Monthly Musing – May 2017 – On yer bike!
We’ve had a rare middle-of-the-week day out today. Both daughters are on holiday from school and university and my husband took the day off too. We decided to go cycling along the North Wales Coastal Route cycle path which isn’t something that we’ve managed to co-ordinate before now, but with bikes in the car and more bikes hired from a Welsh bike shop, we found ourselves ready to go with less fuss than we imagined.
I haven’t been cycling for such a long time but it’s true that you don’t forget how to ride a bike. There’s something about the rhythm of the turning pedals, the sun on your face and the wind in your hair that is quite different to walking along the same path (probably because we were trying to restrain the dog at the time who wanted to get into the water as soon as possible). Unlike driving a car, your entire focus is on where you are going, what obstacles you might need to avoid (such as pot holes, lamp posts, other tourists …) and the speed that you’re covering the ground which makes it a much more mindful process than sitting behind a wheel. I liked that we cycled on paths that cars couldn’t go down, that we covered more distance than I expected and that we also stopped to watch the world go by much more than we would do normally.
It’s good to do things like this once in a while; cycling is something that reminds me of being much younger, of playing in the street on bikes with friends – our bikes often doubled as horses, as circus entertainment or even stunt vehicles (don’t try this at home!) – and later on when I was in my teens and could visit friends living a distance away under my own steam.
The roads were much quieter then, and I thought nothing of cycling several miles to spend an afternoon at someone else’s house. It is of course the rose-tinted version of the past; traffic was just as dangerous, helmets weren’t even a
consideration and I’m sure far more children were injured than today when they are safely delivered to friends’ houses by parental taxis. Just for a short while, though, rocketing downhill past my girls with my feet off the pedals, I was no older than they are and it never hurts to remember the fun that you had as the child that you once were.
I’m hoping that we can repeat today’s cycling adventure again over the summer. There are so many places to explore and I’d forgotten that cycling is a great way to do it. Bike technology has improved so significantly too that it’s easier than ever to cycle without as much effort as frames are lighter and some bikes even have electric motors too. “On yer bike” never sounded so agreeable!
Family bike rides are fun, I am glad you enjoyed yours. If ever you visit the West of Scotland, the Isle of Cumbrae is a fantastic small island to cycle all the way around (11 miles).
I ride my bike daily, to and from work. I don't often cycle for fun but my husband is out on this bike at least twice a week.
We haven't been to the West of Scotland for years (all of our family is on the East coast) but that sounds like fun – although not in midgie weather! 🙂 xx
Sounds like a grand day out!
It was good fun – and I could walk the day after! 🙂 xx
It made me giggle to think of you whizzing along past your daughters with your feet out…. perfect mum stuff.
It's got to be done! 🙂 xx