It blows the cobwebs away, so to speak, and if I've been stuck inside all
day,
it's a sheer joy to get in the fresh air.
Absolutely. I've had a cycling free weekend but I'm itching to get out and
now the clouds are disappearing I might just go for an early-evening whizz
round my 10-mile route. If I need an excuse, it's to try out my new specs
which arrived from Wiggle on Thursday (complete with sweets - hurrah!) -
Madison D'Arcs, cheap and cheerful but with interchangeable lenses, and
after getting a fly in my eye at the top of a 17% descent last weekend I
know I definitely need them. Specs are something I would now add to any list
of essential cycling kit... along with bib shorts.
I'm sure it makes me a more considerate driver, as when cycling, I'm a
more
vulnerable road user, and this helps me, when I'm in motorist mode, be
more
aware of the needs of non-motorised road users.
I've found that too - I've always tried to give cyclists and horses a wide
berth but now I find I'm quite happy to sit behind them pottering along at
5mph for a couple of minutes just to make sure that when I do pass them
there is *plenty* of room and I'm not just squeezing by.
It puts things in perspective - closer to the outside world than when
behind
the wheel of my car - I hear the birdsong when I'm cycling - I don't when
driving :-)
I'm gobsmacked to discover how much actual wildlife there really is out
there. The most amazing thing I've seen to date is an albino squirrel, which
I spotted in a hedgerow just a couple of weeks ago. I had to stop and rub my
eyes to check I wasn't imagining it.
d.