With The WInd At My Back

Let’s be honest – the first 10 minutes of working out really sucks! This includes riding your bike. When I went on my last bike ride I thought, “Why am I doing this? I really don’t like it at all- oh ya, it’s for the sweet reward I will give myself when I’m done!”

But if you can get past that first few minutes – you really get into a groove and that is when the fun starts. I was alone as usual so I felt no pressure to go faster or longer that I wanted. I was determined to only go for a very short ride. The funny thing was that the further I went the more I wanted to ride.

This was surprising because there was a pretty serious head wind. It almost blew me over a couple of times. There was something about pushing through it though, that made it pretty fun. I also knew that coming back was going to be a lot easier, but there was that nagging knowledge that it was also going to be mostly uphill going back and you know how I just love hills!

When I reached the halfway point I called my husband to request an extraction (that is what we say when we want a ride home). I was only half way joking and I knew he would not do it. He LOVES to push me.

So I started pedaling back home. I was shocked at how fast I got going. I knew having the wind at my back would make it easier but I had no idea how big of a difference it would make. I really started to pick up some speed and I was lovn’ it!

Imagine my surprise when I saw Darrin drive by and honk! He actually came to get me – what a great guy! Except, he didn’t come to get me, he just came to cheer me on and wouldn’t let me get in the car. I was actually OK with going on because I was having such a great time, although I was getting tired and the biggest hill was still ahead of me.

Darrin made a game of driving ahead and then honking at me and yelling to me as I rode by. He had gotten my almost 3 year old daughter in on the act, so I had my own little fan group for that last 2 miles. It actually was a lot of fun and only slightly embarrassing.

When it was all said and done I had gone on a 10 mile ride. The amazing part? I had a really great time and was looking forward to the next time I would ride.

Maybe I’m actually getting somewhere with learning to love riding!