Feeling "bouncy"

“The wonderful thing about Tiggers is Tiggers are wonderful things”- Tigger

 

The one thing I remember about Tigger, other than the fact that he was a cartoon, stuffed-cloth, tiger-like character, was that he was “bouncy”.  I recalled that fact this week when I went out for an early morning run, after a 30 minute spin on the bike, in my house, on a trainer. As I headed down the road out of our development in the early morning twilight, I felt “bouncy”, which is to say that my legs felt springy and light, and my stride felt correspondingly light and quick. It was a neat feeling and one that I do not remember ever consciously being aware of in all the years that I have run.  It was another small confirmation that the training is paying off.

 

      It has not been all a grind. The bike rides last Saturday and today were on days that could only be described as “perfect” for being on a bike: clear skies that seem too blue to be real, fleecy white clouds, light breezes, and moderate temperatures with little humidity. After a summer of the most rain we have seen in years (none of which seems to have interfered with my riding days), not only are the lake levels rising, but the countryside is every hue of green you can imagine. The rolling hills of rural Lake County have some of the best bike riding roads anywhere, with little to no traffic and surprisingly panoramic vistas, given the generally flat character of the Florida landscape.    On one of my stops for a GU gel, some Salt Sticks, and a drink, I found myself looking out over a landscape of gently rolling hills that seemed far removed from my daily life. The sun was bright and just beginning to burn off the morning chill. The only sound was the gentle buzzing drone of insects and the occasional chirp of a bird. How often is it that we take a break from the sounds of our daily life? Television, radio, iPods, traffic, machinery, etc. all produce a cacophony of sound that has become so familiar that we only notice it when it is absent. The quiet and soothing natural sounds were like a balm to my soul and I could only marvel at how lovely the day was. Riding was not a chore, it was a rare privilege.

 

 This weekend was the annual Mount Dora Bicycle Festival, an event attended by cyclists from all over Florida, and out of state, so the roads were much busier than usual with small pelotons here in there interspersed with single riders and pairs. As a long time cyclist I love riding my bike and try to promote it as much as I can. Unfortunately, some cyclists seem to go out of their way to be as obnoxious as possible, giving the rest of us a bad reputation. On one stretch of highway 561, heading back home, I could see a group of a dozen or so cyclists bearing down on me.  I knew I would be overtaken, which was fine since I had my own pace set and, besides, I had already done 70+ miles and had no interest in “hammering” at this point in my ride. I watch them approach in my rearview mirror and when they were near, I moved slightly right and raised my left hand in a friendly greeting. There was no traffic coming so the lane was clear. They passed me without a single acknowledgment and two of their group came so close that I had to swerve and for a second I thought I was going to be run off the road onto the soft shoulder. I

 wished them all flat tires and/or broken chains. Jerks.   What is it about some people that even in their recreation they have to be aggressive and obnoxious? It is this kind of macho, must win, wannnabe professional, pseudo-racing B.S. that turns off a lot of novice riders before they get comfortable riding in pace lines on the road. I think we should all encourage each other in pursuing health and fitness, not rub people's faces in their inexperience and ineptitude. Every time I see an obviously struggling, overweight man or woman out their jogging, walking, or riding a bike I try to remember, "there but for the grace of God go I" and I either wave encouragingly or, at least, utter a silent prayer for their safety and success.

 

Whatever the outcome of this triathlon, I have already begun thinking ahead, not so much to the next challenge as to what I will do with my free time. My discretionary time these past 11 months has been almost non-existent. I think it is time to hit the book again. By “book”, I mean “the book”- my  manuscript, which needs re-writing, and which I swore I would    finish this year and submit to a publisher. The latter is unlikely in this short timeframe, but the former is, possibly, doable. I just have to re-write the book and have someone accept it. No big deal.

 

For now, I will enjoy feeling “bouncy” and hope that what I have done up to now will be enough. Florida Ironman, here I come………….