Lean on Me

I realized this morning  that I like riding with, seeing, passing, or being passed by other cyclists. There's something about sharing the road with someone with whom I'm sharing the joy and challenges of cycling, especially cycle commuting, that just helps to make my day. Now, if they're on a mountain bike and I get to fly past them on a hill, I feel even better. Something about a falsely inflated ego. I know, pride goeth before a fall, but I enjoy it anyway. This morning I passed a fellow on his mountain bike, wearing a red shirt. While I did pass him on a short climb, he caught up to me at the next light. He was a sell spoken gent. Had I not been pushed for time to get to work, I would have enjoyed chatting with him over a half mile or so. Then again, had I not been rushing by when I did, I probably would never have crossed his path. Life can be funny, can't it?

When I'm passed by a fellow cyclist, I often take that as a challenge to keep pace with them as long as possible before being dropped like so much extra weight. (Although, if I could drop that extra weight I probably wouldn't be dropped by other cyclists. So much for that simile.)

Oh, and when you're out there, feel free to wave at passing cyclists. I apologize to anyone whom I've missed recently, but I think that if we're going to keep cycling from becoming the driving of the future, we need to stay friendly with each other. I think one of the problems with automobile drivers is that they isolate themselves and forget their connection to others around them. Let's keep cycling personal.

And, I'll keep offering help to people I see with flats or mechanicals even though most everyone seems to cover their own problems pretty well, and I always appreciate the same from others.

Interesting time of year for clothing selection. During the late winter and early spring, it's easy to just add on the layers. But now with weather here jumping between around 10° and 20° C (thats about 50° to 70° F) from morning to afternoon it gets a little more tricky. I chose a thin, long sleeved jersey this morning and wore my leg warmers. The cold weather gloves are right out since I think I'd just sweat away inside them. This afternoon may be a bit warm in the long sleeves, but shouldn't be  too bad. I can pack away the leg warmers and should be good to go.