Bike Out Today

This afternoon I got my bike out from the shed in the yard. I went down there deliberately when I saw Mike out there because I thought I would need help getting it out as I did last year. Last year one had to move all sorts of tools, including the lawn mower, to get to the bikes at the back. This year, much to my surprise and pleasure, he has reorganized everything and all I had to do was walk in and wheel my bike out!

So, I wheeled it out and brought it around the front. The first thing I always have to do is put air in the tires. They were only a little soft so that didn’t take long. Then I wiped the dirt off the seat and went upstairs for my helmet and a water bottle. I wasn’t going to stay out too long but I prefer to have a water bottle no matter how short a time.

I wobbled a bit when I first went out into the road but within a minute, I was riding as if I had been doing it all winter. I mention this because when I got this bike five years ago, Fred and I figured it had been over 50 years since I had ridden a bike regularly. For a couple of weeks, I felt somewhat insecure. I had to think about balancing, being aware of traffic and gear changing which I found quite tricky because my bike back 50 years ago actually didn’t have gears at all!  But this afternoon,  as I pedaled around the neighborhood, I changed gears automatically and balance wasn’t any problem at all. However, I have decided that I will wear my orange Watch-Out-for-Me vest, the one I use in the winter when I walk on the roads because the sidewalks are too dangerous–when I ride my bike. I prefer that I have every advantage when sharing the road with cars.

I have a bike rack for my car. Last year, I put the rack on the car but never actually used it since I only rode locally. But this year, I am going to do better. There is a very nice bike path that runs along the edge of Lake Champlain which I have ridden before. This year I am going to do it more often. I really have no excuse since I can go during the week when it isn’t clogged with walkers, joggers and other bike riders as it is during the weekends.

Until later…