Sometimes no clear theme comes to mind, so I cobble together some random thoughts and hope they’re interesting. This is one of those times. Here are the previous similar entries to get you good and warmed up. Or to come back to after reading this one:

• The Journey Is the Destination: Meandering Thoughts from a Bike Dude
• A Random Rest Day Potpourri Post After a 153-Mile Week on the Bicycle
• Random Thoughts from the Life of a Car-Free Cyclist in Austin, Texas
• Bicycle Bites, Motion Morsels and Transportation Tidbits
• 30 Thoughts I Thunk on My Bicycle, I Think

Interspersed are some photos from a 30-miler I did this weekend, most of it with good old pal Rhodney.

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Yoga is my secret weapon for biking, and yoga naps are the secret to yoga. I’ve been doing yoga daily since December 2013. Lately it’s been gentle, mostly floor-based positions at the end of a bike ride and a long day. It works out many though not all of the kinks in my legs. But when the day’s been too long or got away from me due to work or reading the news or whatever, I sometimes require a yoga nap. Instead of going to bed like a smart person, I just lie on the mat in sivasana. That can lead to a period of unconsciousness or a power nap. But since the floor isn’t very comfortable, it doesn’t last too long. It’s a practice I avoid and don’t recommend, but sometimes still is necessary to keep my streak alive.

I just discovered dark chocolate covered frozen bananas. I justify it by telling myself I need the magnesium and potassium after all the bicycling. But we all know the truth: they’re delicious. Why can’t it be both reasons? Also, they were on sale. And we all know you can’t pass up a good deal with such good price a-peel. (Get it? It’s a pun on the word appeal and bananas. If you have to explain a pun it probably wasn’t that funny, but whatever.)

The first adult bike I bought for myself was stolen on Christmas Eve. It was a KHS Urban XPress, and it was $489 from The Peddler Bike Shop. I almost always use a cable lock with a Kryptonite now. But at that time I had only a shoddy cable, and it was ripe for the picking. I confess to still not having registered my bikes. I tried with the national database but it didn’t take the number. I still miss that bike, though. Someone got a nice gift!

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I’m lazy about cleaning and oiling my chain. I don’t know why that is, but it is what it is. My chain comes off the sprocket sometimes, and it probably needs replacing. After as much riding as I do, chains begin to stretch and the only solution is a new one. But my mechanic at Sun & Ski Sports says I need to get a new chain ring and cassette simultaneously. Hey, I’m not made of money. So I just keep pedaling, and hope I do better about the cleaning.

Group rides are still out for me (thanks a lot, pandemic), but the occasional ride with a friend is still important. Although the science on the coronavirus transmission is still being discovered, riding right behind someone without a mask is still a bit risky. But with two people wearing masks and keeping distance, the risk goes down. So I’ve done that a few times. I’ll be inviting a few people to bike for part of my birthday ride, too. But biking with others is a good way to have a little normal activity that’s not solo. And that’s got to be a good thing for the brain.

I didn’t watch the Tour de France this year. Too busy working and the $60 wasn’t worth it. C’est la vie. The Giro d’Italia has started and I’d like to see EF Pro Cycling especially since home boy Lawson Craddock is riding. Or maybe I’ll catch the Vuelta a Espana, since Chris Froome is riding in it, and since I’ve been to Spain but never made it all the way through the last two year’s telecasts.

Life goes on, so I just keep on riding, walking, yoga-ing, writing, and I’m sure you’ll keep doing whatever it is you do. Thanks for reading!

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