"Ah, yes!" I whispered to myself as my first few pedal strokes took me off of Wood Way and across the highway. After looking at this view of my garage for the past few weeks...
...finally getting off the wind trainer and onto the open road was pure joy. Okay, most days I propped my Kindle or iPad (with Netflix playing) in my handlebar bag to make the time go by faster, but it still sucked.
Today, finally, with almost 90 inches of snow still on the ground, I got out for my first ride of the season. It was 39 degrees when I left the house, and the sun was doing its best to hold back the few dry flakes of snow that had been falling. The highway was clear of snow and ice, though, so it was a beautiful day for a ride. I couldn't take being indoors any longer, and I'm desperately in need of training for my April bike tour.
My next comment to myself was, "The Himalayas are going to kill me!" I was pedaling up a slight incline into a very slight head wind (of course), and was appalled at how slow I was going. On the plus side, I'm always surprised in the spring at how quickly I get my riding legs back, so I'm hopeful that regular riding over the next three weeks will give me a bit of muscle tone back. Once I'm in Bhutan, I can always blame any weakness on the altitude! I should also have plenty of opportunities to stop and rest - I mean, take photos. It'll all work out one way or another.
I was thrilled that my shoulder didn't bother me at all while I was riding. Granted, it was only 45 minutes, but no immediate problems surfaced. The muscles on the back of my left shoulder were a little tighter than those of my right, but that would be greatly helped if I could learn to ride without hunching my shoulders up around my ears. My hopes are still high for a pain-free tour in Bhutan. If nothing else, I have plenty of hydrocodone to take with me!
Thane caught a photo of me just as I was getting back to our road. Not a great shot of me, but it does show under what conditions I'm willing to ride - and love it!
