I love my bike

I bought a bike a couple months ago, but until this week I had yet to use it for anything other than riding to and from running practice.

Saturday, however, day broke so brightly it felt like the sun had moved in next door. Meredith and I had gone to bed at the same time Friday night, so the door between our bedrooms was open for once and we were both awake early.

We rode over to Neris-les-Bains, the next town over from Montlucon, about 6-8k away from my apartment. The trail to Neris is the same one where I usually run and although I had noticed before that it's slightly uphill on the way out I didn't realize just how unrelenting the hill is until I had to climb it on a bike. I had stripped off several layers of clothing and sweated through the rest by the time I arrived in Neris - and not much faster than I've done it on foot! After turning around to ride back to Montlucon, however, I didn't pedal for a good 15 minutes and had to stop to redress myself. The trail was also pretty muddy, so I had splatters all over my legs, back, and even in my hair. All in all, it was a beautiful ride, but I think I am going to have to find someplace flatter to ride, or at least a trail with more evenly placed hills.

The school where I teach on Mondays is 2.5-3 miles away and I usually get a ride with another teacher. Yesterday, however, he couldn't, so I packed my supplies in my backpack and took my bike there. Again, because Montlucon is in a valley the way to the school was all uphill and I was left sweating in my teacher clothes. The way back was especially fun not only because I barely had to pedal, but because I think I got home faster than I would have in a car!

Nearly all my students saw me arrive/depart on bicycle so I like to think I was setting a good example, especially with my helmet. Dad, does this make up for Friday night's scandalous line dancing?