WOW

WOW! That's all I can say. I am actually paying attention to this blog. Being busy with work does not leave me with enough time in the day to do all the things I want to do. My work day (excluding drive time) generally starts at 8:30 a.m. and ends somewhere between 11:30 - 11:45 p.m. most days. On the occasions when I have an evening off, updating a blog is not among my top priorities. However, I decided to take the time to write something. Of greater significance is not what I write, but that I am taking the time to write.

I use to say "I don't have the time", but then I realize I was cheating myself out of things I love and enjoy (and no, I am not talking about blogging nor writing). For example, it was the excuse I used for not going cycling. I used to ride a minimum of 75 miles per week, but for the past 4 years I rode less than 7 miles per week on the rare occasions when I did ride. I think I get a little less than 7 miles per week on my riding lawn mower - I'll have to check.

During this time I could hear my bikes moaning as they fell in a cobwebbed state of non-use. So I threw the "no time excuse" out the door, repaired my bikes (do-it-myself + professional) and started riding again. My road bike is now a part of my truck. At first I was a little annoyed having to lift and pull it from the cabin compartment as I do not yet have a bike hitch. Then I remembered, if I want to do this (ride) then I'll have to do this (lift and pull). Now the lifting and pulling is a part of the experience, and WOW is all I can say to this experience.

Today I rode a mixed trail - wooded, hills, flats, farms and city. I generally enjoy city riding until I start inhaling the fumes of passing vehicles or someone decides to exit a parked vehicle and open their door suddenly just as I am about to pass by. Today in the city, about 11 miles into my journey, I stopped at a roadside market and ate the juiciest, crispiest apple I ate in a long time. It had the right balance of tart and sweet - just how I like it. Combined with an oatmeal cookie it was the perfect fuel. The flats took me through Grant's Farm, home to Budweiser's Clydesdale. To ride along the white fences and watch the Clydesdale (including a foal) galivant reminded me of the freedom to be enjoyed outside. During the "wooded ride" I saw a few deers including a majestic buck (probably a 10pt buck), dart across the trail ahead of me. The trail crossed rivers, streams and brooks and on occasions ran alongside them. Squirrels played "dodge the bikers", caterpillars tried to scurry across the trail and birds were busy darting in and out of the bushes along the side of the trail.

It was such a beautiful experience to be back in the saddle and enjoying the sights and sounds of the outdoors. Had it not been for getting saddle sore and feeling a thousand little fire in each quad, I would not have realized that I covered 26.5 miles riding. Next stop - 30 miles. No more I don't have the time. The experience is too rich for me to not enjoy it.

AND...it is mostly free...