The Big Wreck

Today while I was riding I did something that I haven't done since the second grade. I wrecked! I was fortunate to come away from this one with less injuries than the last one. I suffered only a slight scrape on the inside of my left thigh. I was riding along on a path that I had never ridden before. I was cruising along about fifteen miles per hour. I saw these tennis courts and a swimming pool. In awe I decided to look upon the these new amenities. That is where I made my tragic mistake. When I decided to look up to my surprise there was a ninety degree curve less than, my guess is ten feet ahead of me. Beyond that there was maybe fifteen feet of grass and then a wall of trees. In a state of panic I hit the brakes hard way too hard. Especially on the front brake. Just like that only it seemed to go in slow motion I was sailing over the handlebars. I don't know what it looked like from the third person. But the way it felt was like one of those youtube videos of funny crashes. Like clockwork I went over the front of the bike. Rather than face planting like the videos I tucked my head and did an almost perfect front flip. Only I landed on my tail. Don't be mistaken the bike was soon to follow. I was then hit in the back by the bike as it flipped over me finally coming to a stop just in front of me. Once I stop the first thing that I do is not check for injuries, but look to see if anyone saw this event. When I saw that no one was around I hurried to pick up the bike and press on I checked for any injuries while pushing forward. All in all I do believe that I will make sure that I watch where I am going instead of the scenery from now on. I hope you have enjoyed my accident as much as I have enjoyed writing about it. Until Tomorrow Happy Cycling.

Trees

Today while I was riding I met a very nice gentleman. While riding along we began to talk about why we ride. I told him my story and his was very similar. With one major exception he was in an accident not too long ago. He is still in recovery. He also has lost about 40 pounds just riding his bike. When we got to the point where the path changes from paved to gravel we went our separate ways. As I was riding alone again I began to think about his situation. I really have to admire him despite the fact that he was in an accident he still maintains riding. He believes that it is crucial to his rehabilitation. If only everyone had that mentality the world would be a much better place. I rode about eighteen miles today. On the path there is a tree down with only one place right on the edge of the path where someone can pass underneath it. I pass this tree a few times while riding. Today when I was on my final leg of my ride I forgot that it was there. all I have to say is Thank God for good brakes! I was pushing myself to my absolute limit and something told me to look up. I am not sure how fast I was going but the tree was coming up fast. I knew that I couldn't make it over to the edge of the trail in time without going off the path. So I just hit the brakes as hard as I could. When I finally came to a stop I was about three inches from the tree. I am not sure why my heart was racing from the ride or the tree. But that is all for today. Until tomorrow Happy Cycling!

The Boardwalk

While I was riding today discovered that I am getting much faster. Also my endurance has improved significantly. I decided to test myself. The last time that I decided to test myself I was only able to ride about a mile and a half at full speed. Today, however, I was able to push myself to almost three miles at full speed only slowing to turn around. I did however make a mistake. Instead of doing this at the end of my ride like I should have I did it right after my three mile warm up. At this point I am exhausted, but I press on. My legs force me into riding a bit slower than usual but I refuse to quit. I was only able to ride about twelve and a half miles. After I finished my twelfth mile I decided to go on the board walk since I had never been on it before. I couldn't believe that I had waited this long to go and see this amazing place. As far as being alone this was the place to be. I was in just deep enough where the woods drowned out any road noise. It was just me and nature. I couldn't help but be intrigued by the incredible seclusion of this place right here in the big city. I was looking over the rail of the board walk and saw wildlife that I hadn't seen in a long time. There was anything from frogs to snakes. It then became obvious to me why the rails were four and a half feet tall. they were just idiot proofing them. I took a few pictures and left this little secluded area to itself. But rest assured that I will be returning to experience this feeling of peace again.

Hills

While I was riding today I got a wild hair to ride some hills. I did about a six mile warm up and then set out to find some place that would really take me to my limits. While doing this I learned a lot about myself. It is amazing how much riding a bike can teach you about yourself. I turned off of the path and onto the road in search of the largest hill that I could find my plan was to ride to the top of the hill and back seven times and then see if I could make it back to my truck. After a few miles I stumbled upon this steady down hill slope that seemed to never end it went down and around a curve and then down some more. As I was riding down this monster of a hill it dawned on me that this was a monster. I finally reached the bottom and looked up but could not see the top. Almost immediately those feelings of well should I lower my standards just for this one begin to kick in. It is at this moment that you learn one of life's most valuable lessons. Where is your heart. Determined, I try my best to kick those feelings to the curb. As I push my way up the first time it really seems as though I am not going to make my seven times. At the top of the hill I could just keep going and go back to the truck. but that would mean accepting defeat. The thought goes through my head would Lance Armstrong give up or keep going. I don't know him but I am pretty sure that he would keep going. So with a new found motivation I turn around to do it again. When I reach the top for the seventh time that feeling of victory comes rushing through my body and without hesitation I decide to utilize this new adrenaline and I tackle the hill two more times before going back home. There is a moral to this post I guess and it would be never, ever underestimate the power of you own heart. Until tomorrow Happy Cycling!

