bird song and friend song and no hands...

I had a great weekend in PA with a small group of friends. It was far (near Jim Thorpe/ Hickory Run), so there was one main activity - a 30 mile bike ride - the concept (though not the distance) inspired by yours truly and her new road machine :) The rest of the time we ate, drank tea, and listened to the birds on a beautiful mountain-side porch.

I took a spill early on in the ride - early enough to walk back to the house, scrub out, and get back on for the ride... only a 20-min delay. There are hills in PA. Has anyone else noticed? My legs were heavy yesterday; heavy like your eye-lids get heavy, or your arms holding a book up over your face against the sun when you want to keep reading.

A little more than half way through our ride, we lashed the bikes together and climbed down a short rocky path to a frigid waterfall, where we all (almost all) jumped in. Someday, I'd like someone to take a picture of my face when I jump into cold water, as I'm certain it's the most bizarre thing. I literally have no control over my facial muscles when I'm shocked in cold water, and can barely scramble out and onto the rocks nearby. Though I had planned to jump a couple of times, once was all I could bear. I splashed some more cold water up on my bruised hip and elbow (felt so good!) and found a sunny spot for lunch with my companions.

On our ride back, I took it fairly easy, and hung near the back of the pack. On the final stretch home, M, J, and I rode together, enjoying the near sunset. Having always wanted to do so, M and I practiced riding with no hands, and I discovered that my earlier lack of skill was due more to my bike than my balance. With a stiffer headset, I could coast easily, catching my balance by wiggling only my toes, then soon I could pedal, my hands clear of the handlebars, and then soon ride with arms outstretched, hands in prayer pose, around gentle curves, downhill, uphill... It was a rush and a joy, and when we all gathered at our next intersection, we realized we had all enjoyed the lack of cars on this smooth mountain road and pedalled without hands for some portion of the way.