I can't ride :( The sacrifices we make.

I'm sitting here feeling sorry for myself. The family goes off for a ride, I'm slow getting going,
I'm unlocking the bike. I go flat out to catch up. I'm coming up on them too fast in reality,
considering my kids are young and not great riders yet.

I came up to ride along side my daughter, she didn't know I was coming, I was coming in too fast
considering I was approaching an amateur. She suddenly made a highly unpredictable wobble, caught
her handlebar on my barends.

I grabbed her to stabilise her a bit, and to help her recover, but at my own expense. Ahh, the
sacrifices we make for our kids.

I went down like a sack of potatoes, with my barely healed knee from my mistaken attempt at a jump
just last week, once again taking the major brunt of the fall. Though it was more a dive than a
fall. I felt my helmet hit hard, and had just enough time to think thank goodness for helmets, when
the bike came over the top and landed on top of me. Gee, I'm so glad it only weighs 13Kg. Remind me
to upgrade to an 8Kg when I win the lottery - If I'm still able to ride then.

My wife says it was the most spectacular crash. She wishes she could have recorded it.

Anyway, as I said, I'm sitting here feeling sorry for myself, when my phone beeps, I have an SMS
message, I take a look, and it's from my usual riding partner, just one word - RIDE????

AAARRRGGGHHHHHH!!!!!

As if I didn't feel bad enough not being able to go for a ride cause my knee is a mangled pulp, I
have to be REMINDED of the fact that I can't take a ride by a friend inviting me for one.

I'm going to start riding wearing roller blade knee pads. I don't think my knees can, or should,
have to take many more hits like this one. This same knee has taken probably in excess of 7-8 major
crashes in the 20 years or so since my first real bike. It's taking it's toll, and the knee is
certainly showing it.

Well, there'll be more public holidays to go riding on, so what if the only ride I got to do on this
one was about 100 metres.

Trentus