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dreamsharkI'm not a winter biker. One of the things I enjoy about biking is the seasonality of it - looking forward to warmer weather when we can start planning little bike trips again. And Get Out Your Bike Day is such a great thing! That day was today for me. The snowdrift has melted away from in front of the bike shed, the roadside snowbanks are finally almost gone, and it was 50 degrees both days this weekend. It took me two days to work up to it. I'm always a little nervous what I'll find when I open up the bike shed for the first time. And although the glacier is gone, there's still an awful lot of mud in front of the shed.
To my surprise, my tires were still full of air! Good start. I topped up the back tire, but didn't even need to put the pump on the front one. The front wheel was rubbing on the brake a little, but a minor adjustment to the wheel fixed that (why the wheel should have shifted over the winter is a mystery, but there's always SOMETHING wrong). My usual first ride of spring is around Lake Harriet, but I always end up getting mad at all the people walking in the bike path (because the walking path seems to melt a little later than the bike path). So I had an inspiration and combined my first bike ride with my desire for buckwheat pancake mix and Aurora Henna shampoo by heading to the Wedge Coop. It's about a 5-mile round trip, same as a trip around the lake.
There were so many bikes out today! The bike racks outside the coop were not exactly full, but well-used. And there was a shaggy busker guy playing a fiddle outside the door. The coop is a great place to feel spring-like with all the aromas and bright colors. Buying bulk spices is particularly enjoyable. I had a whole winters' worth of coop discounts built up, so I filled up both my grocery panniers and got 10% off the whole bill. And the trip was just the right length. I was starting to feel it a little as I neared home.
As I was tiptoeing through the mud to put the bike away it occurred to me that there is a pile of fresh cedar boughs scattered under the tree in the front yard. I don't know if they broke off in the snow or Richard trimmed them. But in any case, I took an armful and laid them over the mud by the bike shed, and now it's a lot more pleasant footing.
To my surprise, my tires were still full of air! Good start. I topped up the back tire, but didn't even need to put the pump on the front one. The front wheel was rubbing on the brake a little, but a minor adjustment to the wheel fixed that (why the wheel should have shifted over the winter is a mystery, but there's always SOMETHING wrong). My usual first ride of spring is around Lake Harriet, but I always end up getting mad at all the people walking in the bike path (because the walking path seems to melt a little later than the bike path). So I had an inspiration and combined my first bike ride with my desire for buckwheat pancake mix and Aurora Henna shampoo by heading to the Wedge Coop. It's about a 5-mile round trip, same as a trip around the lake.
There were so many bikes out today! The bike racks outside the coop were not exactly full, but well-used. And there was a shaggy busker guy playing a fiddle outside the door. The coop is a great place to feel spring-like with all the aromas and bright colors. Buying bulk spices is particularly enjoyable. I had a whole winters' worth of coop discounts built up, so I filled up both my grocery panniers and got 10% off the whole bill. And the trip was just the right length. I was starting to feel it a little as I neared home.
As I was tiptoeing through the mud to put the bike away it occurred to me that there is a pile of fresh cedar boughs scattered under the tree in the front yard. I don't know if they broke off in the snow or Richard trimmed them. But in any case, I took an armful and laid them over the mud by the bike shed, and now it's a lot more pleasant footing.
