today was my first day back on the road bike since that road race almost 2 months ago. it has take that long to recover from the physical injuries (ribs just never seem to heal) but perhaps the time out has not helped with the emotional ones. my excuse at least has been that front end of the bike needed to be rebuilt almost completely. a very kind mr jan van dalen (the maker of my frame) at duell was able to straighten out a twisted fork, and i was able to rescue a front wheel in which one of the spokes managed to rip itself out of the dura ace hub. what was a 36 hole hub became a 35 hole hub and was sneakily rebuilt into an 18 spoke crows foot wheel. all it took was a bit of research and 6 new spokes
its enough to say that the first race of the new season was unsuccessful. all the preparations, nerves, sweat and meticulous colour scheming ended up in a pile of tattered lycra when a nice big group of us decided to throw our bikes on the ground at about 50km/hr after not much more than 10kms. throwing bikes on the ground is childish you say? i agree... but its as good an excuse as any to rebuild bikes, reformulate ambitions, and now well i guess to just generally spend more time in the saddle. my ride today consisted of taking keelie her office keys which she forgot at home, and making a nice loop of it by stopping at my favourite falafel bar on the way home. king falafel to the rescue
