In a few months, May 25th to be exact, I will be riding my bicycle 25 miles in the great city of Austin, TX. This bike ride is the second leg of my first ever Olympic length triathlon that I'm training for. The ride follows a 1 mile, open water swim across Austin's Town Lake. Before getting on the bicycle, I have to go through a wardrobe change. The word "wardrobe" sparked my interest enough to take a trip to Richardson Bike Mart. The Bike Mart is really cool and really huge. It's divided into two sections: the bicycle side & the clothing & gear side. Honestly, I didn't know there were that many types of bicycles in the world. I have only owned three bikes in my life: a red tricycle; a blue bicycle with a white basket and training wheels and a ten speed that I road until I got my driver's license. I do not currently own a bicycle and I have not been on bicycle since the late 80's. I do however have a new friend at the Bike Mart, Marc Fuentes, cycling expert and bicycle salesman extraordinaire. (Marc will be making his debut in an upcoming post...stay tuned) Marc spent a lot of time with me explaining what I need. I'm a little high maintenance, so for some reason this turned out to be a really long shopping trip. Turns out I need a 23 wsd road bike with a bell and multi-colored streamers from the handles and I need the shiny white one they have in stock (bell & streamers sold separately.) I was feeling very overwhelmed after learning all the mechanics of the bicycle, so I took a breather and wandered to the other half of the store where Marc and I began assembling my new cycling wardrobe. In addition to a bike, I need a bike helmet (alien headgear), bike gloves (don't have fingers/do have special padding), special bike shorts to train in & a different pair to race in (real ugly/make my butt look even bigger/has a diaper sewn into them), special bike shoes (has something on the bottom that makes the shoe clip onto the pedal), a fix-a-flat bike pack (like I could actually fix a flat tire in the middle of a race), a water bottle and a car rack (at least I will look outdoorsy & granola) to transport it to all those places I will be riding it all the time (right- I see that happening.) I decided to purchase a helmet, since I know I will be falling down a lot & will most likely be knocked over at least once, but probably more than once by other cyclists that actually know what they are doing. Marc & I decided that a pink helmet would suit me best. It's a proven fact that pink helmets make for the best protective headgear around. I also purchased the pair of bike shorts I need to train in. Marc brought me a size Large without even consulting me and was very sure that was exactly the right size - Whatever! It's no surprise to me that I left the Bike Mart with clothing only, but protective headgear is a priority. Community Partners of Dallas is like protective headgear for abused children. Did you know that 33% of the children served by the Rainbow Room are victims of physical abuse? This a shockingly true story: Tommy is seven. When he came to school with his arm in a sling and a black eye, his teacher asked a lot of questions. He told her that he got in a fight with a bully on the way home from school, but she didn't think all the details added up so she kept asking questions. Finally, Tommy broke down in tears and told her that it was his mom who had hurt him. He begged his teacher not to tell anyone. His mom had lost her job two months earlier and was so stressed. He told her that they didn't have enough money to eat and it was his fault that he made her mad when she was so sad. He shouldn't have turned the TV on so loud and bugged her.... She just snapped and started to hit him over and over again. For now, Tommy is living with his aunt. This happened in December. Community Partners of Dallas provided him with Christmas presents and a mattress to sleep on while living at his aunt's house. Child protective services is working with his mom with hopes that they can safely reunite the family in due time. Be motivated with me & support my 25 mile bike riding efforts by making a donation now that furthers the protective efforts of Community Partners of Dallas and ensures safety to so many children. Donate toward the bike ride - $25 for 25 miles or if your wheels are spinning fast and you're so inclined, donate in multiples of $25 ($50-$75-$100-$125). Now that would provide a lot of protective headgear - pink of course! Keep riding & if at first you don't succeed, try try again.
