel meaningful.
That three-hour conversation turned into a multi-hour walk through the McLean Refuge in Granby, CT, a 4,400-acre sanctuary that somehow matched the expansiveness of the conversation we had already started.
That walk turned into a double date with our spouses.
That double date turned into one of our closest and most nourishing friendships.
When a “Simple Transaction” Quietly Becomes a Turning Point
The Palmers are extraordinary humans: empathetic, emotionally intelligent, curious, grounded, funny, well-traveled, and disarmingly kind.
Since that day, Adria and I have shared:
- holidays
- mini-vacations
- spontaneous trips into the city
- long dinners with conversations that somehow get better every hour
And Raymond and I have gone even deeper:
- Gabor Maté lectures
- Motivational Interviewing workshops
- concerts
- comedy shows
- walks through the woods
- long talks about life, connection, meaning, and healing
I even introduced him to my dear friend Peter, and watching the two of them hit it off instantly was its own kind of magic.
People Change People™ in action, right in front of me.
Did I Need Another Bike? No. Did It Expand My Health Portfolio? Absolutely.
On paper, did I need a different bicycle? No.
Sure, riding the Kona allowed me to invest in the physical dimension. That part is obvious.
But that was the smallest return on investment.
The real compounding interest came from the connection, an entire relationship ecosystem that emerged because of one curious question in the middle of a bike sale.
This bike – and the person who brought it into my life – expanded my world across::
- emotional
- environmental
- social
- physical
- intellectual
- and yes, maybe even spiritual
Because honestly, if walking through a 4,400-acre refuge with a near-stranger who quickly becomes family, while attending Gabor Maté lectures together, does not touch the spiritual dimension, what does?
None of this would have happened without a used bike posted on Facebook Marketplace.
This Is Health401k® in the Wild
On the surface, this is a story about a bike and a friendship. Underneath, it is a live demonstration of what Health401k® is all about.
We talk a lot about investing in our health like we would invest in a portfolio. But the most powerful investments are often not the ones labeled “healthy” at all.
They are the environments we step into, the questions we ask, the people we linger with just a little bit longer.
This one decision, to buy a bike I did not technically need, reshaped my social world, deepened my emotional life, enriched my intellectual landscape, nudged my physical activity, expanded my environmental experiences, and, in many ways, brushed up against the spiritual.
That is the heart of Health401k® and the People Change People™ philosophy.
We invest in people and environments because they quietly shape everything else.
Thank You, Facebook Marketplace
For the unexpected treasure.
For the conversation that changed the trajectory of our social world.
For introducing us to one of the coolest humans, and one of the most extraordinary couples, in our lives.
The bike was optional.
The relationship was the investment.
And the yield has been incalculable.
Ryan Travis Woods
Health401k® is a registered trademark of ignite. excite. empower.®, LLC.
People Change People™, The People Change People Paradox™, and HealthBroker by Health401k™
are proprietary educational frameworks of ignite. excite. empower.®, LLC.