Day 7 - 30 Days of Biking

On Day 7 of 30 Days of Biking the weather was rainy.  For pretty much the entire day it went from raining to pouring, soaking the ground and creating cool conditions for spring.  While at work, I kept going back and forth in my head about going for a ride even if it meant being somewhat miserable.  For a while now, I’ve been really tired of riding indoors, so I didn’t want to have to resort to that again.

After work, I had plans to head down to the Trek Store –Papio to see what cool stuff was on sale (since their big spring sale was going on) and meet up with a good Twitter buddy, Lance (I love that name! - @B2feltDi2) for some bike talk and running advice.  When I got there, Lance and I got to talking about 30 Days of Biking and I mentioned that I still wasn’t sure if I was going to go out in the rain.  He said, “It’s 30 Days of Biking though…even a short ride counts…”  I thought about it for a minute and finally decided that no matter what, when I got home, I was gonna ride in the rain.

Stopped on a bridge crossing the lake - loving the rainy ride

So I pulled on the rain gear I have and headed out into the chilly and wet conditions.  I chuckled to myself when I got on the road, because the looks I was getting from drivers was “you’re crazy!”  Water sprayed up my back and in my face.  My legs were cold and my shoes started to get soaked.  It would have been great if I had actual waterproof clothing, but I didn’t so I just pedaled on and ignored any discomfort along the way. 

As I kept going, I realized more and more that I was actually enjoying myself….and the rain!  Like a kid would do, I found myself riding through puddles and laughing!  Funny how the things that brought us such joy as children seem to be lost when we grow up; so I was thrilled to rediscover the simple joy of puddle jumping.  I rode on, taking my time, and looking around at the scenery and watching the drops hit the lake I was riding around.  At one point, I came around a corner and saw half a dozen deer walking under the trees, trying to stay out of the rain.  They looked at me the same way the car drivers did – like I was crazy – and starred at me until I rode away.

All smiles and totally soaked

By the time I was on my way home, my shoes were completely soaked and I could feel the water sloshing around by my toes.  When I got back to my place I poured what looked like a cup of water out of my shoes!  While riding in the rain isn’t something I’d do every day, it was definitely a fun experience that made me smile and that’s what riding your bike is all about.  I’m Loving the Bike even in the rain!