Back on the Limestone!

 It has been just over six-months since I've ridden on the trail.  I certainly didn't expect it would be more than a few weeks, when I left for WA last September.  I'd been so looking forward to the cooler months.  Watching as the trees turned color & smelling the sweet scent of fall in the air.  But - the natural world had other plans for me.  In spite of it - I set a new goal.  To be back on Speedy & riding the trail by spring.

Today was the day!  Earlier, I'd asked Mari Jo if she wanted to ride at Lake Manawa.  Not nearly as quiet, or as scenic, but with today's weather scheduled for sunshine & a break from the heavy winds, it would work.  Yesterday, Mari Jo suggested we ride on the trail.  All the wind had one positive effect - it had dried the surface.  We decided on the Trestle over Silver Creek as our destination.  The round-trip would give us over 8-miles & be an easy start to my first attempt back on the limestone.

Our route~

I was so excited to be going, I forgot my phone & didn't even miss it until I was parking at Happy Trails. Oh well, a post without photos! Just a few miles out, we stopped on a bridge & watched as a pair of Hawks took advantage of the thermals. Mari Jo kept her speed down for my benefit. The trail was littered with small twigs & branches, but no trees were down.

Reaching the bridge felt like a pretty big deal.  The thought of riding there again, had kept me motivated through some dark hours.   

My last ride on Sunny - April 1st, 2020

The photo above, was taken my first ride on the Wabash, almost a year ago.  My next ride, I had a new bike - Speedy! 

On our way back, another rider stopped to talk to Mari Jo.  He mentioned he was just getting started riding again, after surgery on his knee to repair old damage from his Basketball days.  The recovery issues he mentioned, were exactly what I experience!  Getting up in the morning thinking I'll whiz along & by evening hardly able to walk.  It made me feel better to know I'm not alone.  We all talked for quite a while, the warm sunshine on our backs, felt so good.  Jeff was riding a bike with a titanium frame & rides gravel.  He explained Gravel Grinders work for total elevation gain over the course of a year.  His for last year was over 300,000 ft.!  Impressive!  Getting back on Speedy, my leg had stiffened up.  It took a while to warm up.  I was more than happy when we reached town.  

We were out for 2.5 hours & as Mari Jo said, it was the kind of day where we could have ridden on & on.  Not yet for me though - but two rides under Speedy's wheels is a good start.  I achieved my goal with a day to spare!