riding again!

So I'm driving down rt. 202 in traffic last night, listing to NPR and the high price of gas, and I really start missing my frequent bike rides into work. When I get home, I check the weather, and while not a great forecast, it would be do-able.

I get up an extra 15 minutes early and I'm on my bike by 6:15. Halfway down the driveway I realize that my handlebars are way off, so I go back and fix them (sort of). 5 minutes later, I start pedaling through the dense fog.

Everything is wet due to the fog and my brakes are slippery. My gearing is off, and I realize that I never adjusted anything after I took my bike out of the box when I returned from Hawaii, just sort of slapped it together. I had half a mind to return home and drive in afterall, but I kept moving forward.

After I warm up a bit and the muscles kick in, I remember how much more alive I feel when I'm riding my bike instead of following the long line of lemmings in my car. Heart pumping, cold toes, fall colors, so many smells, quick reflexes, great thoughts... really good feeling.

I'm glad I took some time off, but I really miss riding, so I'll try to ride into work at least a few times each month through the winter just to shake up the doll drums.