Where the Adventure Began

I’m piecing this first chapter together from memory, three photographs, and three Strava activities. Looking back, that first day had more to it than one little spin around Sikeston, Missouri.

The bike was a brand-new Ozark Trail from Walmart, still wearing its barcode and factory stickers. I’d already added grippier pedals for my tennis shoes, a bottle cage, a rear rack, a better rear light, and a top-tube pouch for my phone and little odds and ends. A gel saddle cover had the important job of looking after my very tender ass. No clip-ins yet—just seeing whether I really wanted to start riding again.

One little ride, then another

That afternoon, I took the bike out for its maiden voyage: about 3.6 miles in twenty-one minutes. A short roundabout to get comfortable, get my cycling ass situated, and find out how this was going to feel. I was carrying a lot of extra weight. I sweated my ass off—but I was having fun nonetheless.

That little outing got my confidence up, so later that evening I decided to try a longer ride. I headed back out, this time taking it onto the road: another eight and a half miles in about fifty-six minutes. I had a lot of fun, but by the time I came back, I was worn out. My legs were hurting and feeling like rubber.

So I decided to try to walk off the discomfort and loosen them up. No pain, no gain, right? Apparently my answer to tired legs was to ask them for another two miles. I walked for about forty-four minutes, and it did seem to help. That’s how I remember feeling afterward; I’m not prescribing it for anybody else’s sore legs.

The truck-driver version of putting the bike away

Even putting the bike away took work. To fit it on the truck’s top bunk, I had to carry sockets, undo the front-wheel nuts, and take the wheel off.

Three photos remain from that day: the bike beside my truck, the pinned pedals, and a closer look at the bottle cage and crank area. A pretty modest beginning, but it was a beginning nonetheless.

The day’s recorded activities

5:12 p.m. · Maiden voyage: 3.61 miles, moving time 20:52, elapsed time 21:41, average speed 10.4 mph.

7:52 p.m. · Evening ride: 8.53 miles, moving time 55:40, elapsed time 58:22, average speed 9.2 mph.

8:52 p.m. · Evening walk: 2.10 miles, moving and elapsed time 44:06, average pace 20:55 per mile.

That makes 12.14 miles of cycling across two separate rides, plus a separate 2.10-mile walk. The little first ride matters just as much to this story as the longer one that followed.