Day 63

I ride my bicycle to work and around town for a lot of things. Initially it was because it was faster than walking, but now I enjoy it immensely. Its a great stress reliever. And yes I ride in all kinds of weather. Thank goodness for long johns. I bundle up, and yes I wear headphones for my mp3 player. Some may seem that I wouldn't be able to hear. I disagree. I don't have them turned up, and I am very aware of whats out there. I have heard the bass from cars, and know that there is no way anyone in there can hear anything. I have seen people talking and texting on a cell phone. So am I worried? Hell Ya!

But since you are peddling a machine, trying to keep it up right, level, and having to take into consideration, terrain, weather, people, cars and everything else, getting lost in the music isn't what I do. I listen to music when I work out, and music affects me when I ride. I have certain music channels for when I ride. Its hard to explain, so lets just call them motivational songs.

Am I a safe bicyclist? I try to be. I don't blow throw stop signs. I have seen both bicycles and cars do it. I don't try it when I bike; and I try not to run the yellow when I am in four wheels.
My bike isn't 18 speed, but a mountain bike. Do I know all the gears? Not really. I shift when I have problems and back when its an easy ride. I would definitely call myself a recreational rider, even though it seems I am hard corps by riding in all kinds of weather. Again, not really.

With high gas prices I recommend riding a bike when you can. Sometimes its not practical I know. Would I give up my 4 wheels for 2? Never. I think a good balance is the best. Ride when you can; it saves gas, is healthier for you and is fun. You see things that you miss when you drive. Some might say its dangerous riding; either on the sidewalk or in the street. Doesn't bother me. You see, I understand that physics is on a car's side. They are bigger, heavier and can't stop fast. They hit someone riding a 10 speed, its not gonna be pretty. Me, I have a defensive mind set; not to mention I stand over six feet and a I tend to be a big guy. Two things might happen if I get hit: 1) I have a good chance of being like a deer-going through your windshield. Momentum x velocity x etc. etc. etc. or 2) Because I am a big guy, I am not hard to miss, and if you don't put me down if you hit me, I have a good chance of getting back up. I am a fairly easy going person, unless I get hit by a car. So you can imagine how I might feel.

Knock wood; so far I have not had anywhere close to getting hit. What I have done, are stupid things that got me hurt. The only person I can blame is me. Here are a couple of my highlights: I know there is a chain across some lot here in Columbia, that, in the waining hours of daylight, can not be seen. And it is set chin high, and luckily, is also break-away. Or at least it was when I decided to take a short cut through the lot. I now have a nice scar on my chin from that. I need to think of a good story for how I got it.

Another time I was flying down a hill and my cap blew off. Unlike a lot of kids today, I was not wearing it reversed. In these instances I now understand and have no problem wearing my cap reversed. In this instance I reacted quickly. Perhaps, I might ad, a bit too quickly as I applied break first to the front instead of the back. I fond out that I have great front breaks and that Newton's Law works; You know-an object in motion will stay in motion.... as I flew over the handlebars and then had the bike crash down on me. Luckily there was no car behind me or who knows. In that case, I would have been totally justified in getting run over.

So what am I saying here? I can be my own worst enemy on a bike. I laughed both off, as what else was I gonna do? Scars heal. Glory fades. Pain hurts, but only for a minute, etc. etc. I don't worry about cars, I just worry whats the next thing I am going to do to get a scar. And I don't worry about scars. To me they are reminders that we all do stupid things, or more precisely I do stupid things. Good or bad, I wear them as badges to remind me how lucky I am.

You gonna have to get me to tell you the time I put my arm through a glass door and had glass sticking out of it. My mom was more freaked out than I was. Yeah it hurt, but I had no one to blame but myself. Unfortunately a lot of the younger scars are fading. Its a good thing I get new ones to remind me that I am not invulnerable, especially with my birthday approaching. I still feel twenty-five; most of the time. And I have the scars to prove it.