Some time ago I purchased the most wonderful electric bicycle. Now for those serious cyclists who read this blog, please refrain from smirking; the wonderbike can be used as a normal bike but when encountering a steep hillock, or a cyclonic breeze, it is possible to press a little button and, yeeha! the electric buzz happens and before you know it you have zoomed through these difficulties. Wonderful! Of course, you then press the button off again so that you are cycling normally and not electrically.
I recently began cycling again after a long break. On Day One, I rode down our long gravel driveway onto our small country road and, pedalling against the ferocious breeze, ventured further, turning left onto the next country road. Ah, the peace and quiet, twittering birds, happily mooing cows – bliss!
Then, just as I was about to turn right into an even smaller country road there was an explosion of noise behind me and, using my newly purchased rear vision mirror, I was alarmed to see an enormous truck behind me, approaching fast and, even more horrifyingly, when I was about to escape to the smaller country road, I saw another massive truck coming towards me from the opposite direction. I had two choices: I could keep riding, feigning nonchalance, and hope that both trucks would see me, slow down, and the drivers and I could exchange morning greetings, OR I could stop my bike, hop off and catapult onto the closest verge. I decided on the latter just seconds before both trucks whooshed past each other with a blast of horns. I waved and smiled friendlily to the drivers from my position on the ground, my arms protectively around my bike, assuming the blast of horns was a type of country road greeting but strangely neither of the drivers smiled back.
So I got up and got back on the bike and rode the short distance to the even smaller country road but, just as I was about to veer right into this same road, another enormous truck (coming out of the even smaller country road) came to a noisy halt and politely let me into the road by a narrow margin. Again I waved to the driver who grimaced back. Oh well, I thought, not everyone is friendly in the morning.
But a couple of kilometres later, after several repeat incidents of the above, I turned around, pressed the button for electricity, turned it to the highest setting, and zoomed back home, only stopping here and there for the odd truck or ten!
Anyway, the Day One experience hasn’t deterred me and I still cycle every morning up and down and all around the safest possible country road: the driveway.
jmgoyder 