Yesterday, I did something very, very brave. I got on my bike and rode on the street amongst cars, aka those huge hunks of steel that could (and probably desperately want to) flatten me in an instant. OK, so I only rode on side streets for a few blocks between my house and the bike path, but I've been meaning to get on my bike since last summer, and the only thing stopping me was the mortal terror I'd experience every time I thought about riding in city traffic. I was shaky for a while--I hadn't been on a bike in at least 5 years, probably more--and freaking out, both inwardly and outwardly, until we got to Alewife. ("Hey, Chris, I'm going to freak out for about 10 minutes, so...yeah, sorry." Thank you for being so patient with me--it really helped.) But I did it, and we rode all the way to the end of the Minuteman Bikeway and back, over 20 miles! It was a fantastic ride, even though there was a bit too much wind, and way too many rollerbladers, and Chris had a blowout on the way back (he had an extra innertube thingy and a tire-taker-offer tool, and a friendly biker guy loaned him his CO2 hooha so he could inflate it). The sun was shining, tree frogs and birds were peeping and twittering, the trees were budding, and I felt strong. My dismount is not very graceful, and I think my bike frame is a bit too big for me ("Um, when I'm standing with my feet on the ground, the crossbar isn't supposed to be nestled up in my labia, is it?"), but fuck it. I DID IT.
I did it. And I'm gonna do it again.
Posted by thevieve at April 3, 2006 10:20 AM