Hello!
I went on an exhilarating 40-ish-mile adventure today. I rode out to Lorane Highway in west Eugene and met three new friends and riding partners! My friend's grandfather, Jim, lives in Eugene, and I met him and his friends Stu and Bob today! Our route was sunny, had a good mix of hills and flats, and was filled with country roads. We experienced a multitude of wonderful and not-so-wonderful things: way too much road gravel, potholes, collies and schnauzers chasing us, sweeping vistas of green grassy farm hills with mountains in the distance, joking about needing to slow down while climbing up a hill when we passed a "25 mph speed limit" sign, going 35 MILES PER HOUR down a different hill (made the brutal climb so worth it), stopping at a country store in Crow (a small community about 15 miles out of Eugene), chatting about HIV/AIDS in Rwanda and South Africa over a pile of Fritos corn chips, and bugs in our mouths. Ok, maybe that last bit about the bug was unique to me, but it was gross and I learned my lesson: don't ever, EVER open your mouth while biking fast. Even if you can't breathe otherwise. Just don't do it.
Jim, Stu, and Bob were inspiring company, great conversationalists, and generous new friends--for I got lost on the way to our meeting spot and was 40 minutes late. There was a stressful element to today because I had to ask four groups of people for directions because Google Maps led me astray (getting a hardcopy, ACCURATE map of Eugene and surrounding areas is now on the top of my to-do list). A big thanks to the family who kindly informed me that I needed to be on West 29th, and not East 29th Ave. A big thanks as well to my new friends for supporting me as I train. We plan on going on more rides together, and I will post pictures when I finally remember to get a handlebar bag so I can start bringing my camera on our rides!
Many cheers to new experiences,
Nina
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