1. I love cycling, but one of the things I don't like is the palaver around getting ready to go out for a cycle. Now, anyone thinking of taking up cycling, please don't be put off by this! I make it much more complicated than it has to be! For example, I'm hopeless at deciding what to wear: will I be too hot/cold?; should I go for leggings, shorts or both?; would fingerless or full gloves be best?; will vest top/cycle top/jacket do, or would long sleeve vest/cycle top/hoodie be better?; or should I go for a vest/cycle top/hoodie combo?; one pair of socks or two?; buff/balaclava or both... and so it goes on. Meanwhile, Alex has pulled on the first bunch of things that comes out of the drawer and is twiddling his thumbs waiting...
2. Actually, Alex is rarely twiddling his thumbs waiting because usually there'll be some last minute palaver with some technical aspect of the bike or another - and it's usually my fault...This morning's palaver revolved around toe clips. Only one of my pedals had a toe clip attached. I think it was because I needed a strap for something back in about December and a toe clip strap fitted the bill nicely! So, while I was faffing around, pulling various layers of clothing on and off, Alex was hunting the house for toe clip straps...
3. As soon as we did get going, it just felt brilliant to be back on my bike. Brilliant. Until, after only a few turns of the pedals I, predictably, had a changing gear issue. 'Alex, which should I be in again, big cog or wee cog...?!' It always takes me a few minutes to get used to the gears again after a long spell off the bike...
4. The first cycle of the year is always a special one (I can see you, you lovely people who cycle most days or at least much more often than me, I can see you rolling your eyes in the air at the fact that my first cycle of the year is in April...) but this morning's cycle was extra special for an additional reason:
5. We were only cycling on main roads for short spells. Every person driving around me today was considerate. Of course, some of them may well have been cursing the fact that there was a 'bloody cyclist' in front of them, but if they were unhappy about me being on the road they didn't show it. They all gave me plenty of space and some returned the waves I gave as they passed me by. The same can't be said for a fellow cyclist. He showed us no due consideration and nearly knocked Alex off his bike at one point. It served as a reminder that it's people who sometimes behave in an inconsiderate way, not 'drivers' or 'pedestrians' or 'cyclists'. People. Fortunately, most people we come across on our cycles are nice - just like in life really.
6. Stopping for a poached egg roll and a latte mid-cycle reminded me why I don't miss running as much as I used to...
7. I wonder why it had taken Alex and I so long to get back on our bikes when we love being on them so much. Cold weather and rain probably. We're unashamedly fair weather cyclists, and today was just a perfect day for the start of our 2017 cycling adventures...
