Like riding a bike? I think not...

It's been a really wierd week. At some point at the end of last week (ironically after a really good monster run), I just lost interest in the whole triathlon thing and my confidence seemed to disappear too. I don't really know what happened to be honest. On Sunday, I just sat around in my running shorts all day and when I finally forced myself to get out there I simply couldn't be bothered and gave up halfway and walked home. I just wasn't having fun. To try and get re-energized we got on Craig's list in the evening and found a perfect road bike for me! I was so excited - we rushed out right away, and brought home a shiny, barely-used Schwinn on Sunday night!

Now...the dictionary says:

like riding a bike
(simile) Said of skill that, once learned, is never forgotten.
 
It doesn't mention anything about road bikes vs. mountain bikes..or fat vs. thin tires...or curly bars. No, the inference of this expression is that biking (in general) is easy, so long as you've done it at some point before. So easy, in fact, that the expression is actually named after it. Anyway, it's a stupid expression. After about a half an hour of wobbling around, nearly falling off and hurting everywhere to get into that uncomfortable, low, crazy-looking position I was so fed up I gave up. I didn't even do 4 miles - it was pathetic. And the pain, oh my God the pain, my hands, wrists, elbows, shoulders - everything just hurt so badly. And the realization after about 5 minutes that I am so far from "tri-ready" just added insult to injury.
 
Here I was, less than two weeks ago, with my mountain bike and hopes and dreams intact...

 
And here is the pesky, bastard bike that is currently my arch enemy...
 

So what now? Well - I'm going to have to learn how to ride it. Apart from the fact that I'm cheap - I'm not ready to abandon the goal just yet. And as my work colleague rightly pointed out I also really hated running when I started this quest to get more active. In fact if I recall I actually hated it more! The triathlon training program (that I have just wasted 7 weeks of my life on) states that it is designed for people who can run 20 minutes, swim 30 mins and bike 30 mins. If that's true - I should be able to start the program again when I can ride my new bike for a half an hour straight without wanting to kill myself. Since I'm on vacation next week anyway (out west so I'll be hiking every day at least), this will be a great opportunity for a nice break from the gym and to refocus on my new objective to conquer the pesky bastard bike when I get back.

Did I really say at the end of my last post "One thing's for sure - if I finish the swim on the day, I'm not going to let a silly bike or run stand between me and the finish line ;)"? How could I have gotten it so wrong? Oh well, I guess life's a journey and all that - I just wish the mode of transportation didn't hurt your crotch quite so much :)