Injury...

Oh, where to start?
It's been a long, long time since my last post and that's not really because I quit riding... it's more like I've been so busy and having so much fun that I haven't had the chance! SO here goes....

Over winter I rode as much as I could when the roads weren't snow covered or icy. When it was too bad I used the trainer at home and when it was 28degrees or more, I rode outside. Most riding was on the road and I found a couple kooks to ride with who were not afraid of cold weather.

I did a lot of learning. About how you always wear biking shorts under biking tights, how wearing two pair of gloves is a great idea, how the right active shirt and a mid weight jacket is all you need out there if you're working hard enough. I found out the true value of winter boot covers cause, man, that's the one thing that can't get too warm!! I got a pair from Bellweather which were fairly good and really made a difference, but when it's below freezing and you're riding at 16 mph along a river with the wind coming in any direction, those toes get froze!!!

I had the opportunity to borrow an older Diamond Back mountain bike(MTB) from one of the guys at the shop. It was too big for me, but I adjusted everything I could to make it more manageable and thought I had an acceptable ride until I got on it in the woods. I took it out with Joe and Charlie to Skyline Drive, which is NOT the most forgiving of areas and Joe led us along the Cannonball trail. It was carnage from the start.

Every incline, every rock, every turn was perilous and I fell left and right and had that bike on top of me more than I was on top of it. I kept going on and on, falling on piles of rocks and beating the crap out of myself. Then one fall was really mean and I got so angry at my inability to maneuver the bike that I became even more determined. That's what happens to me... challenge me, say I can't and I'll prove you wrong even if I have to kill myself to do it. Possibly not the smartest way to react, but it certainly gets me to attempt things I would otherwise quit.

So, as the ride went on, I chose to minimize the damage and work on other necessary skills. One technique I had heard about was "shouldering and running". I understood that this was the way to make it through the toughest sections of a trail without losing too much time in a race(not that I have ANY intentions of racing, mind you) but it also worked to keep me close on the heels of Charlie who was executing the difficult and technical terrain on top of his bike. I wasn't about to quit and I was determined to not make the guys turn around for me on this ride.

We finally hit the fire road where I could put a little power into the pedals and redeem myself as a cyclist, if not a MTBer. All was well and good until we hit an incline of loose gravel. I lost momentum and lost traction and knew I was going down. I chose to make a controlled landing on a large flat boulder embedded into the roadway. Trouble is, I landed hard on the only bump on that rock and it hit just to the left of my tailbone.

Wow! Did that ever hurt! Un-fun for sure! Right there, I said "that's it". Time to pack it in before I really did some major damage. I insisted that the guys continue their ride, but I was taking the bail out option as I knew that the fire road led back to the car. I rode the bike to the incline and walked and rode my way up the long and winding drive. I don't know what hurt more, but every step I took, I felt a pull from my heel to my butt. And each step felt like another hard punch to the injury.

Ah well, I figured it was just me and my lack of skills. Later I found that there was no way to fit that bike to me and that trail was no place for a beginner anyway.