Test Ride

I went on a 24-mile bike ride yesterday and I'm not ashamed to admit that I only made it all the way back on sheer will. My legs haven't been that tired in a long time, but I'm happy I did it. My longest ride before yesterday was 16 miles. I was interested in riding my bicycle to work once in a while, so this was also a "test ride," to determine whether the roads and trails I chose would be suitable.

Overall, it was a pleasant ride, the temperature was about 84 on the way out, and got down to 77 when I got back. It was starting to get dark and although out on the open road it wasn’t so bad, it was a little too dark in the shade to see well. I enjoyed sensing the sudden fluctuations in temperature as I ride through downdrafts, and the smell of different trees and plants was refreshing. Riding at sundown was a treat because I saw and heard things I wouldn’t have earlier in the day. In the last sliver of sunlight I saw numerous near-horizontal spider webs expertly spanning the distance between trees, like ephemeral hammocks. Frogs and crickets began their music to which the flights of fireflies seemed choreographed.