Wanna See My Bike Pic?

In a post-redeye flight daze, belly full of espresso and spanakopita, while drifting in and out of consciousness, I felt something foreign awake in me.

Whilst in Athens this past May visiting my father, I unexpectedly found myself watching the Giro d’Italia—the Italian equivalent of the Tour de France.

Much to my surprise, I was fascinated and enthralled by the race unfolding before me. This was weird, because despite my mom losing her marbles over the Tour de France every summer growing up, I never cared to watch myself.

Yet there I was, enraptured by these lycra-clad, linguine-looking men pushing the envelope of what the human body is capable of, through the breathtaking mountains, foothills, and glorious countryside of Italy.

I soon realized I’d found a new-to-me medium for Awe-njoyment. Not only did I want to keep watching as the 21-stage race unfolded, I wanted to race too.

See, my dreamiest of dream professions is to race cars. For many reasons though, that’s impractical and unrealistic… But competitive cycling?

Now we’re talking about speed, grit, wheel-to-wheel combat, and an edge to find—which is everything I could ask for in a hobby.

Plus, competitive cycling is in my blood, so to speak. My dad was a semi-professional rider once upon a time, racing all over Europe, fuelled by pasta. At the amateur level, my mom competed in triathlons for many years.

And my mom just so happened to have a bike collecting dust, which she almost immediately pulled out of storage when I told her what I was thinking.

So it seems I’m adding a new dimension to myself. I fiddled around on the bike last week fresh out of storage, and am visiting the bike shop this week for a tune-up, fitting, and to get a few bits of gear before I start riding in earnest.

Given how shocked my body felt after 15 minutes of messing about, there’ll be a physical adaptation to navigate over the coming weeks. I’ve got some research to do in terms of a riding training plan, as well as figuring out how my bike sessions will sync up with my existing gym sessions… ‘tis a process!

Anywho…

Until further notice, here’s a sun-kissed photo from the first turnabout:

With love from the forest,

~ Alexander Mullan