But I’d only ride 12 miles on my bike.

I don’t remember what caused my sudden need to fix up my bike and ride like the wind from the Art Museum to Valley Forge National Park. I guess it may have been so that I’d have a reason to sweat like I’d been working out in this stifling heap of heat.

A few mandatory supplies later (water-bag by Coleman – the Camelbak kind), lights for the bike (front and back), an emergency patch kit (useless without a pump, I later realized with an audible “D’oh!”), and some Trail Mix bars, I arrived home to attach my mud guards to my bike, a purchase made well over 2 years ago now.

The weather forecast couldn’t have been more wrong, as it predicted thunderstorms and isolated thunderstorms from 3pm until 4:30 pm. Nary a rumble was heard.

Getting to the Art Museum was no issue. Boathouse Row, specifically, the east bank of the Schuylkill River, was the opposite of fun. The wind was blowing in my face, with a force strong enough to offer me resistance. That *may* mean sporadic gusts of 5mph, but I FELT those gusts, man.  You weren’t there, man.

I made it to the Falls Bridge, and that’s where Joe’s words first came back into my brain: “You’ll find something to make you turn around.” So, I didn’t. I rode on until Manayunk greeted me with the sign for its Main Street. It was at that point that my head registered a little dizziness. A trail-mix bar and some more water (the trick is to REALLY bite down on that sucker) later, I decided I’d reached my limit for today.

All in all, I made it back home in one piece. No drop of rain from the skies. It’s probably an instance of “everybody does this”, but I find myself promising … myself  that I’ll get back on that narrow-seated horse on wednesday. Maybe ride a bit longer. Maybe reach another bridge to cross. Maybe I’ll bring a camera that time, and if the goslings haven’t grown up by the next time I’m riding, they’ll be front and center.

Tomorrow? Pushups and situps. Unless the 80% humidity kills me tonight.