aPpArEnTLy ExErCiSe iS GoOd FoR mE oR SoMeThIng :p
I did a ~3 mile bike ride yesterday morning. I’d have gone farther, except the path I took was flooded by the river and I wasn’t wearing the right gear to cycle through however far that went on. (more on this later)
It was EXTREMELY BIZARRE, though, because between the sunrise in front of me, the resulting tree shadows, and my polarized sunglasses, at first glance it genuinely looked as if the path simply plummeted off a cliff into darkness. It’s not even a hill (obviously, or it wouldn’t have been flooded), and I’ve walked it before so I knew it didn’t, y’know, just DISAPPEAR, but it was so disconcerting I had to fully stop the bike and take a second to figure out what I was seeing. (No picture because the camera didn’t register it the way my brain did. :))
And the thing is, the bike route I did daily in Alaska was in fact on a cliffside, so part of my brain FULLY BELIEVES that yes, the ground just STOPS about 10 feet to the left, there, so even though it was completely implausible that THIS ground stopped 10 feet in front of me…I literally could not have kept going into that puddle. My brain was 100% “FULL STOP, TROUBLE AHEAD, HIT THE BRAKES, STOP TRYING TO UNDERSTAND THIS, WE’RE SQUEEZING THE BRAKE LEVERS NOW, FIGURE IT OUT WHEN WE’RE NOT ABOUT TO DIE”
Anyway, so I also cycled home the long way, so ended up with about a 5 mile ride yesterday, doubling my Saturday mileage with CONSIDERABLY less exhaustion, so go me!
And then today…
I did I mention I’m a competitive soul, right? Well, in case I didn’t, I AM a competitive soul, which is why I am currently soaked through to the bone from the calfs down and smell like lake water.
Having met the edge of the world in my bike ride yesterday morning, I thought I’d go the other direction on the loop, and see what the edge of the world looked like from the other side. I went through a couple of 4″ deep puddles coming at it from that direction, and I thought, “Okay, this is going to be okay.”
By the time it was clear it was not going to be okay, it was far too late to turn back.
It was at least eight inches deep in places, and more, I suspect, like 10-12. There were points where my feet were completely submerged as I pedaled. If anybody else was out there, they heard my clarion call of, “This was a bad iiiiiDEEEAAAAA!!!!!” as I rode on, soaked through, in search of the world’s start.
I need to emphasize how entirely unnecessary this was. This was extracurricular. I had left work behind a mile ago. This was “improve endurance, enjoy a nice bike ride” territory. I was in no way trying to get to work. This was fully voluntary.
…I did do 3.5 miles, though, and I feel like doing 200 meters of it through a lake should count for something extra. :) Ted rescued me and brought dry shoes, socks, and leggings so I didn’t have to either go home and get them myself or spend the entire day waterlogged. :)
And the worst part is I’m INCREDIBLY CHEERFUL about it. A stupid little 3 mile bike ride has lifted my mood considerably! It’s like the whole “exercise is good for you thing” has merit. HOW ANNOYING IS THAT? :)