The Bike Ride

I took a bike ride to a friend’s house. I’m trying to reduce the carbon footprint in my wallet, and get in shape at the same time. I use to be a stud in my younger years, now I’m just a dud. I was going to ride the four miles or so just for the heck of it. The ride started off easy. It was all down hill at first. It leveled off and then there was a slight incline, an incline that went on for about a mile and a half. I struggled through it. I was riding in a high gear with my head down. My thighs were burning. It didn’t take long for the thighs to start burning. I was approaching a steep hill. Los Angeles has plenty of hills. I was wondering if I was going to be able to power through it. I wasn't very optimistic. I had one gear left. I needed help. I switched gears. There was a give on the pedals and a snapping sound. I looked down. The chain had broken.

“Great!”

I wrapped the chain around the seat post and pushed the bike up the hill. It was later in the day. The sun wasn’t that strong, but I was building up a sweat. I had my head down. The brush on the hill was dry. I took it one step at a time. There was small dog excrement on the sidewalk, not a good situation.  

Well, at least I could have some fun riding down the hill. It didn’t take long before I hit the summit. I got on the bike and coasted down hill. I was going pretty fast. I hit the breaks so not to injure myself. I must have locked my wheels on a piece of glass, or a rock, because when I got to the bottom of the hill I had a flat tire.

“Terrific!”

The bike ride wasn’t going as planned. It turned into a walk-ride. The bike was broken, my spirits were down, but I made it through and was not defeated.