Bikes 10 Jul 2006 08:41 pm
tandem day 2
Today Josh and I had our second day on the tandem. We rode around the neighborhood on it, going up and down hills, around curves, and once over a manhole cover. (Oof!) This was the first time I’d ever gone downhill to speak of on a bike. And I did it without being able to brake or steer or see where I’m going.
I also took some time to learn to pry my fingers away from the handlebars. Riding sure is easier when you’re not white-knuckling it.
It’s hard to say just how fast we were going. I kept thinking of the Grouchy Chris cartoon, “Grouchy Chris Goes Cycling”, in which GC collides with a bear who steals his bike. (”Here I am, biking along. I must be going very fast!”) We were fast, though! Whoo! Fastest bike on the road!
I appreciate how Josh respects my beginnerish caution even when I’m almost certainly being over-cautious. There was a point at the end of our session today when we were barrelling down a hill and I wasn’t quite comfortable with our speed and my lack of control over it. “This is a little too fast for me,” I said, and Josh gently applied the brakes. No drama, no judgment, just slowing down. Josh rules.
For a person with chronic fatigue syndrome, I am insanely super-buff. But still, aerobic exercise can be a problem for me; these days, it’s a good idea for me to keep my heart rate under 120 or so lest I crash out. Over 140, I’m definitely gonna be toast. (In contrast, if I were average for my age, my maximum heart rate would be more like 185 and I’d be aiming for a heart rate of 160 or so. This is why I do yoga and Pilates and sometimes lift weights, but do not run or play squash.) We weren’t working too hard today, but I hadn’t considered how much adrenaline would raise my heart rate. Holy cats. My vision was going all wonky by the time we got off the bike.
It’s still a lot of fun, though. I’d go right back out there now if it weren’t a dumb idea. Maybe we can take that hill a little faster next time.