Day 11: Bikey wonder

Sometimes, after a long, tiring day, I feel like the guy in this cartoon when I bike home. Somewhere between mile 1 and 2 something happens and without realizing it, I am not thinking about any frustrations or worries but focusing on what is around me, the sound of my breathing, and the effort of my body. I start noticing the texture of the air and wind, where the sun is, sounds, and colors. All this happens without me realizing it and once I get home I am in a better frame of mind. This never, ever happened in a car.

Today I biked up a hill I have gone up frequently, only today I did not break into panting or struggling even a tiny bit. I did not realize how much my fitness had improved until today. I just chugged up that hill without even thinking about it. I never thought that would happen.

Miles: 7.0
Stuff I saw: Man on a bench in flat branch park sitting with his laptop on his lap--sound asleep, man on a riding lawn mower staring at me, five cyclists with no helmets on, a beautiful guy with dreadlocks, a leaf that looked like a rat from a distance

Stuff I heard: (two college girls on the MKT)
Girl 1: (panting slightly) I have ridden my butt off today! It's gonna fall off!
Girl 2: Me too! I WISH my butt would fall off!

Day 10: Cycle recycle rewind

Biked into town tonight after my meeting to work on bikes at CR. I am lucky to have patient teachers to help me learn more and don't do everything for me. Bikes are a beautiful lesson in physics. There are tension and countering principles running through the whole design. You don't realize the intricacies until you learn to fix what is broken, to see where force and energy are interrupted.

Biked home at 10:00 PM in my magic vest. Cool breeze, full moon, quiet, silent in spots.

Miles: 8.0
Stuff I saw: A young man completely ignore a hot chick, a young man completely ignore ice cream, a young man in a suped up car try to pass me on the right, my favorite house on Stewart lit up by the moon

Stuff I heard: "Hey, Nice vest!";

Guy: "When I get to Colorado, I'll find a girl and go on a date".
Girl: " If you are only there a few days, is it really a date?"
Guy: "I'll prove it by bringing back pictures."

Day 9: Even more night riding!

Today has been challenging but ended on a good note. I had a workshop tonight at MU and then had a long dinner with a good friend and biked home by moonlight (and MiNewt) at 11:30 PM. It was an awesome night ride: the moon was out, a cool breeze was blowing, almost no cars, quiet, and beautiful. I feel a lot stronger on hills and getting around in general.

Miles: 7.65
Stuff I saw: the full moon behind some dark clouds, a big hairy spider on the ground as I passed through the park, a huge frog on the road, and a guy riding a skateboard alongside his friend who was on a bike.
Stuff I heard: "Momentum just carries you and then you just carve out a line"

Day 8: Night riding

Today I rode in to MU and heard the pileated woodpecker but could not see him. I ended up working until 8:30 PM but because of my awesome MiNewt , I am not afraid of riding in the dark. Night riding is fun--especially when it is a full moon. My only concern has been that I cannot seem to find a decent class II or III reflective mesh vest. I found this one, but I have to buy about a dozen! It is the same everywhere I have looked. They are out there but you have to buy enough for an army. I might just get some reflective tape and make my own. :-)

Miles: 7 miles
Cool stuff I saw: (1) An older gentlemen on a sort of reclining bike with long handles--riding down the trail. He was wearing a cool hat and yelled "hallo!' to me when we passed. (2) They have installed lights in the tunnel under Providence Rd which is cool. What is not cool is that the 'trigger' for it is located near the trail side of the tunnel, so if you are entering from Elm, it is pitch black until you exit the tunnel, thereby triggering the lights so they can shine on.....no one. Doh!

Day 7: Pileated Woodpecker

Pileated Woodpeckers: Male on the right and female on the left.

Today I have gone everywhere on foot. I walked a couple miles on the trail and then to the grocery store. I found today that walking to the grocery store only takes me between 7-10 minutes one way. If I incorporate that into a workout, it is no extra time out of my day at all.

The best part about today though was that as I was walking down our spur to get to the trail, I rounded a corner and heard this very loud ringing call off to my right. It was LOUD. I turned and there was a pileated woodpecker on a dead tree. There were a cluster of dead trees in that area and he/she flew from one to another. The woodpecker stopped and called out again and to my left I heard another pileated woodpecker answer back. So the male and female must be there in those woods together. About then the one I could see flew overhead to a phone pole in front of me and started pecking away on the phone pole. Eventually the woodpecker flew into the wooded area where I had heard the other woodpecker and out of sight.

A good morning and once again, I saw cool stuff I would never have seen in a car!

Yesterday, I biked to Walmart off Grindstone with the burley and got some stuff I needed. I was hungry for dinner and stopped first to eat at Fudruckers. It was hard to attach the bike to their black railing but I got it done. People looked at first and several folks checked out the trailer as I left. It was funny. I kept thinking that yesterday would be a 'long' ride but it turned out to only be 8 miles. Surprise! It *felt* longer than 8 due to the hills and load I guess, but it was fun and I got what I needed without a car and with a lot more fun.

Day 5: No car challenge

Sometimes when I see the Andy Singer cartoon above I think I spend way too much time in a 'box'. I sit in either one of two small offices all day writing manuscripts, grants, conference proposals, email, grading papers etc for 10+ hours per day then I (used to) jump in the car to drive less than a mile to workout inside, then drive home, and be back inside again. I hated it. I swore when I finished graduate school that I was not going back to sitting all day, my back aching, and spending maybe ten minutes total outside everyday (and then only to walk to and from the car). Getting around by bike or walking has been the answer for me for a life 'outside the box'.

It has made me realize why so many academics are unhealthy. Academic life rewards the mind and intellectual pursuits-creating a strange division between mind and body (thanks for nothing Descartes!). I found in grad school that many, many of my peers were on either depression/anxiety meds or high blood pressure meds. Matter of fact, these were the two most prescribed meds at the University Health Center. And this was a crew of 20-30 somethings! People far too young to need HB meds. (I know that some people have these conditions genetically and have highly improved quality of life due to innovations in medications. I am only referring here to people who are sick because they sit all day, overwork, eat crap, and wonder why they are depressed, overweight, etc.)

I made a pact with myself during my second year in grad school that I would not resort to meds in lieu of exercise and a healthier lifestyle. While my diet needs some serious, serious improvement, I have kept my pact to this day in regard to using adequate rest, exercise, and healthier means of warding off stress and high blood pressure. That is part of why I prefer a car free lifestyle. By using my body to get around, my heart is healthier and attitude better. I also spend time outdoors everyday which is important to me. I don't think a person can be truly healthy sitting at home in front of the TV, or inside an office, or in a car all day. It just is not a prescription for health.

Miles: 4 total by bike (not much) but fun! I have a longer ride tomorrow which I am looking forward to.

Day 4: Walking and Cycling

Today I walked about a mile total to my writing group meeting and then to Subway and the grocery store. It is weird how many people from my complex all drive to the grocery store (literally less than .25 of a mile!) and back. Many get out of their cars with one or two small bags--- hardly enough to merit cranking up the car to go pick up. It baffles me a bit because they probably also drive to the gym as well (just like I used to do).

Walking or biking over is far superior in my experience. Just the physical experience of using your own steam to get somewhere and enjoying being outside. The shopping center I shop in and live near is right near a really nice wooded area and I see all kinds of cool wildlife. It is refreshing and relaxing to walk/bike and listen to all the wildlife back in there.

On another note, I am getting ready to switch to clipless pedals. I hope I don't end up like the guy in the Yehuda comic strip above! :-)