CRUISING

When I was a young girl my uncle came by the house one day and brought a beautiful blue bicycle.  I joyfully rode that bike until I outgrew it.

A bicycle is a means of freedom for a kid.
The wind in your face as you roll down the avenue. 
Zooming down a tall hill.
Getting from point A to point B.

When I was a young mother, we would take our 6 children for a Sunday ride.  My husband rode in front, baby seat attached to his bike. I brought up the rear with a baby seat on my bike, and four kids on bikes rode between us.  We covered miles and miles together, down country lanes and neighborhood streets.  It was a great way to pass time and build relationships.  

One of my daughters just moved to a bicycle community in Florida.  It has been fun watching their family get on their bicycles and ride to the post office, library, and corner hamburger stand.  Every day my grandson rides his bike to school and I was privileged to ride with him last week.  

Then I remembered that when my husband retired we purchased cruiser bicycles.  Shiney black bikes with 7 speeds.  Big comfy seats.  Mine has pink rims and fat whitewalls with a basket to carry my straw hat and water bottle.  My sweetheart's bike has red rims.  

At first we rode our bikes often.  Then it got more difficult to get our bikes to the Tobacco Trail where we ride.  Slowly our bikes began to gather dust. 

This week we built a PVC bike rack that fits into the back of our truck.  We put our bikes in the back of the truck and drove to the trail this afternoon.  

It felt so good to pedal those four miles today.  We went slow and steady, as cruisers go.  We were passed by a jogger and we smiled.  Other bikers, helmets on their heads, were spinning and sweating as fast as they could go, and we smiled.  Joggers, heads down, concentrating on their gait, fists clutched as they plodded along, kept going, never looking up to see the beautiful countryside, and we smiled.

Tomorrow we will go 6 miles, smiling all the way.  I'll wear my straw hat and enjoy the wind in my face.  A bicycle is a great means of transportation, and exercising, no matter how old you are.