Thursday, August 14, 2008
Learning to Love It
I didn't expect to be posting again so soon, but I wanted to share a recent training experience.
On my Tuesday ride I took a new but familiar route - the road I drove every week for summer league frisbee but never attempted on a bicycle. Route 20 South looks briefly like a main road but quickly winds into wooded back country where all you can see are trees and farms. To give you a better idea: one week I had to visit the area post office (which was in the middle of nowhere and took me several tries to find) and when I asked the woman behind the counter for the nearest public bathroom she had no suggestions and explained, with a chuckle at my city ways, that "We don't have anything like a McDonalds out here." I discovered the answer to my question later: 15 miles away there's a gas station, but it closes at 7pm. Beyond that you're pretty much screwed.
The bike ride was going well until my chain jumped off, which is when I realized that I wasn't sure how to put it back. I knew it was a fairly simple process, and I knew Kyle had demonstrated it at some point, possibly several times, but I just couldn't figure it out. I called Kyle and was about to have him talk me through the process when a car pulled over and asked if I needed help. It was a middle aged couple with mountain bikes on the back of their jeep, and when I explained my somewhat embarrassing issue one of them jumped out to assist. He was very confused about how the chain managed to get on the wrong side of the pedal; I neglected to mention that I moved it in my uneducated repair attempts and instead gave him an "oh the unsolved mysteries of the cycling universe" shrug. He was extremely helpful and nice, and even suggested a great bike route nearby. He fixed the chain in less than a minute and assured me that I'd be able to do it myself next time.Well, lucky me, I got to practice my newly aquired skill about 10 miles later when my chain came off again. Luckily it was indeed as easy as it looked. A truck slowed to see if I needed help, but I was able to wave him off with an "I'm good; I just had to fix the chain. Thanks though!" It's always nice to meet friendly motorists to compensate for the reckless, ignorant, and honking ones. Now I just have to figure out why my chain is being so difficult; I assume it has to do with my rough shifting style, but in the past that has only been a problem on large uphills.
Fingers covered in grease, I rode on. At one point I pressed a button on my bike computer and coated it with grease. Without thinking I tried to wipe off the screen and ended up dislodging it from the bike. I hit the breaks and watched the computer bounce down the road, expecting it to end up in the woods or plastered to a car wheel. I was able to rescue it though; the casing got a bit cracked but I was relieved to see that everything still functioned properly. I didn't need any more mechanical problems, or bad omens - the last time I busted a bike computer I was attacked by dogs a few minutes later. (This was several years ago but I still have a big scar on my ankle to remind me that I hate dogs in motion.)
Fortunately the rest of the ride was uneventful. Better than that - it was amazing. I rode farther and faster than I have since I began training this month - almost 30 miles at a 15.27 mph pace. That probably doesn't sound impressive, but I think we can tell by my bike mechanic skills that I'm an amateur, and I consider it a good start. Most importantly, I really, really enjoyed the ride. Despite the setbacks and the hills and the heat it felt really good. I rode again today with an added hill workout and still loved every moment on the bike. Contrary to most of my expectations, cycling is addicting me already.
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| posted at: 20:32 |
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