Knees to the ground: mountain biking edition

{a recurring series, a post between friends, inspired by a mini-meditation retreat led by Karen Maezen Miller. we are grateful she showed up.}

 

Clair and I had an opportunity yesterday, the kind we couldn't pass up.  We were invited to go mountain biking with friends. 

 

Important fact:  friends are mountain biking experts as noted by the bike turned upside down below (only a pro does that, the rest of us aren't that cool).  Clair and I are extreme beginners.

 

We had no idea what we were getting into, in fact, I don't even know Maureen all that well, but we've been itching to tackle the outdoors together.  I knew we were in trouble when she changed shoes.

{Maureen, fearless leader, giving us the low-down}

{my (husband's) sweet ride} 

{Clair and the last-minute lipstick app in her husband's sweet ride}

 

We were joined by Suzanne (not pictured) another seasoned pro and took off like the grinning, goofy, naive, forty-somethings we are, ready to get schooled and have our arses kicked royally.

 

To recap, we were led by Maureen (codename: Rocket) who's been biking for 12+ years and says it's "her sport" (yes, by golly, it is).  Then came Suzanne (codename: Ponytail) who'd been riding horses all morning and made our ride look like she was taking a nap.  Next, Clair, (codename: Lipstick), who you may already know, and it is she who gets the hero award for the day for it was discovered that she brought a hybrid bike (codename: Beach Cruiser) that weighed 50 lbs.  Last, and I do mean last was me, (codename: Pokey) who just tried to keep up and not look like a fool.

 

 

 

 

It was a gorgeous, warm day.

 

A little shaky on the uphills...and the downhills, who am I kidding?  I held on for dear life and tried not to fly off my bike.  It was thrilling.  It was also slow.



We had no problem covering the rear.

 

We're comin! (dweebs in unintentionally matching white helmets)

 

 

 

shew! (look at that weakness in Pokey's L shoulder--who is her PT?)  Not you, Lipstick, you look like a champ.

 

And when it was all over we decided to have a little sit on the edge of the wheat field at the entrance, onlookers be damned!  We grabbed our zafus, set the timer on my phone and sat in silence (meditating) for a bit, till the first car came and I started giggling and Clair thought I was throwing up and we both got the giggles and couldn't stop laughing and then the second car came and the ambiance was trashed but we did it anyway. One new experience met by another.  My arms tingled in the cool breeze from the fatigue and sweat of the ride and it felt good to have made new friends and to be outside and together, revisiting something I once loved (and still love) to do.