The Bicycle

A few weeks ago my breathing problem was bad and I decided to try to strengthen my chest muscles by cycling.

So I placed an advertisement on Facebook asking if anyone had one for sale.

Sure enough after a few days a woman told me she had one, so I walked to where she lived, about a mile or so away and me out of breath by the time I got there.    I looked at the bike, seemed to be okay so I paid the woman's male companion.  No I don't know if he was her wife or partner, or even her brother, I didn't ask.  I just wanted that bike.

Ah but my problems were just beginning.   You see it must be 30+ years since I rode a bike, and I was that much younger then too...   well 30 or so years younger.  But I believed it would be just like the last time I rode a bike.

Alas I was fooling myself.   I wheeled the bike to the edge of the kerb, sat on it, with a little difficulty as I'm not as 'bendy' as I used to be.    Eventually I got myself reasonably comfortable, I had also forgotten that some bike saddles felt like you were sitting on a razor blade.    Yep, this saddle was the same.  

So putting one foot on a pedal I started to move in, intending to cycle around the neighbourhood before heading on home.

Ah how we fool ourselves at times.

As I moved off the bike started to wobble.  I couldn't figure out why because I had cycled since I was 13 or so, with that 30+ year break.    So why was the bike misbehaving like this?

Off I wobbled with one foot on the ground for safety.  

Eventually I put two feet on the pedals to cycle properly.  Bad mistake.    I couldn't make a complete circuit of the pedals without wobbling so bad I was going from one side of the road to the other.   What was wrong with the bike that it was wobbling?  

So being rather fond of life, I decided to walk some of the way, and sit in a kind of sidesaddle posture the rest of the way.  

As I arrived back on my road my garden gate never looked so welcoming.

But I don't give up easily, ah no not Jim.  You have to have good sense too do that.   So I tried very short rides, all wobbly.

I started to get a bit discouraged with this cycling business.

But thinking if I put a little money into it might help my determination, I bought some paint spray and a friend did a great job on it....  a sort of metallic purple.    Yeah I know it sounds horrible, but I thought it looked very nice.      Then I bought a mirror, and a back and front light.   I was all set and determined to go.

Today those thing's that you put on the tyre valves arrived in the post.  You know the kind that light as you go along at night.

I brought one out to try it on.  

But I couldn't.  

The bike had just been stolen!

Anyone got a bike for sale?  One that doesn't wobble please.

Jim