I love riding my bike.
I'm not sure I always love the after effects of riding, but it is so
much more worth it to have pain from having had so much fun, rather than from
just existing.
Most of my friends ride...a lot. Almost all of them have epic rides at one
time or another. Theirs are usually of
the 50-150 mile ride epic ride.
I managed to have an 8.5 mile epic ride!
Jeff took me out on the Columbia Trail last Tuesday
afternoon. It was a pretty warm day
(mid-80s) when we started. We decided to
go from the Cycle Craft Long Valley shop to the trailhead on Bartley Road. I had not gone that direction in several
years and it has been improved with a trail that goes around the housing
development; very nice.
The first thing that let me know it would be a special ride
was seeing the Ghostbusters ambulance right before we got on the trail! Ghostbusters was a great part of my young
adulthood. It was exciting to see the
ambulance in Long Valley, of all places.
Hmmm, I wonder about the ghosts along the trail.
A little further in on the ride and it started raining. I've never really ridden in the rain before
and I started feeling a bit nervous. In
no time at all, it was a complete downpour and the trees really didn't seem to
be sheltering us from it at all. I
couldn't stop laughing! Rain was pouring
down my helmet and into my mouth (which I never seem to be able to keep
shut). I was so drenched and having so
much fun.
I don't see well on a good day. The rain came down so hard I could barely see
the red and blue of Jeff's jersey riding ahead of me. He very graciously steered me away from the
horse poop on the trail and guided me across when we had to cross streets. Still, I couldn't stop giggling.
We saw a bunny on the way out, ducking for cover as we came
barreling along. We saw another bunny on
the way back; in my "magical" mood, I imagined it was the same bunny
waiting to make sure we got back.
The rain seemed to draw turtles onto the trail, as
well. We saw two on the way back. Not big ones, but cute little fellows
enjoying their own walk in the rain.
I think that might have been the most fun ride I have ever
had! I felt like I was all of 8 years
old and disobeying all those rules I grew up with! See?
Epic rides don't need to be long.
Epic is a state of mind. It
probably wouldn't have been much fun had it been cold, and that would be a
different story. I finished that ride
drenched, covered in grit from the trail and excited for my next ride.
My next ride is noteworthy also; but for a different
reason. On Sunday, I was busy having a
stupid, old pity party. I hate when I
get like that. I am intelligent enough
to know that the way I am thinking is only making my mood worse, I just can't
seem to help myself sometimes.
Jeff came home from his ride and offered to take me out on a
ride. He doesn't have a lot of free
time, so I knew I should take him up on it while the offer was there.
We went down to the High Bridge end of the Columbia Trail
and started up. The last time I started
at that end, I got 7.5 miles in and was completely wiped out. This time, I used my self-pity as a
motivation and channeled my inner "Kim Fury". She is a good friend who rides like she is
possessed. She has always told me a bike
ride makes everything better. Actually,
a lot of my friends say that. On Sunday,
I found out what they meant.
I started that ride so mean, evil and bitchy! By the time we got to the Califon city
limits, I checked out of the pity party and into fun mode. The slow steady climb took all the abuse I
could put into my pedals. With every
turn of the crank, the moodiness and bitchiness flew out the back of my tires. We turned back at 5 miles which meant I had
my longest ride since being back in New Jersey.
When I finished, I was content and at peace, the way I like to be.
So, riding causes me some pretty bad pain the day
after. So what? The joy that it brings is worth every bit of
the pain. I can deal with some steady
chronic pain. I don't do so well when
deprived of the pure pleasure of being on a bike, even for my short, simple
rides.
