These Shoes Were *NOT* Made For Walking

I didn't report on it, but on Tuesday I went on my first bike ride since the accident. Three weeks to the day since I spilled. In the interim, I had taken my bike (for those of you who are into geeky stuff like this, a 1999 Cannondale F600) into my local shop for a tune-up/chain and rear gear cassette replacement.

The bike rode like almost new. It was heavenly. And it felt great being back out on the trail again. Ribs felt terrific. Hadn't lost too much stamina. It was a good ride. I came back muddy and sweaty and flippin' alive!

So, yesterday, I couldn't wait to go again.

About 4 miles into my 14 mile ride, I hit a bump and then heard a loud hissing noise. I had punctured the rear tire. Pretty profoundly from the sound of it.

"I am so glad I remembered to put a spare tube un my pack," I proudly thought as I dismounted and prepared to remove the rear wheel.

I assembled my tools. Tube - check. Tire irons - check. Pump- ....

Ahem. Pump- ....

No check. No pump. And no phone, either.

When I took the bike in for service, I had removed all extraneous stuff from it. And when I got it back, I had failed to put my little trail pump back on the holder.

And I was at best 4 miles from home.

A friend of mine, the friend who actually got me into riding, lives about a mile from where I was stranded. I decided to trudge to his house. Walking along the side of the road pushing a bike, wearing spandex bike pants -- I just don't know how a person can feel more conspicuous or stupid.

I arrived at John's house, but he wasn't home. I tried to find his pump. Cause if I had a pump, I could change the tube and ride home from there. But his pump was locked in the back of his little Honda Element, and I am pretty sure that we're not good enough friends that I could smash his car window without reprisal.

So I left the bike there and walked home. Four or so miles, I think. Along busy roads with no sidewalks. And I was supposed to be gone an hour, and it was already at that one hour point, and I had a child at home alone who didn't know where I was and I had no way of telling him what was going on.

So on I trudged.

If you are not a bicyclist, at this point, I need to tangent a bit. You see, there are many types of pedals you can get for a bicycle. There's your standard flat pedal you get on most bikes. On medium end bikes, you often get the pedals with the toe clips which allow you to pull the pedal up on the backstroke at the same time as pushing down on the fore stroke. But on some bikes, for varying reasons, they have these things called "clipless pedals".

Clipless pedals are actually round brackets, with detachable cleats that click into them. To use them, you need to buy special shoes that you then screw these cleats to. Then when you want to ride, you click your feet, shoes and all, into the pedals. You want to get off, you twist out of the pedal.

For engineering purposes, these shoes are usually quite rigid in the sole. And the heels are often lower than the ball/toe range. Walking in them feels quite strange, but that's generally okay, as they aren't designed for walking -- they are designed for riding.

But on that unscheduled four mile hike, that's what I had.

It was a pleasant night for a walk. And if I had better shoes on and wasn't worried about my kid, it would have been a nice change of pace. I arrived home an hour later than expected, and when I entered the house I said "I'm so sorry I am late," and I explained what had happened.

He looked up at me and asked "You weren't here?"