A Great Example of Why I Ride

I was feeling grateful this morning as I pushed out of the house for the morning ride.  The sky was full of reds and golds as the new day was dawning.  Less than a mile into the ride, a fox ran across my path.  This fox was very fast and it wasn’t until it was nearly across the trail and into the woods on the other side that I noticed it.  A stealthy blur is what caught my eye.  I wonder if it was after prey.

Cardinals are some of the earliest birds I see.  They flit from about shoulder height to the ground and back again.  In the dim light they appear to be grey.  The blue jays make their presence known.  They shriek from the safety of the trees.  No other creatures seem to notice and so I ignore them too.  As I make my way to the bridge I encounter a couple of other riders on their way to work.  We gently speak our greetings so as not to upset the gradually waking day.

I wonder if the regular drivers crossing under the bridge note our grouping as much as the garbage truck drivers who pass by every morning on their appointed rounds.

Our group of riders push off, riding two abreast talking about the Tour de France, about upcoming rides, about rides past, and missed rides.  We catch up on important personal news.  It is great to connect with these guys.

Along the way we sweat, we huff and puff, we go fast or slow according to how we feel.  Today was a slower day as three of us rode and chatted about Clint’s upcoming 1200k ride in Alaska.  Several others decided to make it a faster day.  We didn’t see them for long.

Soon enough it was all over, and I was winding my way home.  The sun was bright and low in the sky.  The new day was here.

It sure beats being inside some warehouse gym watching television while pedaling to nowhere.

The added benefit with the Malaria campaign going on is that each day I ride, a bed net is purchased, reducing the incidence of Malaria for a family.

This Ride: 21.9 miles
Malaria Campaign: 812 miles
Funds Pledged: $406
Contributed in support: $1,437.60

Total = $1,843.60