a.k.a. V.J.

Back in August 2020, at the height of the COVID lockdowns, I decided I wanted a bicycle in order to get some exercise and break up the monotony of my work-from-home existence. Approximately everybody else on the planet had the same idea at that moment. Bicycles, and exercise equipment in general, were practically impossible to come by. High demand coupled with supply-chain issues made finding a new bicycle for sale a challenge somewhere between Charlie seeking the golden ticket to the chocolate factory and Sir Galahad’s quest for the Holy Grail.

Being stubborn and not really picky about what I wanted, I was able to eventually find a suitable bike at my local Walmart. It was a cheap, no-frills, single-speed Huffy cruiser bike with horrendous red tires. Said bike was one of only three adult bicycle models they had in stock in the store. I went over first thing in the morning on my birthday to grab it before somebody else snapped it up. It wasn’t even assembled. I had to schlep the thing home in the box and put it together in my driveway — a process which I recorded for posterity:

That first summer when I got the bike, I rode it practically every day, well into the fall. Since then, I haven’t used it a whole lot. I’m not sure why; it’s just never a top-of-mind activity. But for whatever reason, this morning right after I woke up, the whim struck me to take it out for a ride. And not just any old ride — I decided to take it to Dunkin’ and get my Sunday morning coffee. That’s a sacred pilgrimage for me.

The trip to Dunkin’ and back was very manageable. It’s only about two miles away and mostly flat terrain. Part of the route was along a road that can get heavy automobile traffic, but being a Sunday morning, it wasn’t too bad. I was struck at how little I had to exert myself along the way this time compared to making the same trip back in 2020 when I was considerably heavier. It was one of those unexpected demonstrations of the power of incremental fitness progress over time.

I really enjoyed the ride today and am going to try to incorporate some bike time into my regular routine going forward. There are probably another six or seven weeks left when the weather and available daylight should allow me to ride regularly. And with three Dunkins in this town, I’ll always have a place to ride to.