the body has five senses
some of these senses are not so helpful to the needs of a person on the bike
smell may help to heighten the experience of the ride but unlikely it can make things more safe
unless it smells a forrest fire or a skunk
and taste?
well... most dirt, dust, and mud taste like poop
so the body can possess a sixth sense
an unexplainable awareness
that knowing that something is right around the corner
for some it is the tingling of the spidey senses
today my spidey senses were tingling
after work I dipped into the woods for a few turns on my cross town post work ride
it was a beautiful day to be on the bike
did not have much time
just needed to get home
early onto the trail I did a little maintenance
a few logs to fill a mud puddle
a few rides up and back to test things out then back on the bike
LOUD BIKES SAVE LIVES
okay... that is an old motorcycle slogan LOUD PIPES SAVE LIVES
my Karate Monkey Single is creaking enough so that I would not doubt that the cars around me can hear me as I approach
well... it they were not on their cell phones or if they were listening to their basic senses.
on this day I did not feel like playing superman racing the train
the rush hour traffic was already thick
the rush hour madness was in full form
everyone was trying to fill the gap fast and tight
just did not want to be part of that madness
so cross town through the woods I went
slowly I rolled
a runner
a dog walker
not much more human interaction
pretty much the day to myself
just doing my thing
stealth
across a street than across another
the cars are flying
that usual gotta get the work week behind me sort of speed
MacArthur , Resivoir, New Mexico, and Mass were all running like the Auto Bon
every other car driven by some self important fuck on their cell phone
in a section of woods around glover park I saw some bodies ahead
it was not quite late enough after work for people to start their work outs and their dog walks
things were pretty vacant
things tend to be pretty sparse people wise
in the distance maybe a hundred or two hundred yards ahead I saw three forms
scanned to estimate their speed
trying to measure our point of intersection
looked for variables... leashes imply dogs
not much futher into my analysis I felt that the garb did not look like hiker, runner, dog walker, or even footstep commuter finishing the last steps after the bus ride from downtown
it looked like a woman and two men
the men were large
not heavy
but large
they were both wearing light blue shirts and dark blue pants or maybe my imagination filled in the gaps that distance created
rather than HAVE THAT CONVERSATION I turned it around
always trying to avoid that conversation
so I turned it around and took a trail that took me into the neighborhood
rode a few city blocks down the road then dipped back in back on course
I continued home
not overly concerned with the people that I avoided the conversation with
I rode onward
a few streets and a few miles later I was approaching the trailhead which opens into a field where a group of people meet almost daily for a friendly game of soccer
as I made the last turn I passed two fit looking men... again large men.... muscular men.... not looking like hikers
I rode through the field watching for leashless dogs and flying soccer balls
as I exited the field onto the street I looked at the cars parked at the entrance
a man in head to toe black gear.... looked like SWAT gear... bullet proof jacket and all... all this and some oversized black binoculars
he watched me as I passed
but not concerned
for a second I feared that my beard and my camera would put me on his radar
but they are looking for something t
hat something is not me
yet I still like to avoid the coversation
some of these senses are not so helpful to the needs of a person on the bike
smell may help to heighten the experience of the ride but unlikely it can make things more safe
unless it smells a forrest fire or a skunk
and taste?
well... most dirt, dust, and mud taste like poop
so the body can possess a sixth sense
an unexplainable awareness
that knowing that something is right around the corner
for some it is the tingling of the spidey senses
today my spidey senses were tingling
after work I dipped into the woods for a few turns on my cross town post work ride
it was a beautiful day to be on the bike
did not have much time
just needed to get home
early onto the trail I did a little maintenance
a few logs to fill a mud puddle
a few rides up and back to test things out then back on the bike
LOUD BIKES SAVE LIVES
okay... that is an old motorcycle slogan LOUD PIPES SAVE LIVES
my Karate Monkey Single is creaking enough so that I would not doubt that the cars around me can hear me as I approach
well... it they were not on their cell phones or if they were listening to their basic senses.
on this day I did not feel like playing superman racing the train
the rush hour traffic was already thick
the rush hour madness was in full form
everyone was trying to fill the gap fast and tight
just did not want to be part of that madness
so cross town through the woods I went
slowly I rolled
a runner
a dog walker
not much more human interaction
pretty much the day to myself
just doing my thing
stealth
across a street than across another
the cars are flying
that usual gotta get the work week behind me sort of speed
MacArthur , Resivoir, New Mexico, and Mass were all running like the Auto Bon
every other car driven by some self important fuck on their cell phone
in a section of woods around glover park I saw some bodies ahead
it was not quite late enough after work for people to start their work outs and their dog walks
things were pretty vacant
things tend to be pretty sparse people wise
in the distance maybe a hundred or two hundred yards ahead I saw three forms
scanned to estimate their speed
trying to measure our point of intersection
looked for variables... leashes imply dogs
not much futher into my analysis I felt that the garb did not look like hiker, runner, dog walker, or even footstep commuter finishing the last steps after the bus ride from downtown
it looked like a woman and two men
the men were large
not heavy
but large
they were both wearing light blue shirts and dark blue pants or maybe my imagination filled in the gaps that distance created
rather than HAVE THAT CONVERSATION I turned it around
always trying to avoid that conversation
so I turned it around and took a trail that took me into the neighborhood
rode a few city blocks down the road then dipped back in back on course
I continued home
not overly concerned with the people that I avoided the conversation with
I rode onward
a few streets and a few miles later I was approaching the trailhead which opens into a field where a group of people meet almost daily for a friendly game of soccer
as I made the last turn I passed two fit looking men... again large men.... muscular men.... not looking like hikers
I rode through the field watching for leashless dogs and flying soccer balls
as I exited the field onto the street I looked at the cars parked at the entrance
a man in head to toe black gear.... looked like SWAT gear... bullet proof jacket and all... all this and some oversized black binoculars
he watched me as I passed
but not concerned
for a second I feared that my beard and my camera would put me on his radar
but they are looking for something t
hat something is not me
yet I still like to avoid the coversation