Reunion with an Old Friend

20 yrs old and good as new!
(forsaken Lexus in the background)

Anyone who lives in Bellingham knows how much folks here love their bikes. All the businesses and busses sport bike racks, bike lanes on main roads are big and wide, and I think I could safely wager that there are more bikes than cars in Bellingham.  I have been itching to ride my bike since we moved here in September.

My bike was in pieces though.  It had been shipped cross country twice and never put it back together.  It had flat tires, a busted shifter, and the shipping company that had taken it apart had no clue what they were doing.

With the warm days of early summer egging me on, I finally had the awesome folks at Fairhaven Bike and Ski put Humpty Dumpty back together again and fix my bike.  Then I ordered a new super cool helmet online.  The helmet took forever to arrive and when it did it didn't fit. I was tired of waiting so I bought the first "not-especially-cool" helmet that fit me.

Finally I am riding again!

Our first mission was to see how long it would take to get from my house in the "Woodhood" near the airport, to the library downtown. My bike and I flew along, passing all kinds of places I normally frequent within minutes.  We made it to the library in exactly twenty-three minutes.  I was thrilled.

Need to make that helmet more fun!
Anybody got any stickers?

I took a different route home, exploring my options.  I am pretty sure a Mexican dude at a bus stop cat-called me. Why do I always get cat-called by Mexican dudes?? My husband (who is half Puerto Rican) says its something to do with my rear.

Anyway, my bike and I were very pleased with ourselves. The entire outing, including a break at the library to drink in some sun and H2O, took only an hour and I was exhilarated and energized when I got home.  I probably could have kept riding all day.

My bike was collecting dust for far too long.  We have so much catching up to do.  I guess growing up in an uber-flat city like Richmond, BC makes it easy to become joined at the hip to your bike.

When I was a kid my bike meant freedom, going somewhere, getting away.  I could ride all the way from 4 Rd. to Shady Island, where I would wait for the tide to go out so I could cross the temporary land bridge that would let me explore and have an entire island to myself.  I rode to school, I rode to the store, I rode around with no destination in particular. My bike was always there for me. My bike was my best friend.

Now, after waiting patiently in pieces all these years, we are together again and it feels great!

©2012 Amanda June Hagarty.