Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Bike the Drive

Sunday was Bike the Drive where Lake Shore Drive is closed to cars and bikes can ride from Jackson as far north as Bryn Mawr and as far south as MSI. We set off at about 7AM, Kim on her GT mountain bike with a semi-slick up front and a slick from the trainer (why I didn't get two slicks I'll never know!) on the rear and me taking the Bianchi. This might not be something I'd do every year, but it is a great reminder that we live in a wonderful city. I've been to all 50 states and a lot of great place, but this ride was a reminder that of everywhere I've been in the world, Chicago is still my favorite. If you're curious, Sydney Australia is next up. The ride up the lake front benefited from a nice tailwind and so we cruised easily along amongst the 10's of Thousands of participants. The bikes varied from the ridiculously expensive to the "I don't know how that even is ridable!" Still needing some baggy mtn bike shorts for days like this, I pulled on the blue & yellow Wheelfast kit and all was good. The view of the lake, the beaches and the beautiful buildings that line our shore was just spectacular. We just eased along with no hurry, passing and being passed. It was glorious. Amongst the crowds of bikes, it was a reminder that even though we race and so often are focused on our heart rate and cadence and power output and our sprints and climbing and skills, that at least for me, riding a bike is about fun. Sometimes we lose sight of the "fun" when results or training doesn't go our way, but a ride like this is a great notice that when we're out on two wheels it should be fun and take us back to be kids again.

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