One Tracked Mind

In my last post, I mentioned going for a ride still fully attired as a woman. As I mentioned, my usual ride promised to make this an uncomfortable experience given some of the areas I usually ride through. Therefore I decided not to take my standard route and explored another bike path I’ve been meaning to try: The Merri-Creek Trail. As if the day couldn’t get any better, it turns out that this bike track is fantastic! There is more undulation, there are many fast bends and even a well shaped jump (courtesy of a tree root under the path) around the twelve or thirteen km mark. Without the gaze of motorists, the noise of vehicles, or the pauses from waiting at traffic lights, I was free to ride continuously alongside a running river to my heart’s content. I really didn’t want to stop, but my sensible brain cautioned me to leave enough energy for the ride home. I think I was also feeling extra energized by the positive experiences of my first day in public dressed as a woman, so whilst I still felt like I had plenty of energy, I had to stay mindful of how my muscles might feel the next day. Better to have a slightly shorter ride today and still be able to go for another ride tomorrow. So I turned around and headed for home. All up I covered just over 25km. Not an huge ride, but not a small one either. Eventually I’d like to be able to do much larger rides, but given that twelve months ago I was still a smoking alcoholic who was twenty kilograms heavier than I am now, I think I’m doing okay :)

So if you’re around Melbourne’s northside and you’re looking for a great ride, I strongly recommend the Merri-Creek Trail. I only passed a couple of cyclists and a few pedestrians, so it doesn’t seem too busy. There’s a few parks and riverside spots to stop if you wish, and even the odd information board telling some morsel of local history. (I like history, so I tend to read these things!). WARNING: There are a number of blind bends which one must take with caution and less speed than is my wont, as if one was to meet oncoming traffic, a substantially painful and bloody mess may result! On a lighter note, I should also warn you all that riding alongside a river or creek at dusk is a great introduction to a high protein diet. The air is quite thick with bugs at that hour. I recommend at least some eye protection ;)

Sometimes it’s too easy to stick with what you know and miss out on a whole world of cool stuff. Sometimes we just need a push. A minor comment from someone gave me the push I needed to brave the world as a woman. Being attired thus in turn, pushed me to try a different bicycle track. Therefore if I didn’t spend the day as a woman, I wouldn’t have gone on that track, and I wouldn’t be now using it as my everyday ride track, and it is even conceivable that this will long term have a positive effect on my fitness.