Riding with Taylor

Cheryl had to work in the morning, so it was just Avery and I. We had breakfast and played with almost every toy in the family room. Cheryl’s parents were coming for a visit and I was going to leave for a couple hour ride when they arrived about noon. I put Avery down for a nap and got ready. I left on the Rig with Mike and Taylor for a two hour ride at Al Sabo. Taylor was on his cross bike and Mike was on his hardtail. After lap number one, Taylor started complaining about his choice of bike and saying his legs were sore. Mike gave him the typical fatherly advice, “I told you that bike was not a good choice when we left the house, no stop whining and start riding”. When we got to sandpit at the bottom of the first hill, I slowed down and forced Taylor into the sand with his skinny tires. He was now whining even more as Mike and I dropped the hammer up the hill. He finally made it to the top of the hill and it reminded me of when he was younger and would struggle up that hill. We used to have to wait at the top for him, although five years ago I needed a break anyway. If you don’t know Taylor, he is an extremely talented 14 year-old cyclist. He medaled at nationals last year and has been invited to a junior national camp this summer. In addition to being a great cyclist, he is a great kid. I have enjoyed watching him grow up next door, pulling him on rides with Mike, and now knowing that I can suck his wheel. After Taylor dropped off and went home at the hour mark, we rode the next hour talking about Trans Iowa gearing options. I told Mike I was going to change to 36:16 when we got home and would try it out tomorrow. The computer stayed in place over all the roots and bumps, so I am confident it will work for Trans Iowa. After a lunch with Cheryl’s family, I started working on the bike. We went to the mall so Avery could ride the merry-go-round, but it was gone. This is not some little ride; it is a carnival sized merry-go-round that was missing. They are replacing it with a double-decker style, but that did not help us. After a quick dinner in the food court and a walk through the mall we were heading back home for the evening.