Today I did something that I havn't done in 35 years or more and climbed aboard a bicycle and found it slightly scary.
In years gone by I would have set it in motion by hopping alongside it with me left foot on the nearside pedal set on the down stroke, sling me right leg over and be on board whilst moving, today i set it aside the curb, climbed on with it stationary and with the far side pedal set at the high point and set off with a wobble.
I rode at a very slow pace off the estate and whilst it wasn't all plain sailing...having a selection of gears on each grip and no recollection of reading any instructions threw an odd spanner in the works... I made it to the main road. In years past I would have speed around the corner with a frightening lean, to merge with the traffic, before glancing over my shoulder and slinging it in the other direction to cross the road and bump it up the curb outside the shop, today I dismounted, walked to the pelican crossing and waited for the, beep beep, so I could cross safely, on foot, pushing the sleek racing machine by my side.
I know that it will come back to me if I persist, but it was slightly scary. I'm dreading the grand kids wanting grandad to climb a tree with em, or paddle a tractor inner tube across a deep river cos I can see those being slightly scary as well.
Have you done anything of late that you did without thought or worry years ago, but proved to be more nerve racking than you anticipated?
I sympathise, I got back in the saddle about 5 years ago and it was a whole new scary experience. Suprising cos Ive ridden motorbikes regularly since forever.
All I can say is persevere and it gets comfier.
Ive just started a formal academic course of study, my first ever if you dont include remembering bits of books and writing them down 30 years ago. It is blowing my brain into tiny fragments. I am hoping that gets to be second nature too.
I bought a second hand bike when I moved to cambridge, as it seems to be the most common way of getting around here..
first ride, park it in the square, and cycling back the tyre punctures.
have it repaired, decide to use it to go to the movies, park it in front of a bunch of kids..between several other bikes
when I get back the front tyre is cut.
sod it, I'll keep walking
2 years ago I got back in a canoe after a break of 10 years (I stopped because of injury) It was very scary but I soon picked it back up and plan to get back into doing it regularly
oh yes....I can SO relate to this one.......
years ago, in my younger days, I was a HUGE fan of fairgrounds.....the flashing lights, the smell of fried onions, bags of candy floss and toffee apples just waiting to rot the teeth right out of your head.....and of course the 'ultimate' essence of the fairground.....the rides!!
Now bearing in mind, im talking about the travelling fairs and NOT the static amusement parks that dot the country, and this was the early 80's....around about the time that the Corkscrew at Alton Towers was THE pinnacle of a rollercoaster riders wet dreams.....I was around 12 to 16 years of age and nothing scared me!
I happily boarded delights with names like 'The Time Machine' the 'mexican hat', the 'people movers', the 'ski jump', 'the octopus', space invader, orbiter and of course my all time fave....the waltzers!
screaming loudly....."spin me mister, spin me!!" and, belting out a blood curdling screech when the ride operators hollered "scream if ya wanna go faster!"
Every bump, twirl, revolution, up, down, zig and zag made my heart beat faster, my pulse race and adrenaline flood my teenage body........you got off the rides breathless, slightly wobbly and itching to get on the next nausea inducing ride, without so much as a pause for breath between!
I dont know when the balance began to ever so subtly change.....maybe when i first became a mum, and settled for rides such as the tea-cup n saucers, the toytown carousel and the dizzying heights of the helter skelter for years untill my kids were old enough to 'come on' the big rides with me.
I boarded 'the parachutes' a fairly tame (by todays standards) ride, in which you sat in a seat, with feet dangling and were spun round and round and then tipped on an angle high above the rest of the fairground....with the familiar butterflies building in my stomach as they always did 'pre-ride'.....eagerly anticipating that rush of adrenaline that I could at long last share with my kids.
Oh the adrenaline rushed alright, but for an entirely different reason.......previoulsy unheard creaks, groans and mechanical noises.....seemingly much louder than the booming disco music, were, to my parental ears.....a nut and bolt coming loose, a cable threatening to snap at any moment, catapulting us off into oblivion, or severe metal fatigue, heralding the imminenent collapse of the ride.....
i left the ride ashen faced, sweating and feeling sick.....not the fun filled nausea I used to leave a ride with, but the stomach churning horror that I had just put my own kids in mortal danger!!!
nowadays, i can just about stomach the ferris wheel and much prefer to 'hook a duck', throw a wonky dart at a hole studded giant playing card, and wave to my 15 year old as he goes round for the umpteenth time on the 'teacups'
He blamed the seat. Why do they have them seats that are nothing more than a cut bit of stearing wheel place sideways :?
. I'm pretty sure that I'm going slower cos whilst I did pass my neighbour pushing her kid in it's buggy, I was still able to exchange enough words with her as to be counted as a conversation.
