A month-and-a-half note!
🛴 My e-bike experience from last weeknote must’ve had a strong effect, because I splurged on an e-scooter while it was on sale. Truthfully, I’ve been thinking about getting one for a while, and finally justified the spending. I’m getting a bit more comfortable on it. So far, I’ve used it on one commute and a few exploratory rolls through the neighbourhood. For the former, arriving non-sweaty is priceless, but compared to a regular bike the scooter is both a rougher ride and somehow more awkward on the street around cyclists and cars (maybe because I haven’t yet gotten the hang of controlling its acceleration). It’s really great for urban exploration, though! The range is long enough that I can afford to kinda just wander and get lost without worrying about having to push it back home, yet short enough that I don’t feel like I have to go far to get the most out of it. When I’m on my bike I feel like I have to push and go faster, maybe because I associate it with exercise, but on the scooter it’s just … chill. I need more chill in my life.
I took it out to explore some new housing developments around our area. It’s weird. People have already moved in and are going about their lives, but there isn’t a tree in sight. And it’s just construction equipment and heaps of dirt on the side of the road instead of sidewalks. I kinda love the vibe, though? idk
🚴🏻♂️ Speaking of pushing hard, I’ve been doing more biking too. Thanks to some peer pressure encouragement from K I now own bib shorts, a jersey, and SPD pedals+shoes. Going clipless was a big step for me. I considered it back when I biked more frequently in Toronto, but was too scared to learn on those narrow busy paths. Doing this in relatively quiet Barrie felt safer. I’ve had a few panic unclips, where I either forgot I’m attached to the bike or lost my balance somehow despite intentionally leaning towards the unclipped side when stopping. But my only fall so far was just due to overestimating the amount of grip my road tires have on gravel. That was about a month ago. While all the wounds have healed, I still have a massive bruise on my left hip. C and I happened to be watching the Tour de France Netflix show at the time and man did those accidents make me wince in my seat! 😅
Distance-wise we did 100km and 120km rides recently. The pace is really casual, so the day is basically (well-) spent in the saddle. With the approaching move and less-predictable fall weather coming up, I’m not sure this will happen, but I’d love to check off the Simcoe County Loop Trail this season. 120k is my distance PR, so going to 160 would be a sizable jump, but seems doable with a bit of planning.
📺 I binged all three seasons of The Bear and almost done two seasons of Ted Lasso. I 💜 shows where people are working together towards a common, worthy goal and are good to each other.
🥮 I haven’t been having too many sweets lately (mostly craving salt), but these T&T pineapple cakes are one exception. Can’t get enough!
Hello fellow stranger on the internet. Suddenly my world got a lot smaller when you name dropped barrie. Sending good vibes from georgina 🎉