I have always loved bikes. For as long as I can remember, my fondest memories are when I'm on a bicycle. I remember all of them. My first training-wheel bike was orange with black handle bar grips. Daddy clipped playing cards with clothespins on the spokes, so that it made a cool shuffle sound. I graduated into a glittery purple Donnie Osmond bike with a white banana seat and streamers. Dreaming of jumping over 25 cars like Evil Kennival, I nearly rode the wheels off that bike. Back and forth and around and around and around the funeral parking lot, I took it upon myself to patrol the perimeter during funerals. Middle school brought a red 3 speed with handlebar brakes that Mother thought I would kill myself on, but I'm still standing and rode that bicycle to Fairview Park with Debbie Heckman, the Dairy Queen with Suzy Ayers, and even all the way to Nonna and Poppa's house where Poppa would then have to load it in the back of the truck because it would be too dark to ride home. In Coppell, I had my 10 mile Tour de Coppell route that took me past the duck pond, library, rec center, and CVS. After Anna-Jane was born, one of the first things I bought was a green baby seat that fit on my handlebars. I strapped a tiny pink helmet on that bald kid and away we went singing Old McDonald all the way.
The sense of adventure, the calming cadence, the lookey-looing around, the breeze, the smells, the sunshine, the pounding heart pumping up a hill, the swoosh of gliding down the going faster than walking--all together my kind of deal.
Now with Big Bess, my "new" vintage Western Flyer bicycle for two being such a friend catcher, I think I'm hooked. I walked right up to my "new" Thunderbolt (that's what I named her) and it was love at first sight. Snagged it at the White Rock Market. The man even threw on a bell. It's black with red and yellow flames. It says President (Ha!) on the top bar and "Tour De Hood" on the bottom bar. It needs a new seat and Wendy says new tires and wheels, but on the first stroll around the neighborhood, a pack of kids yelled, "Love your bike!". Now that's some awesomeness! Ha!
