15 July 2011 Ride: Flying Objects

In this world, there are many things that fly and many things that end up flying that shouldn’t.  Yesterday, as I was driving home on Hwy 45, I noticed a van up ahead that seemed to be traveling in the grass on the other side of the road.  The way it bumped along didn’t seem right and a moment later, still traveling at a high rate of speed, it rammed into a two foot high driveway embankment.  The van leapt into the air, its underbelly showing, reminding me of a whale that is breaching the water.  The van came down with a thud, landing crosswise on the driveway, still upright.  Several motorists pulled over and at least three of us were calling 911.  I seemed to get through the quickest and gave directions.  The two elderly occupants were conscious and alert.  The passenger, the driver’s wife I assumed, was also blind.  I can only imagine the sensation she was experiencing as the van ran its course.  One of the other motorists told the driver to stay put and wait for the ambulance.  It seemed miraculous that the van did not roll over and that the two people escaped with what seemed minor injuries.  I left when the ambulance arrived.

The incident brings up another bike memory.  When I was around twelve, I had a banana bike; a bike very popular in the 60s with high handle bars and a long seat.  I was having fun in a large parking lot near where we lived on a Sunday when it was devoid of cars.  At one point, I was sailing downhill at a good clip, eyeing something off to my right.  I happened to look forward just in time to see the mailbox island that straddled the lot.  Quickly, I pulled up on the bars in enough time to avoid a total wipe out but not in enough time to hit the curb and blow my tire.  I can only imagine what shape I would have been in had I not looked forward and hit that curb straight on.  This was, of course, before bike helmets were even a half-serious concept.

 Some say that our children grow up so quickly, that the time just flies by from when they were young to when they become adults. Maybe I'm stuck in some other reality but that never really seemed to be the case for me.  Maybe it's because I was home with our children and were so enmeshed in their lives that the clock moved more slowly. 

One of my fond memories with David was planting two peach trees together back when he was three.  Yesterday, we made another tree memory as I instructed him on the craft of tree felling.  "Isn't that dangerous," Carol asked over a Skype conversation when she finally realized I was serious about what we were doing.  "Yes," I replied. 

But I have felled a few trees in my time, the largest being about 30-36 inches in diameter.  I chalked out on the tree where to make the cuts and instructed David on clearing an area and making sure to have an escape path when the tree began to fall.

Creating the hinge. 

 When the hinge cuts were almost done, I came to watch and video tape.  What an exciting feeling when the tree began to slowly fall  (fly?) and land exactly where we had hoped. 

BTW:  This was a dead tree.

This morning, thinking that I had 28 miles to hit the 4,500 year-to-date mile mark, I wasted little time getting out of bed at 4:30 and being on the bike by 5:10.  Because it was still dark, I kept to the neighborhood for about 30 minutes and then ventured out onto Hwy 45, making my way to quieter stretches of roads. At one point, I was riding through an undeveloped subdivision, when I happened to look up and not more than 10 feet above me I saw the belly of a large bird which turned out to be a hawk.  What a shot that would have been.  But I will settle for the rather regal one below.

Oakland Zion Methodist Church. 1850.

Back home, as I was working in the garage this morning, I heard something fluttering and spotted a small bird.  The hummingbird did not look to be in good shape and I surmised in must have gotten in the garage yesterday and had been in all night.  Normally, they are very hard to catch but I was able to just reach over and pick this one up.

Its wing seemed injured and it really didn't seem as if it was going to make it.  But I knew that birds can go into a state of shock where they exhibit very dramatic signs of distress and seem near death.  So, I placed the bird in our butterfly bush.  For a moment it looked as if it wasn't even going to be able to hang on.  But, after a few flutters of its wings, it suddenly came to life and flew off. 

Today's Ride:  2hrs 31mins.  30.44 miles.  75 degrees.  Miles YTD:  4,512.62 (Yes.  I misread the numbers wrong yesterday.  I only needed 18 miles, not 28.  I"m glad I misread as I had a very nice 30 mile ride this morning.)

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