Exercises in Nonconformity

My last few workouts have been more intense than ever! I have been enjoying myself thoroughly. I am trusting myself and my bike more. I have been pushing to gain both speed and endurance. I hunger for more miles. I eat pavement. I slice air.

Throughout these miles, I ride with all kinds of people, enjoying the challenge and intermittent converation. Sometimes though, I sense an undercurrent of non-acceptance and judgement. Hateration if you will. Of the many types of bicycle riders in the Inland Empire, I have found mainly these types to ride with:

1) Social Spandex Butterflies
These riders take it easy. They wear brightly colored jerseys and travel in packs. They tend to follow traffic rules. They ride expensive bikes and wear expensive cycling gear. They chat/gossip as they ride. For these riders, riding is a hobby best enjoyed at a leisurely pace. It's fun riding with these people because you can listen to their conversations or initiate a chat with someone new. These are good rides to spin, spin, spin and watch the scenery go by. Also fun because the rides usually stop at a coffee shop.

2) Ragin' Road Warriors
These riders haul ass. They also wear brightly colored jerseys and spandex, but usually printed with the logo of their team or the latest and greatest competition they've participated in. These riders don't bother chatting, they're too busy concentrating on their breathing. These individuals are likely to have tattoos and they tend to ride aggressively, sometimes ignoring traffic laws for the sake of keeping up their pace. They have GPS units on their handlebars and PowerNuggets for breakfast. These are fun people to ride with as I try to increase my speed. They don't bother my concentration with mindless get-to-know-you chatter. Also the camraderie at the end of a hard ride is nice.

3) Trixie Fixie Kids
These kids ride fast and dangerous. They wear black. At night. And they have no lights. Their bikes only have one gear. They don't bring tools, spare parts, or water. They may be intoxicated. They look cool hanging out in parking lots, one-upping each other, each stunt more dangerous and out-of-control than the one before. Then they ride on. They dress as if someone might photograph them. And then someone does. Pics from these rides end up on the internet, so you can see what you did even if you were too intoxicated to remember. Most of these kids are students or student-age and therefore ride vintage (some would say thrifty, and some would say ghetto) bikes. I like riding with this group because they are both fast and social. I always meet someone interesting who hides a genuine love for bikes beneath their eccentric facade.

4) Lonely Loner Laboring
I've seen these types out riding at night or during the day. They usually appear bent over the handlebars, grinding the gears, sweating and swearing, trying to escape from something or someone. Maybe you've seen them too. Sometimes I ride with them, sometimes they join in with whoever I'm already riding with, sometimes I pass them by. I might be one of these. I like riding alone, it's peaceful. It allows me to focus all my attention on the energy flows within myself and my connection to the energy flows going on outside myself. I enjoy the challenge of riding with other people, but nothing can replace the solitude of a solo ride.

On group rides, I usually get some egocentric comment like "why don't you wear cycling shorts?" or "why don't you have clipless pedals?" or "i guess you didn't get the memo about the island theme..." from other riders. Well the real answer is: I don't need to look like you to ride with you. I will abide by the rules, whether it be in regards to safety or courtesy, but I don't need to dress like you to enjoy myself. And that's why I'm called the bitch on a bike. I love riding my bike. I just got a new one. It's really fast. But guess what butterfiles: I don't have to buy the same outfits that the rest of you have to get faster. I just have to keep working hard. Hey fixies: You don't need to hate me for spending a lot on my bike, it's exactly what I wanted.

The Tour de Riverside (TdR) was this past weekend. I entered with my mother-in-law (MIL) and her husband, who were riding their tandem beach cruiser (a Kent Dual Drive 21 Speed). I was riding my husband's mountain bike (a Trek 800 Sport ST), and we thoroughly enjoyed the 18 mile tour. There are so many mature and beautiful neighborhoods in R'side, it was such a pleasure to ride. Also, there were some young kids on the ride with us (8 years and older) and they were an inspiration to me. The determination and grit on their little faces made me want to ride all the more. It remided me of my youth and how lucky I was to have a family that made cycling a part of our lives. The TdR was designed to:

1) To encourage the use of bicycles as a safe and viable mode of transportation
2) To enable cyclists to learn about the bicycle trails in Riverside
3) To raise awareness of environmental issues that are alleviated by bicycling (traffic
congestion, pollution, etc)

and since I believe in supporting all of these goals, I made the committment to participate. The only thing was that there seemed to be a lack of participants. I know I see hundreds of people on bikes every day and I would venture to guess that there were less than a hundred people there on that day. Oh well, maybe next year.

I thought I would just closeout this monster entry with my updated MapMyRide stats. I also realized that I haven't blogged about my new bike (a Fuji Supreme RC) which I love but that will have to be another blog for another day...
Total Workouts in 2009: 44
Total Distance: 558.70 mi.
Total Burned: 26,729 (kcal)
Gas Saved: 31.04 gallons
Money Saved: $108.02
Carbon Offset: 600.9 lbs. of CO2

Oh, yeah and I almost forgot... GIRO GIRO GIRO! The Giro D'Italia is on a rest day right now, but tomorrow the riders will tear up stage 10 (out of 21). I've had such a great time watching these races and I would like to thank Universal Sports for bringing it to a US audience. I know it's probably only because Lance Armstrong is in it, but I enjoy watching every rider in the race. I admire the team dynamics. I am energized by the sprints, uphills, downhills, and turns. I try to take one bit of strategy that I see in the race and implement it in my own rides. I use the word Giro as my battlecry as I pump my legs harder, better, faster, stronger.