Sunday, November 16, 2008

Morning Bliss

We "commuted" to the Patapsco trail maintenance in Baltimore--from Frederick. It seems an eternity ago, but it was only this morning. 5am arrived rudely. We scrambled to eat, to get our bikes together, and planted our tired asses on our saddles by 5:30am. We pedaled into a black, and very cold, morning.

Three hours, door to door--my house in downtown Frederick to Jon's place in Elridge--the ride felt effortless. Never have I been blessed with a tailwind--but this morning the winds were with us. Something about starting out in blackness, and riding into daylight-gave the ride a swiftness, and a cohesion, that was different. We didn't talk much. Usual pleasantries--acknowleging the sunrise--seemed pointless. The sun was emerging, as it always does, and we were there to witness it. But it had a profound effect on the ride.

It was ironic that we made it to trail maintenance on time, with a three hour bike commute, when on the previous Sunday's bike commute to Gambrill trail maintenance--just 8 miles(though half were a steep climb)--we thought we were half an hour late. It was the first time a daylight savings clock error had worked in my favor. The dread of arriving at the trail head, so late, turned to amusement, and then unwarranted pride; I had set my watch with the wrong time. We were 30 minutes early, and passed it off to those arriving as an intentional move on our part. With my perpetual tardiness, I knew I'd never get the chance to do that again.

It's now 10:30pm, Sunday night. I'm home, warm & still, feeling that same clarity, cohesion and rightness that I felt this morning on the bike as we pedaled towards the sun, on the rise, and peeled away the miles. I had never "biked" to a bike trail maintenance day; I missed out on a lot of opportunities, in many ways. The day was full, and ended with beer, food and friends. When we pedaled home, with the sun descending behind us this time, it felt as if the day had come full circle in a way that made me feel very much alive.




























1 comment:

JoeP said...

A really nice piece of writing. You must be a girl or something, cos a guy's take would go: "Got up super early and pedaled for three frickin hours in the cold. Did some trailwork, had a beer and pedaled home. Dude, I'm so frickin tired, and my head hurts from all this writing." I think your version is more better.