A Perfect Day for a Bike Ride

They say once you learn how to ride a bike you never forget. I have had a few bikes in my time, but my favorite was one that had a white banana seat with flowers and high handlebars. Just for kicks, I did a quick search to see if there were any for sale on eBay. The kind of bike I rode back in the day is now considered to be "vintage." That made me chuckle a little :) The bike below is the one I currently ride. If you can believe it, my in-laws won it in a contest they had entered! Pretty cool.

It has been pretty darn hot where we live lately, but this past Saturday, it was pretty nice (not humid) - a perfect day for a bike ride! I have not been on my bike at all this summer, so the tires needed some air (thanks to the hubby for filling them for me). I wanted to challenge myself and see if I could ride down to our local library and back. It is not far, only about 3 1/2 miles round trip. I had my cell phone, so if I had any issues I could call home. Once I put my helmet on, I was ready to roll. I started out fine, but by the time I got to the outer fringes of my neighborhood, I started breathing kind of hard. I started thinking to myself, okay, is this because I'm trying to ride too fast? or is it because I have my different heart issues?? I came to the conclusion the heavy breathing was because I was trying to go faster than I was comfortable with. Once I slowed down a little, I got into a momentum and I was fine. I made it down to the library and went inside for a bit to "recharge" before heading back home. I timed myself coming back home and it took about 14 minutes, which is slow, but it's not like I'm in the Tour de France or anything! When I was coming back down our street, I saw the hubby outside doing some yard work. I told him my bike ride was good, but I came to three conclusions. #1 - if I plan on doing more bike rides, I need to get a seat that is softer. #2 - my denim shorts I chose to wear, though cute, were not very good biking shorts. #3 - I need to make sure I take some water! All, in all, the ride was a success and I'm really glad that I got out and enjoyed the beautiful day! I see more bike rides in my future :)

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