Back in the Saddle Again

Rode a hard 31 miles today in 20 to 30 mile per hour winds with one hard climb. My body felt shocked at the first hard effort, but I just allowed myself to work through the difficult sections and soon, I felt like a switch had been turned on, and my energy and stanima returned. I could feel the power and connection with my bike cranks as I made each revolution propelling me forward. Once I passed the area where the wind was blowing full force into me, my ride began to be transformed into grace and speed. With a powerful side wind, I rode with traffic doing close to 40 miles an hour leaving Prairie Grove down into the valley. The ride back was fast with the wind aiding my way as I headed triumphantly homeward with the satisfaction of having made the effort to overcome the challenge of the wind and the steep and daunting traffic blind hill. I like to envision my route in my mind before I leave. I was afraid I would regret my choice once I hit the big hill out of town, but once I had reached the top, and the climb began to ease off, I knew I had gone past the point of giving up and then my body began to respond to my bike, Nemo's call for speed. What a great day. The words of a song rang in my ear, "and there's new grass in the field," as I watched the horses in the fields seeking out the new blades of spring grass popping out everywhere.