I just got home from an absolutely beautiful bike commute from the TWP office. I rode up Mason, hopped on the Poudre River bike trail, and rode it all the way to Laporte. I had never ridden the new section between Taft Hill and Overland, and it was very cool. Towards the end, there’s a long, meandering bridge that crosses the Poudre, with the river below and enormous cottonwoods draped all around.
Riding my bike is such a joy. I feel strong and the bike leaps under me when I put the hammer down. I love everything I can see and experience in the open air and the smooth feeling of my legs driving the pedals around and around. It’s calming and exhilarating. But you have to be careful about grinning too big as the bugs are hatching out, especially around the river, and you fly through clouds of them as you go.
Sensory inventory: heard peepers (three different places) and red-winged blackbirds; smelled the sweet aroma of the cottonwoods and the fresh green-water scent of the river (which is starting its rise; the warm temps this week are sending the snowpack downstream in a big hurry); felt the alternating cool of the shade amongst the trees and warmth of the sun out in the open; saw a tiny snake slithering off the bike path and into the tall grass; and tasted the salt on my upper lip (but didn’t taste any bugs; they’re too small).
According to our RTR training schedule, this is a rest week, with just a couple of easy rides, no hills. But I had to do Bingham anyway. Riding with my backpack wasn’t as annoying as I thought it might be, but I noticed that it put me down a rung in the hierarchy. When we’re out cycling, we lift a casual three fingers off the handlebars to acknowledge cyclists passing in the other direction. But only other road bikers — we don’t wave at mountain bikers, and vice versa. But if you’re a road biker who’s commuting (backpack), the cyclists who are out purely for a training ride don’t wave to you either.
The other note I feel compelled to log is that Chamois Butt’r is a must, even on short rides. Nuff said.
Oh, one other thing — if I ever do a blog that’s just about cycling, I’ve decided to call it “Weird Tan Lines.”
