The New Beginning

As you might guess, I have been anxiously watching the weather, waiting for the conditions to get right so I could get out on my bike.  As spring as progressed I have found myself more and more often day dreaming about being out on my bike.  In watching the extended forecast, I have been looking forward to today, since today was predicted to be the first good day with everything falling in place; warm enough, dry enough, and not too windy.  Plus, for these first few rides, the roads need to be dry enough to be able to get around without getting all wet.  It will be a few weeks yet before the trails are melted off and dry enough to get on so, at this point, we settle for mostly dry roads.  But, as hoped, today everything came together and we got out.  

This year there was also an added element, Brombeere got a new bike.  Yes, yes, I know, she just got one last year.  But that was a new upright bike, which she liked very much; it was way better than the older bike she's been riding for the last several years.  But as things have developed, she was beginning to feel less and less comfortable on her bike, she was worried about losing her balance, tipping over, and getting hurt.  We have both had a few spills on our bikes these last few years, but we've been lucky and, for the most part, neither of us has gotten seriously hurt.  I don't count in that the time I got hit by a car, that was an exception; it wasn't my fault.  Pretty much all the little spills we've had on our bikes have been our own doing, or the result of the bike getting away from us.  Be that as it may, Brombeere was feeling less sure of herself on her bike.  That combined with some health issues that have recently surfaced that make it a little more important now that she not get seriously injured.  And so our thoughts turned to getting her a recumbent, where the chance of falling off is much less than with an upright bike.  After all, I got one last year and have really enjoyed it.

So we went back to the same shop where I got mine and took a look at what they had.  Brombeere was looking for some different things in a recumbent for her so she ended up getting one a bit different from mine.  Mine is sometimes referred to as a "tadpole" trike (with the single third wheel out back), where she wanted a more traditional trike (with the single third wheel in the front).  She tried a few they had, including one like mine, and liked this one best.  So we bought it.

It took them a couple of days to do the adjustments and add the accessories she wanted, but it was ready today so we picked it up.  We were really hoping it would be ready in time for today's good weather.

Then we dug mine out, pumped the tires back up, and got it all ready for the road, and off we went, for a season opening ride.

We kept it short, and stayed pretty much to the roads since the trails are still snow covered or very wet.  Brombeere's endurance is also still getting back up following a hospitalization she had a few months ago.  But she did better than she thought she was going to be able to do when we first started, today's ride was only slightly shorter than most of the first rides from previous years.  It was actually longer than my first ride after the run-in with the car a couple of years ago.  And it was so nice to be out, cruising around town on what promises to be the first of many rides during the upcoming season. Definitely a good time!