My Own Two Wheels

I rode my bike to work today!

Okay, maybe that's a little misleading. I did ride my bike, and I did ride it to and from my office, but that was after the workday was already over. But still!

I haven't ridden in a long time, so long, in fact, that my tires went flat. (Really flat, like couldn't-pump-them-up-myself flat.) I took Ranger* in to Pasadena Cyclery on Monday night and Matt changed out my flats and even gave me a tutorial in some bicycle basics. (I am ashamed at how ignorant I was [and still am] about my poor bike.)

I was supposed to go out tonight, but plans were cancelled and I thought I'd take the opportunity to go for a quick ride. I started out heading towards Washington Park and quickly realized it was uphill from my house. So yeah, I scrapped that plan about halfway between my house and the park, turning around and coasting downhill.

Then I realized that if my house was downhill, then my office was also downhill. And I thought to myself, "Self, you can totally bike a mile and a half downhill." And then I did! It was quite exciting.

The ride home was a little less exciting, as it involved more physical exertion and less feeling the wind rush against my face and shouting "woohoo!", but still, I felt pretty good about myself.

Now I just need to do this on a workday morning...

* I'm trying to figure out my bike's real name. 'Ranger' is a placeholder but it doesn't really work because that's emblazoned on his side (he's a Schwinn Ranger); it's almost as bad as just calling him 'Bike'. My sister's bike is Skippy but I think my bike needs a more manly** name. Feel free to share ideas in the comments.

** Maybe I should name him Christian Bale. I'd like to ride him all over town.