Biking

"Riding this bike is a workout, riding that bike is an adventure."
-Dad

I have a beach cruiser I used to ride to and from school, but since my parents deemed the roads to college too busy to be safe my bike has been sitting in the garage gathering dust. Since I'm not a fan of driving (read, totally terrified of it), and don't have a job right now, gas is precious and this summer I've been biking to the grocery store, the post office, the dentist, anywhere that doesn't cross a freeway. At first it was uncomfortable and my muscles went, "Hey, we haven't done this in a while!" Equally awkward was using hand signals since I don't think most drivers know what to make of them and some people stare at me like they think they should recognize me because I was waving at them. Only I wasn't waving, I was signalling! I guess it's a lost art. Anyway, biking-wise, I'm up to speed now. Not that biking on a beach cruiser is particularly speedy, even if I do use the wide handles to pretend I'm podracing.

Watching The Biggest Loser is pretty inspiring and after a few seasons of this my dad said, "If these people can run a marathon, I can bike to work." So he bought himself a nice bike and started doing laps in the morning, waking me up a few times to accompany him. I lag hopelessly behind since his bike goes into high gear and mine is all leg power, but it's fun. And the pinnacle of fun came this weekend! Neither of us was scheduled to do camera work at church this Sunday so we went with a neighbor to his church Saturday night. Sunday morning found us up before 6, preparing to do a charity ride for the Parks and Rec. Department.

There were 2 bike rides hosted by Henry's this morning. I'm super excited about this store opening! Healthy food, local produce, friendly service, cheaper and closer than Trader Joe's. I've been to this place in Southern California when visiting relatives, and now it's here in my own neighborhood! Aah! I tried getting a job there, but alas, they underestimated my enthusiasm and didn't hire me (read, wanted people with actual cashier experience. Pfft.) Anyway. I hope this store, the first in northern California, lives up to my expectations, and that people shop there so it doesn't go the way of Albertson's and Lucky's and such. It looks so promising.

The first bike ride started at 6am. 52 miles through parks and along a river before meeting for lunch. Sounds good, right? But my dad, his friend and I weren't quite up to doing that. She didn't have a bike, and I borrowed our neighbor's since I was sure I wouldn't be able to keep up on a beach cruiser, and I didn't want to get separated in a crowd of cyclists. Participants were required to wear helmets and since we only had two I borrowed the neighbor's daughter's skateboarding helmet. It wasn't until the morning of the ride that we realized the front tire was coming away from the wheel, so all in all, I had some motley looking gear. I didn't care, and was too excited to mind, until we pulled into the parking lot to register for our 10 mile ride that started at 7. There were some intense looking bikers there. Neon vests, form-fitting one piece outfits, aerodynamic helmets, and fingerless gloves with rubber grips adorned bodies with skinny legs. A sea of sunglasses stared at us from weathered faces atop these finely sculpted physiques before going back to examining their shiny bikes that made whizzing sounds. I was awed and impressed. But not too awed to shout "Yay" and clap when wave after wave of bikers took off for the first ride.

My dad, his friend J and I then milled around in the parking lot for over an hour. We thought the line to register would be long, but apparently not a lot of people in Elk Grove want to wake up early Sunday morning for a bike ride. There was no line. In fact, up until the last minute where we lined up for the ride, I only saw 3 other bikers, 2 of which were Henry's employees. So I had plenty of time to dance to the two songs that played over and over, one which was completely in a foreign tongue and one whose main refrain was "Boom, boom." J and I peeked into the store and got all excited about the half stocked shelves and we all went to test out the cycling machine the Sports Authority reps brought. And of course, we helped ourselves to free drinks and stickers. Sobe Lifewater is goooooood. Plus, who doesn't like stickers?!

Finally, about 15 people pulled up their bikes to the starting point. Some were elderly, some were overweight, 4 were Henry's employees. We were a ragtag band of casual bikers. (Sunday drivers!) The MC reminded us to follow the rules of the road and then did a countdown to amp up the excitement, since the start of the other ride was quiet and subdued. Then we were off! To the edge of the parking lot! Where we stopped for a red light. It was pretty anti-climatic. Then this older gentleman plowed ahead of us all because the streets were completely empty and still and we all laughed as we went along with him. Our trio started out at the head of the pack, but I found it was slow going with them. Everyone started passing us up. By the time we got to the snack station at Elk Grove Park, we were the last of the group. Oh well. We had an enjoyable bike ride back to Henry's, uneventful except for the one wrong turn we took when we were a block away from the finish. Whoops.

Lessons learned:
~ Don't complain about other people going slow. They will switch bikes, so that the one on the bike that rides itself leaves you far behind, and the one with the mountain bike will stay at least a quarter of a mile ahead of you at all times.
~ Don't stand up on an unfamiliar bike for the first time if you're going uphill and crossing a freeway on-ramp. You will forget you need to keep your feet straight and ride with a decided wobble that will freak out drivers and yourself.
~ Don't forget what you already knew; it's all about the hand brakes. Or at least the one that touches the tire that isn't coming off. Pedaling backwards does nothing!
~ Look at the map before setting off, since switching bikes means your dad no longer has his map or water, and when the sun pops out it will sap away his memory of the route just before the finish line.

Participants got a goody bag from Henry's and some snacks at the end. Everything in my bag was great! Cereal, drinks, bag clasp, certificate for Chik-Fil-A, coupon for Henry's. I don't know about the frisbee from Citibank, but it's free and thus, fine by me. Same goes for the notepad and pencil from Hampton Inn & Suites. I used to deliver newspapers there. So after listening to my dad's praise for my ability to ride a broken bike whose tires complained the whole time, snacking on chocolate covered coffee beans, a combination I'd never heard of but am now crazy about, and packing up our gear, our little trio and J's family went to IHOP for a most delicious breakfast. And when we got home, my mom and brother weren't even up yet. Goooood times.