Remember when you were a kid? Riding your bike was the only form of transportation you could control...
I can remember riding for hours all over my neighborhood. I lived in the sticks, so we never really had to be concerned with traffic or HELMETS! I would ride probably three or four miles to Sybil's house just to see if she wanted to ride back to my house (no cell phones either). It was leisurely and I loved it.
It wasn't until high school that I was hit with the realization that riding my bike is actually a great form of exercise! Of course, that was also about the time I realized that I needed to exercise! I had a four mile square of God's country to ride and I hopped on my yellow Huffy 10-speed and pedaled that expanse daily. That was probably the first time in my life that I understood that I was in control of my fitness and my body. I continued that trek all summer and when school started back up I went to KMart and bought myself some new clothes!!!
Fast forward another 20+ years...
Today I rode about 7 miles with a dear friend of mine. First of all, it is NOT as easy to ride as it was when I owned Eagle Road and flew around on my ten speed. It's damn hard! At one point I had to "stand" and pedal just to get up a hill! Had I not been with a friend, I might have gotten off and pushed my bike...
And I do not remember getting off my bike and having to get my "land legs" again! I remember throwing my bike to the ground and running off to play tag or kickball (notice I didn't say I was going to play Atari)!!!
Let's be honest.... Somewhere along the way someone must have changed bikes altogether. They decided that biking is a sport, not a past-time and made it hard for the common person to ride. That is certainly the reason I am still sweaty (in 55 degrees), my legs are aching, and my arms are sore??? It can't be me- right?
No comments:
Post a Comment