The Big Race

This afternoon I was involved in the most exciting race that I have ever seen. I was at the Greenway at Mallard Creek Church Rd and I got out of my truck and was getting on my bike and all of the sudden a gentleman approaches me and says how far are you riding. I simply replied that I was not sure. He then proceeded to tell me his route and I thought that it sounded like a fun route. I told him that I usually ride about three miles as a warm up and then proceed to pushing myself to my limits. He said to me that he tends to do the same. We rode about three miles and talked to each other about riding and how much we love it. He had been riding most of his life and wants to race professionally. At that moment I knew what was about to happen. As we gradually picked up the pace I could feel the adreneline beginning to pour through my veins. At about mile twelve he looked over at me and said are you ready? Without even thinking I said yes. Immediatly both of us took off. He was obviously the faster rider, he had the more expensive, newer bike. I had a flashback of my days from track in high school. I remembered to pace myself so I chose a pace that I thought would be fitting for me to ride that distance. The way he took off I knew that he would wear down after all we still had a long way to go. As I approached the point with about two miles remaining I look up and in the next corner I see him. Already exausted I speed up once again. My heart is racing I had almost accepted defeat to a younger more experienced cyclist. That glimpse of hope was all I needed to win this little race. I catch him with less than half a mile to go. When he looked back and saw me the race was on. With the end of the race near both of us gave it everything we had I could see it in the look on his face that he didn't expect me to catch him. We were almost neck and neck all of the way. Thankful that there wasn't anyone else on the track as we gave this last half mile all that we had. As we cross under the bridge the end is in sight. We are standing up putting everything our bodies will allow into the pedals. It is hard to see from the sweat dripping under my sunglasses into my eyes. I refuse to give up. In the last five feet he pulls ahead by about a tire and wins. As we come to a stop at my truck he looks me right in the eyes and says "that was the most exciting race I have ever been in". Coming from a more experienced cyclist that really meant alot to me. It was at that moment that I knew that I had not lost, because I had given everything I had and gave a better cyclist a true run for his money. Until tomorrow Happy Cycling!

rainy day

Today I was sitting at home and had to wait out the rain before I could ride. When I finally did get to go out the path was flooded and just miserable to try to ride on. it was more like an obstacle course than a riding path. After three miles I decided to make today a rest day. I then proceeded home to so some cleaning on the bike. Riding on a wet obstacle course of a path makes for a very dirty day. When you are cleaning a bike there are many things to consider. You can't just wipe down the frame and wheels and be done with it. When it is as wet as it was today rust can be a large issue. So as a preventative measure I took apart the rear derailleur as it is the most complex. Well that was fun! everything came apart very easily. Once it was apart I found out just how difficult it can be to get it back together. After I greased the chain and the cassette on the rear wheel and the gears on the derailleur I then made my first attempt to put it all back together. everything went smoothly until I attempted to put it back on the bike. Well as I didn't realize there is a spring that you have to twist in order for it to seat properly on the frame of the bike. Have you ever tried to compress a spring and then squeeze it into a space smaller the tip of your little finger. Well it was something like that only I was trying to twist this metal piece about half a turn and then put it into place while holding the the tiny metal piece and pinching my finger. Sadly to say it took me about ten minutes to get this piece back on. Then guess what you have to tighten the bolt before you let it go. Yes I took my hand off to grab my wrench. Next thing I know the derailleur is falling onto my knee. Then I repeated the previous process and it was installed successfully. But on the bright side I can now ride with zero squeaking from the rear of the bike. Until tomorrow Happy Riding.

The Shoes

Hello Everyone,
Today I was invited to ride with a friend who has also recently gotten a bicycle. We rode the back roads of Catawba NC my guess is that we rode about twenty-five miles. I did however, get to try out my new shoes. That was an experience that I will never forget. The shoes are the kind that snap into the pedals and do not come out unless you twist your foot the right way. The entire ride I did really well with them. The transition from just regular running shoes went very well. I could not be more pleased, Not only are they lighter than normal shoes, you can pull up with your back foot while pushing down with the front foot. That makes for a much easier ride because you can ride longer with less pain and you are working more muscles in your legs. But the best part is you can go so much faster. The person that I was riding with is very competitive as am I, but due to how much easier it is for me to ride with the shoes I made him look slow. There is, however, one major problem with the shoes. I have already mentioned it THEY DON'T COME OUT UNLESS YOU TWIST THEM THE RIGHT WAY! So here I am riding along excited from my recent victory I pull into my friend's front yard and begin to slow down. At this point I am ready to get off the bike and take a break. Well habit is an extremely difficult animal to tame. Before I tell you what happens I want you to take a second to think about how you would take your foot off of the pedals in normal shoes. Got it? Okay I am slowed down to an almost complete stop in grass, I proceed to remove my foot from the pedal.Well it doesn't come off! What Do I do?! While that is going through my head the bike falls to the right side. So here I am looking like a monkey trying to get off the bike, there are cars driving pointing and laughing. When I finally get my feet off of the pedals I get up like nothing happened to see my friend laying on the ground laughing. Then he says to me you may have won the battle but I won the war! We then proceeded in the house to laugh about it and tell his wife the story. So from now on I will take my feet off of the pedals well before I stop. I hope that you enjoyed my story as much as my friends. Thanks again until tomorrow happy cycling.