Two firsts: fixed-gear riding & winter wipeout

An ex-member of Sibley donated a nice Sekai 500 fixie to the shop (I checked & it's not in the Gallery--need to do something about that). I'd never been on a fixed-gear before, so I jumped on and practiced trackstands for about an hour. Man my legs were jelly when I was done and I can see how riding would be harsh on your knees but I swear I fell in love with that bike as advertised hooked on the fix and now I want one of my own. It was just a smidgen too big for me maybe but damn if John doesn't buy it (he called it first) then I'm gonna be sad to see it go.

And, sure it's a little windy but riding has been great the streets are mostly clear and there's no excuse for not biking this winter. Tonight was the first time I spilled it. Leave it to me to hold off on the first icy crash until we have this insane long thaw. Well I knew the alley was sheer ice from when I pushed my bike out to head to the shop, but I still tried to bike it. I did okay as long as I was going straight, but I turned the front wheel just a little to head into our yard and BAM, I was down, I took most of the impact by sliding my right leg but then somehow landed on my left kneecap too.

I limped into the house, walked my bike down to the basement, and put a bag of frozen green beans on my knee. (The bag freaked Lola out and she wouldn't come near me--now I guess we now how to keep her from jumping all over us when we get home, just pull out some frozen foodstuffs). It's not going to be anything worse than a bruise, but I figure that still earned me a good beer and a soak in the tub. After downing a Stella Artois, I feel like I could do it all over again.

Tags:

• bicycles
• beer