It's Not the Boom That Kills You

I woke up to the sound of the rain on the roof.

Then there was a roll of thunder off in the distance.

Then there was the nervous padding of my parents' large yellow lab, who happens to be afraid of thunder.

I kitted up anyway, and ate my pre-ride sandwich while contemplating the folly of my intended actions. The rain slacked, and I loaded up the bike and started to drive out to the Parkway.

That's when I noticed the lightning. The clouds and fog made it more of a glow than a flash, but counting the time between the lightning and thunder made it clear the storm was pretty much over my head. I waited for 30 minutes, then turned around for home when it didn't look like it would end. 

Halfway home, it stopped.

I drove to the Parkway again.

Lightning lit up the sky around me.

I threw in the towel.

As much as I enjoy riding, dodging lightning on the crest of the Blue Ridge is not my idea of fun. So, a day that I intended to get in some miles became a rest day. Not the end of the world. 

There will be other days.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Rules.

The other day  this article popped up on FaceSpace, essentially saying that Velominati's Rules were stupid and should be ignored whenever possible.    To a degree, I agree with this position- especially when confronted with a person who insists on quoting them as scripture. In fact, I would make a point of pissing that person off with as many offenses as I could, because while I'm a giant douchebag, my douchebagginess pales in comparison to theirs.    Some traditions in cycling have origins in practicality or safety. Those I can completely get on board with. Some are grounded purely in the realm of style, which is subjective and changes as trends come and go. A lot of those I can take or leave, because if something works for me in my environment, I tend to stay with it. Some people don't know the difference, and assume that these were Commandments that date back to Moses. If Moses was surfing cycling forums around 2009, I...
Read more

The Middle Men.

Thanks to the efforts of handful of people, most notably Justin Neff and Dave Henke from the Beaded Stream team (although the efforts of Revolution Racing and Alaska Velo Sport can't be ignored), the number of female riders has increased significantly this year- especially in the lower and middle categories. These ladies have been mixing it up all season. I'm not sure the exact voodoo Dave and Justin used, or what lucky set of circumstances led to this, but it's something I want to see continue.    When women see a pack of their peers out there competing, they're less intimidated to jump in and give it a shot. While I can think of a zillion things more intimidating than a bunch of men in spandex riding bikes, I can see where not all women want to jump in the middle of that testosterone-fueled environment. Whatever it is that makes women feel more comfortable jumping into a road race, I want to promote. I bet if you polled every male racing the Tour of Anchorage thi...
Read more

Why Would Anyone Want To Do It?

Look at the recent headlines: Oregon rider dies in collegiate road race in Washington Daan Myngheer dies from heart attack Antoine Demoitié dies following Gent-Wevelgem crash 41-year-old gets four-year ban for steroids Who is Thorfinn-Sassquatch? The mysterious case of a Los Angeles Strava legend Age-group cyclist fails doping test at LAMBRA championships The takeaway? You're likely to get killed when participating in a sport that's infested with dopers.   First it was the professionals that doped to get results and get paid. Then it was the elite amateurs that doped so they could become professionals and then presumably dope at a higher level. Then it was the pathetic Masters racers trying to gain some glory (as if anyone was watching), a pair of socks, or, if they were dedicated enough, a state/national championship jersey that wouldn't fit. There are even guys who dope for charity rides, gran fondos, or other "non races". In the age of social me...
Read more