Snoring situation slightly improved. (Nights I have spent in spare room = 12. Nights wife spent spare room because husband slept through repeated poking = 1). Mmmm…..
Cycling is going well. Getting fitter and faster, and losing weight – off everywhere but my stomach. Have thinner arms and tree trunk legs. Started to wear cleats instead of using toe straps. Off the bike, I end up waddling like an overweight duck. On the bike, they are great and much safer. But there have been a few Jiminy Snicket moments where I have forgotten to unclip before junctions and those dreaded zig zag barriers that are placed across cycle-paths. These things are like the chicanes of Peterborough’s famed Green Wheel (which, before I started cycling point, I assumed was some kind of Environmentally Friendly Chinese Takeaway). The good news is that the cleat will always release if you fall off. The bad news that before this happens, you endure the sheer embarrassment of reaching out and clinging on to anything solid for dear life, before you eventually topple. I heard of one guy who once unclipped on one side but tried to get off on the other!
So the big change this summer, which most people won’t be aware of, is that I have taken to my cycling. To be honest, biking down to the Church from the manse is not exactly the most demanding exercise. Of course, there is much more to my role than just Brookside, and so when I am not with you at the Church I am biking everywhere…apart from Oundle and Elton, which are doable but probably need me to stay for the whole day to make the round trip viable. The only other evidence is me sneezing as I remove or put the bike back in the garage (apparently I can be recognised by my sneeze), a wobble as I cross the road, or a second thought as drivers pass me and then realise afterwards who I am. I thought that this whole thing would be radical to people, but wherever I go I have had nothing but encouragement as I hear from people who they themselves, or their relatives, biked everywhere – and I mean everywhere – in years past. Personally, I find that it is proving an excellent way to stay fit, and give me some thinking time between appointments.
This has been such an eye opener. The cycle paths take you places where you would not reach if you were travelling by road, and give you a different perspective on the communities we serve. I can see where the areas of wealth and poverty are. Like walking the dog, I say hello to people that I would not normally meet. And I am learning so many lessons about myself. Years ago my chosen sport was running, and even though I had tried cycling I had never taken to it. Now I am having to learn something new, and perhaps this relates to how we feel our own way at Brookside as we continue to find a way or organising and planning that works for us. First and foremost, despite my fears (especially with cleats), there have been no great accidents. There have been moments of real insecurity – most people fall off at some time – there have even been bruises (I fell off whilst practising on my back patio!) Ultimately, though, all has gone well. I have been anxious about having to cycle in traffic (you have to account for the failings of other drivers opening doors, accelerating past – not that cyclists are immune from moments of thoughtlessness either of course). Travelling via a new route can be challenging. Am I lost? Will I get there on time? On the other hand, sometimes my breath is taken away – like at the back of Crowland, or the route down to Caistor and Ailsworth – by the sheer beauty that I had not expected to find. Often I am encouraged when I see how different parts of our road system connect….’Oh I see, I know where I am now….that is the road to so-and-so.’ I find that I have to plan meticulously what I must carry; phone, locks, replacement inner tubes, puncture patches, keys, emergency money, notes, laptop, clothes to change into, shoes….and clerical collar! And then I have to get my leg over not just the frame, but the pannier! Winter, no doubt will bring about its own challenges.
I have found that sometimes, disasters aren’t necessarily disasters – or particularly disastrous. One day I set out to cycle to church for a Sunday morning service and the chain snapped whilst I was going uphill over the Brotherhood interchange. It then jammed between the wheel and the derailleur, snapping the derailleur in half. (I have since replaced this old bike). Calmness and logical thinking prevailed; I had three options; lock the bike and call for a taxi and get straight to church; take the bike in the taxi and go home (the service around Peterborough is excellent); lock the bike, walk home, and drive to Church. In the end, the latter prevailed, but the lesson for me was that what at first might seem like a disaster is ultimately manageable – and there are in fact multiple options. I arrived at Church in my car, dressed in cycle kit (which left the steward a bit confused), and changed with 20 mins to spare!
Perhaps trying new things is always a good idea. And perhaps many of our anxieties, even when they happen, do not turn out to be the disaster that we had initially feared.