Been There Done That

These days I have a lot of people ask me if I still ride my bike.  The short answer is yes, I do.  But as cross training, once, maybe twice, a week.

In 2005, I got my first road bike.  I had endured a small amount of ridicule (all in good fun) from a friend and colleague for my black Schwinn mountian bike (which probably weighed a good 25 lbs and which I rode only on the road).  I also endured a mild amount of embarrassment on my own part which drove me to ride at times on Saturday when I would not run into the real cyclists riding through Grand Terrace.  I didn't want to be seen riding my slow mountain bike on the road, wearing my black rollerblade helmet, and my spandex shorts complete with cotton t-shirt.  I was a true "Fred"!

Anyway, I got my Giant in the spring of 2005 and of course I wanted to ride this new beauty.  My running went to the wayside.  Soon the said friend mentioned above, learned that I was riding, and riding a lot.  He invited me to join him out in Claremont to ride and before you know it, I was a part of the best team ever out of Coates Cyclery.  And I was bitten by the cycling bug. 

The Coates Team was fun.  I rode with them until 2008 when I was pressured to switch to Team Penta.  A great mistake.  I look back on the years of riding with Bud, Steve, Bill, Corey and others with great sentiment.  We had our typical Carbon Canyon Ride, complete with a stop at Starbucks on the way back to the shop.  (Someday I want to head out with those guys and do that ride again for oldtimes sake.)  Many other rides were spent riding up GMR or up Azusa Canyon and East Fork, maybe heading down GMR or over to Mount Baldy.  I must say I didn't mind being the only female member of the team.  In fact, I didn't need or really want any other female teammates!  I liked being the only one.  Those guys were awesome.

Well, as most people know, my cycling "career" began to wind down when I broke my collarbone in 2008 ending up with surgery and plating.  I got back on the bike in 2009 and hit a couple of races but never really felt comfortable with it.  I got a taste of the mountain bike, but this soon ended in August of 2010 with a broken femur and surgery with rod placement.  And this was the end of my cycling as I knew it. 

Not that I mind.  Cycling was fun while it lasted.  But in truth, many a ride (not with Coates guys of course) I couldn't wait to end.  It got boring sitting on a bike for hours on end.  Your butt starts hurting, you get hungry, and the scenery starts to all look the same.  (Not to mention, every week the rides are the same.)  And then when it was over, I felt like half my day was wasted.  I could and can get a better workout in, in a shorter period of time, running.   I don't get bored with running, unless it's toward the end of training for a marathon, when I just want to get to it and do the marathon already!  I see things while I run that I didn't notice before (instead of just paying attention to the wheel in front of you).  I can let my mind wander while I run, and can work all kinds of things out during those miles.  I rarely feel hungry while running, and can even head out for shorter runs on an empty stomach.  (I eat before longer runs because I know it's smart for energy.)  My heart rate is always up.  I get that good tired feeling.  It puts me in a better mood.  Even with less workout time, I'm in better shape.  And I get the runners high. 

So I'm back to my former passion of running.  Something I've done for almost 20 years; I think I started running for the first time in 1993.  And what's more I have way more time.  The time spent riding basically would be equal to constantly training for a marathon.  Now I have time for all kinds of other things.  Gardening, reading, and even taking a photography class.  My work schedule doesn't stress me out as much.  In fact, I'm not as stressed out in general.  I have more time for family and friends.  And I even run enough that a half marathon sounds like an easy distance.  Last fall, I was able to train for another marathon and am eager to do more in the future.

So I've been there and done that -- the cycling thing that is.  I'm back to being a runner.  It makes me happy and I'm going to stick with it as long as I can.  It inspires me.  I run because that's what I am, a runner.