I rode for a half hour with my kid today.
Nothing major, just a spin around the block. I took the single speed 29'er, which is geared to roll about 12 MPH at 90 RPM. At most. I had to spin fast to keep up with the kid on his 6 speed. We went maybe five miles.
And everything was just fine, despite a solid 4 week layoff that threw me a few dark times. The back's still a little sore and stiff, and it's clear that there's a lot of base work in my future and maybe some other involving people in white coats other than Southerners at a July wedding. And it was just a short easy spin, not a three hour grind up in Thurmont. But that doesn't matter. It was out of the hole and into the light.
The back loosened up a bit with the gentle riding. The legs felt good; unlike last year's tendinitis-induced layoff (a thing of the past we hope) that had me stomping out squares, it was easy to keep a smooth round spin going, probably the legacy of 6 weeks of truly gentle spinning last summer after Dr. Cashman fixed my foot. It was goodness, all of it. For what we are about to receive, let us be truly grateful...
The way my spirits rose, there should have been a symphony playing the Hallelujah Chorus when we pulled into the back patio and put the bikes up. But I was happy to settle for pigs-in-a-blanket and a nice wool sweater to warm up in.
Every ride is a gift. Every day is a gift. And carpe diem does not necessarily refer to fish.
4 comments:
good on you.
baby steps, and sometimes it' a little light at the end of the tunnel that keeps moving us forward.
respect
fm
Same here Jim, just finished getting a Cat Scan done this week that confirms that I have to treat my now 53 year old back a lot differently or else. So the it's the core or it's the door for me now.
-B
Thanks Marc. As long as the light at the end of the tunnel isn't an oncoming Acela, I'll keep moving forward...
Bluenoser - this must be a getting old thing. I suppose it sucks. It will be nice having a built in excuse for getting dropped though... whereas I used to have to skip a few months' training, I can now just show up on the ride and be ready to defend my position.
I'm in the same boat. The back and hips tell me loud and clear if I've been slacking on the core and stretching. To add insult to injury, one of my professors, a local mtb racing hot shoe, tells the class I'm slow. Repeatedly. Old and fat, at least we can do something about the later....
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