As Easy as Riding a Bike

I used to ride bike as a kid, of course. I did the classic trick of putting cards in your spokes, so it made a cool noise as you rode. I have memories of riding to the park to use the tennis courts. I would strap my racket around my shoulders like a guitar and put the tennis balls in my bike rails. I also have a few traumatic memories involving the two-wheeled monster. One time, I was on roller skates, holding on to the back of my sister's bike when she got moving a little too fast and I fell and scraped the side of my leg. Then there was the time that made me a little fearful. Again, my sister and I were out riding. We turned to go down a hill near our house when my bike skidded in a pile of loose stones. As I made the turn, the bike slid out from under me and I fell off, scraping my knee while falling in the pile of little stones. I had stones in my knee. My (step)dad had to pull them out with tweezers. I have a scar to this day. I'm pretty sure I did damage to the bike I was riding because I remember getting a new bike for Christmas that year, a boys' black BMX. I was a bit of a tomboy and that bike looked cool. I was scared to ride, but my (step)dad made me get back out there. All that to say, bike riding has never been a passion.

Present day, if I am going to temporarily give up running (and walking, sigh) and replace it with bike riding, buying a bike is my first priority as I have been borrowing my friend's bike since last summer. We have two currently sitting in our garage but neither of them has working brakes. We could simply repair the brakes, but the bikes are also quite old, and we think it would be better in the long run to have new ones. We took a trip to a chain sporting goods store over this past weekend. The salesman, John, was putting a bike together when we reached his department. "Do you need help?", he asked. I replied, "Not at the moment.". I am not one that usually likes to be talked into anything and I certainly don't make a decision on the spot. After looking around a bit and mumbling to my husband under my breath about what I think I need in a bike, the color blue being a number one priority, the salesman must have heard that I really had no clue. He asked what I would be using the bike for. I told him I normally run but have had a recent knee injury and was told to switch to biking. To which he replied, "Good!". Hopefully, I only imagined rolling my eyes. After hearing that I would mostly be riding on the road, behind my runner friend, along with an occasional light trail, he recommended a hybrid bike. I knew that I wanted trigger gears and disc brakes. He had a floor model there, which he pulled out and started to fit me for. I learned that you want the bike seat to align with your hips and that once you are on the bike, your feet should be on their tippy toes. The handlebars should also be at a comfortable position where you are not hunching over to grip them. The bike seemed like a good fit. There were two issues I had. One, it was gray with black and peachy, pink accents, definitely not blue. Two, it was double the maximum price that I was hoping to spend. I told him I need to think about it and research some other options now that I know what I'm looking for. Honestly, I am strongly leaning toward going back and buying this bike. Shh...don't tell John. 

I'm not sure that biking will ever become a passion, but I am super thankful to have it as an option right now. Bear with me as I stretch a bit to make this verse fit but it's a good one. "Whatever you do, do it from the heart, as something done for the Lord and not for people." Colossians 3:23 (CSB) I am slowly learning to embrace the bike. Making a decision concerning my new wheels seems to be off to a good start and I hope to actually have one purchased in the next two weeks. I will make April, at the latest, my goal. With that checked off the list, it's on to starting to fix some of my food addict hangups. If only it was "as easy as riding a bike".