My New Bike

Back when I was in college, my father gave me his brown metallic Raleigh SuperCourse road bike. He bought it to ride across Canada and I think he used it for that purpose at least once before a knowledgeable bike mechanic pointed out that it really didn't fit his 6'4" frame. He bought a new red Raleigh and gave me the old one, perfect for me at 5'9". Over the years I used it sparingly and fixed it up on more than one occasion. Finally, the cost to repair and replace wornout parts exceeded the original cost of the bike and after 35+ years of use I hung it up for good.

I celebrated the end of this year's Tour de France by purchasing a Trek 1.2 Road Bike and in spite of the rainy stretch of weather we've been having, I've been out for three good rides and must say I enjoy the new acquisition quite some and no little (as Damon Runyan used to say). It's a nice, white model with all the modern conveniences but I'm not into the technical aspects enough to spout all that. Getting out for a ride of 40 minutes to an hour at this point has been alot of fun. Hopefully the weather will clear sometime soon and I'll try some extended rides and maybe try out for the Dirigo High School staff team for next June's Trek Across Maine.

Coincidentally, I received a news clipping from New Zealand from the mom of one of my favorite students. Aaron Barclay is his name and at 16 he's become known nationally for his triathlon and cycling results. While he's hasn't had time to develope fully for the Beijing Olympics which start this week, I'll be watching for him to compete in London in 4 years. He's one of the more determined student-athletes I've known in my 13 years of teaching and I won't be the least surprised to see him represent New Zealand on the world scene. For his two national age-group championships, as they say in NZ, Good on ya, Aaron!