The Crash of Spring

All this time I have been reading about biking, watching the YouTube videos and the like, I have been enamoured with the guys who seem to have this whole cycling thing down pat. They glide, they dart, the bike is an extension of their bodies. They are the bike.

I have been riding bikes for 30 plus years, and I have finally figured it out that there are just some things that you just need to learn the hard way.

Like crashing.

Your new bike.

I knew this was going to happen, I just wasnt ready for it. Not this soon anyway. See, it all started with the warm weather. I wanted to ride on my day off, the sun was shining and it wasnt really too cold out. Besides, if I wore my Under Armor thermals, then my new jersey would look great! So, don the gear I did. Including the shoes. I was going all out.

Got the garage door lifted, walked the bike out, started the app on my Android, threw it in my back jersey pocket, and clipped in. Right foot. Left foot.

Pedaling easy, it was nice to be back riding again, although the new saddle reminded me of how much time I had spent off the bike. Going to have to get used to this again. But it was a nice feeling. New bike and all.

I turned the first corner, and was met with the little incline that warms up your legs pretty quickly. I kicked up to a slower gear and the cadence jumped. I had no issues on that grade. The speed carried into the small left hander as the chain clicked from the larger cog down towards the frame. Then the right hander, and a stop sign.

I got thru that stop pretty well. I thought of how I was going to unclip; stand, twist and dangle. Pretty easy, and I had done it before. As planned, it went smoothly. Ok, Im getting this, I thought as I pulled my right leg up and pushed off. I struggled to get my left foot clipped, the pedal kept flipping upside down. But once I got it clipped, I was good to go.

Update:
This writing never got posted. Since then, I have had quite a journey. I rode 35 plus miles, am feeling more confident and am really looking forward to doing my first metric century(62miles), my first century(100) and my first double metric(126) in one day.

Until then....