The Road Les Pedaled

Saturday,
January 16, 2010

Well, it's time to get moving.  After a longer-than-usual recuperation period from another back episode, it was time to get back out on the road, time to start to build.  Not only was I waiting until my back was ready, but it's been COLD outside.  We've hit record lows here in Florida and had, for here, a drastic cold spell.

Today is really the first mild day, so I loaded up the bike and accoutrement into the truck and headed over to the Cross Seminole Trail, very close to my house, for my 2010 maiden voyage.

Here are a few looks at one of our lovely local trails:


I typically don't do trail rides too often anymore, but my first ride back was going to be limited mileage and I knew I'd be traveling pretty slowly, so it was a perfect choice of rides, with a couple of exceptions. 

There's one bridge that crosses over 434 which under normal circumstances wouldn't be too big of a deal.  But after a two-month hiatus and my back not having a lot of strength, climbing really shouldn't have been part of my agenda.



By the way, all these pictures were taken with my new Nikon Coolpix camera, a tiny little thing that takes pictures and videos that Steve got me for Christmas.  After shipping back my old digital camera to rid my bags of all possible extra weight on my tour, he knew I needed something different.  Now I have a wee camera to take on all future rides/trips, and that makes me so happy!

Anyway, over that bridge I did go, which was no picnic, but also no biggie.  And I had to cross it again on the way back! 

The other weird part about my ride was as I was on my way back and riding through Winter Springs, I passed through Central Winds Park where the annual Highland Games was going on.  There were thousands of people that were arriving and had parked in a soccer field next to the park and they were ALL walking to the park on the trail.  They were coming at me!  It was really dangerous.  The trail was obliterated by throngs of kilt-wearing tartan-clad revelers.  Seriously, no space whatsoever.  I've never experienced the sensation before, but I imagined this was just what it felt like when cyclists in the Tour de France are climbing and far enough from the finish line where the barricades aren't up and they're just swallowed up by specatators who are having to part like the Red Sea as the cyclists try to climb through.  So instead of getting upset by the intrusion, I just became...you guessed it...Lance (Lancelee?)!  I just planted myself smack dab in the middle of the trail and pedaled.  I can't imagine how strange that must have looked!  Here's this chick on this recumbent plowing through the crowds with her game face on using every last ounce of strength climbing eight miles at a 9% incline after putting 120 miles under her belt and all her spent teammates have dropped off and left her on her own to capture the stage victory.  And she does it!!  AND THE CROWD GOES WILD!!!!

Well, back to reality.  The actual ride statistics were something like 12 flat miles at something like 12 miles per hour and limping home to put my back on ice.  Woo-hoo!  The really great thing about it all is I finally was able to get back on the bike and start anew.  Renaissance!