As mentioned in previous posts, I do a good amount of biking. By good amount of biking I mean that from May -September I train for the MS City to Shore ride (great cause- if you want to donate- look to your right:)). Once the ride is over, the bike gets put away and stays there until the following May. I usually train alone and like to keep it to back neighborhoods , I am way too much of a klutz to be trusted riding on roads with alot of traffic. Not that I fall off of my bike because I don't but if I were to, it would surely be at a time that I would get run over by a car and die. Only about 2 miles of my ride is on a major road so I am only on there for a few minutes.
My neighborhood is basically only three roads that loop around and I would have to go around a ridiculous amount of times to get a good ride in and I bore quite easily so I avoid that. I usually go over by my mom's neighborhood where there are many options and the neighborhoods go into other neighborhoods so I can get alot of riding in.
Usually if I ride after work, I will do a 10 mile ride. Often I do more but I like to get at least that in. Doesn't take too long and it's enough to feel like I got in a workout. I have been going a specific route which I know round trip will be 10 miles. I loop around a certain area about 5 times and with the travel to get there and back my full trip. There is a certain house that I go by that I hate. Sometimes they are outside. They look at me like I am crazy because they see me go by several times. Sometimes, there is just one older man , who looks like he is right out of the Beverly Hillbillies who sits alone on the rocking porch out front and glares at me every time I ride by. I pretend to not notice him since I have my biking glasses on but he creeps me out. I feel like I am a stalker because I think he thinks that I am a stalker when I am just simply just riding my bike. Every time I am about to pass that house, I pray that no one is outside. I really don't think I should have to feel that way. It's not like I am riding in circles outside of his house holding a sign that says " I bike while I stalk".
I have recently changed it up a little for two reasons. I do get bored after awhile and I don't want to get my ass kicked by a Jed Clampett look alike. I still travel that route but I cut it back to 3 loops then I go off to another neighborhood. The other neighborhood is great. It's one road that goes around a bunch of other roads but it is a mile around. So If I go around that a few times and combine it with my other route it's still the same length.
The other day, I was riding in my new 'area' and there were kids outside in the backyard playing. I didn't even hear or notice them there until on my third and last loop I hear a little voice say " WHO ARE YOU?" Here we go again. Won't be doing that anymore.
I see people in my neighborhood walking or biking in circles all the time and (again) since its one small loop they can go by several times. I never think that these people are coming to get me. I think that they are umm exercising.
If I could fit my bike into my car and take it to a bike trail (there aren't any close enough to me to ride to without dying on a main road) I would. So now I am going to try some new routes. Because I don't think I will be hearing "ya'll come back now ya hear?" anytime soon.
