I love new adventures. Let’s just blame it on the free spirit in me, but I do, and no apologies for it. Particularly I love adventures that push me, once again, out of my comfort zone. Those my friends, are the best kind. Challenging myself with new athletic endeavors that demand new things from my body, mind and spirit.
It’s no secret as I’ve been recovering with a running injury that I’ve been well, actively, recovering. And by that I mean spending a lot more time on my bike than I typically had been. I got a cheapy little road bike for my birthday in July and took it to the bike shop and let him tweak it to the best of the best he could make it.
Oh my… I will say… there was a big change when I got it back so that’s a good thing =)
I live in the rolling hill country so I have been burning miles up all over the place and doubling back on roads to get some distance with each ride. I have great terrain to train on whether I’m running or on a bike.
Flat roads, small rolling hills, inclines, and well, monster hills that are really paved over mountains.
I plot out where I run/bike based on the workout I want… I consider it the best of both worlds. However, in doing this, I have to encounter very few cars as the roads are fairly quiet and most are dead end.
I had decided this past Saturday would be my maiden voyage into town on the main road ( meaning a lot more cars and having to be a part of the “traffic”) when I run I of course run against traffic and that feels a bit safer to me… I can see what’s coming… as you know a bike moves with it…. so this was a whole new, and semi-heart stopping thought for me.
I plotted everything out Friday and that night I ran everything through my head just like a do the night before a big run….ah…it’s hard to settle in for sleep!
I was up and on the road by 7…. all was quiet…. and I quickly remembered how much I loved being out for these early athletic activities. Passing houses where people were still asleep, hearing nothing but the sound of my tires swish down the road, watching the sun coming up, feeling the wind in my face flying down the road…. awesome… seriously… it makes leaving your bed ALL worth it.
The miles flew by a lot faster than running them and I had covered ground quickly so it didn’t take long to get to the main road that led into town. I already knew from running this distance that the hardest miles were still in front of me…. lots of constant never ending inclines that were challenging to put it mildly.
However, my happy little bike and I, churned through those inclines and only once did I really feel like an out of shape sea walrus haha 😉
The fun part was the big hill I knew I would get to sail down close to town… seriously… my bike speed said 40… it was so crazy….
Cars and big trucks had passed me at several points on my journey, but thankfully, cut wide around me.
I felt strong and invigorated when I sped into the parking lot where I had parked. 15 miles under me and it had been a successful voyage, leaving me feeling like the kid who’s been on a fun ride wanting to know when they can go again 😉
You know, riding a bike is something most of us learn as a kid. Yet today,cycling has become this big, pricey, almost intimidating thing to take on. I had to remind myself when I started running… I was doing it in non-name brand athletic shoes and cheap Wal-mart cotton shorts and t’s with no tech gear whatsoever… but I was out there running and learning along the way. It looks like I’ll handle cycling in the same way… just get out there and ride and learn the other stuff along the way.
I do have some future plans for riding… and running….. and well… maybe anything else that comes along too 😉
What about you? Did you have any fun, new weekend adventures ?
sassyfitnesschick 