Tuesday, June 17, 2008

A post in which Andrea wishes she was 10 years old again.......

Recently, in a bizarre "lets-get-healthy" phase, George and I bought ourselves a new bike each. Granted, mine isn't a ten speed racer, nor could I climb mountains with it strapped to my back ~ as one oddly but frequently sees in new car/credit card commercials. Nope, mine is just Old Skool and blue! I did want one of those little silver bells with a trigger to pull when you need to ring it but alas, it's THAT Old Skool it doesn't have one..... I just have to holler "Coming through" whenever I pass walkers.....

Old Skool

Anyway, surprisingly, I am getting a lot of use from it. At first I was feeling pretty daunted about getting back on a bike as it's been oh, a few years since I last rode one, but then I remembered that old saying, "It's just like riding a bike...." Or was that a saying about sex? Either way, I got on the bike and was a biking queen!

It's interesting the things you see when you are out on a bike and not just stuck in front of the TV! For instance, we have a park just by us and it has a lake etc., which is all nice and pretty but we have always driven there, looked at the ducks and swans, taken a couple of pictures then gone home. When I rode my bike there, I was driving through a completely different way, through trees, through peace and quiet, through packs of deer (though I'm sure there is a technical name for that, like herd, or clatch or throng or whatever......) I recently took a video of part of the park for you. Just listen to the birds.......



Beautiful!

So, getting back to my title.

Ever since I was young, there have been two things I've always wanted to be able to do with my bike. Ride hands free and do wheelies.


photo courtesy of Rob

Now, I know, I know, I'm thirty *cough* years old and far too old to be doing this and quite frankly, I'm way too scared to even give it a go! I did try once to go hands free but I ended up with the grill of a Ford Escort embedded in my right calf and enough asphalt in my backside to pave the M52. It was not good. To see how I may have looked, check out this footage and just picture me bouncing instead...... Seriously, I traveled that far! So, with that in mind, you can imagine my horror at even thinking about it again or doing a wheelie!

But, still, it is something I have always wanted to do, and sometimes, when I'm riding on my own, in a deserted place, I let go of the handlebars for just a smidge, close my eyes, feel the adrenaline rush and try to feel the wind blowing through my hair.









Then just as quickly open them and pedal home to change my knickers.

So what do you wish you could do that you could when you were younger?

3 comments:

Antipo Déesse said...

Ooh Andi, I was right there with you, eyes closed, hands off the bars and wind rushing through my (newly cut and styled) hair....

Sigh....

Michael Lehet said...

Just tigthen up the "mount" where the steering part of the bike works and you'll be able to do it (I see people go "hands free" all the time)

I wish that I could pick string beans again. When I was a kid and I HAD to do it, I hated it, HATED IT, but now that I'm older and wiser I would love to pick string beans.

Gorgeous. said...

LOL!! My Mum bought me a folding bike once... I wanted a big wheel one with racing wheels.. I got a small old man one that folded in half to fit in yer boot I imagine. A friend and I were merrily cycling along the country lanes together when suddenly ( as they say ) I found myself going the wrong way entirely... and was unceremoniously dumped into a very large and aggressive nettle patch. The bollocking bike had spontaneously folded in half as I rode. The only thing NOT covered in nettle stings was one arm that I had held out to my friend to drag me out the ditch with. Needless to say, riding without holding on is not one of my strong points to this day. .... I don't know WHAT happened to that bike....!! ;D