I rode the cinder path along the Des Plaines River through fields and old growth forest. There was mud and the fallen leaves made for slippery riding. I crossed the tracks. I lost the trail and recovered it. A fat nerd on a recumbent called out to me, asking what was I riding. I explained and he said his friend wanted one. His friend had cerebral palsy. I did not ask how someone with cerebral palsy could operate a biycle. I wanted the fat nerd to go away. He charged ahead of me and looked back for my acknowledgement. He slowed, fell behind me, and continued to talk to me. I ignored the nerd. "Watch this!" he yelled and powered down a hill and up the other side, turning to wait for me at the top. "I have to go home now," he said when I reached him.
The light was still strong when I reached the Frank Lloyd Wright homes in River Forest. On the way back I road the Des Plaines River Road. There was none of the beauty of the forest and the river and the leaves, but the wind was behind me and the asphalt was fast. If you can ride hard enough, and keep your head down, all that is ugly you do not see.
93km.
You never dip your feet twice into the blood of a slaughtered nerd.
ReplyDelete"Beat it, nerd" is what I forgot to say.
ReplyDelete