The Hills Aren’t Alive with the Sound of Music
Another post from Patti S. who’s telling us about her Almost Carfree Summer . . .
Whenever I ride my bike, I feel like I should have a sign on my back that says: Caution: Slow Rider! Or maybe a little happy face that says, “Thanks for not running into me!”. Whatever, I am a slow bike rider. I have ridden fairly steadily for two years now and while my stamina has increased, my speed has not (that I can tell). I inherited asthma from some grandparents, so my lungs don’t work as well as normal people’s do. Thus, I can’t do anything outside on days that are too humid or too cold. I cannot run (tried it once, had an asthma attack, almost went to ER) and most sports are not possible for me.
While I have had success in the bike riding department, hills just about kill me. Particularly, I loathe the Eisenhower hill over I-94. It is less than a mile from my house and I must ride it if I wish to go to my credit union or State Street or other places in that direction. To my credit though, I was in first gear and had to stop twice the first time I rode it. Now, I can make it up the hill and usually in fourth or fifth gear. So we are making progress, that hill and I.
I always keep hills in mind when I plan my trips. I do what I can to avoid the worst ones and suffer through the rest. Despite my distaste for hills, I think I’ve been doing pretty well in my “almost car free summer”. Let’s recap. I’ve biked to the farmers’ market every Saturday, I carpooled with a friend on two downtown trips, rode my bike to Hillers to do some light grocery shopping, rode my bike to Krogers later on to finish up shopping and I have ridden my bike for almost every event except for a late night Top of the Park, a trip downtown with my husband (he looked less than thrilled when I mentioned biking or buses, so we drove), two canning trips, and last week’s trip to see the Ann Arbor Civic Band. (I had my dog with me for that last one, and all I need is to tie him to the bike and have him see a squirrel…you’d see an Ann Arbor Chronicle Stopped. Watched. item that said “woman stuck in tree, dog eating squirrel, guts everywhere”.
So, so far so good. As the days get hotter and muggier, I will have to keep my health in mind when I plan my trips. Thanks for reading…and see you on the roads!