It was another beautiful day in Northern California (highs in the mid 20s) – I was biking in shorts :-). At one point, I noticed the great white egret sleeping by the banks of the Guadalupe River. With the green grasses, the white feathers provide a dramatic contrast, which is not nearly as impressive when everything is dried out and brown during the summer months.

This was my first post-surgery ride on my road bike. Actually, the last time I rode this particular bike, I had a bit of an adventure that required the replacement of my rear rim – Looking back, that was September 10, 2014 – the day after my first report of taxol induced neuropathy. So, it was nice to finally get back on the bike. I was immediately struck by how much higher off the ground I am on this bike. It is certainly my tallest bike. It is also my lightest bike, so I ride much faster than my other bikes, and riding it is a lot less physical work – however, it does involve more pressure on my upper body.

Towards the end of my ride, I decided to stop and take a selfie. I realized that it has has been a long time since I’ve taken a selfie for this blog. Unfortunately, you cannot see how long my hair is because I bike with a helmet. In addition to the fancy new back tire, I also had new pedals – which were perhaps a little tighter on the clip release than I am accustomed. This resulted in a slow motion, almost comical, fall. I slowed to a stop, clipping out my right food as I slowed, but then leaned to the left. By the time I realized my foot was still in the cleat, I was already on my way down. I landed rather solidly on my elbow.

After a few breaths, I realized that I was not seriously hurt. Unlike when my back rim failed, this time, there seem to be no body around – so no one came to help me get up off the ground. I ended up kicking out my bike (my foot came off the cleat on the way down, just not soon enough to stop the fall). I was impressed at my ability to get myself up off the ground – certainly an improvement over a few weeks ago. I expect that tomorrow my arm and left side might be a little tender and I’ll probably have a nice bruise on my left quad, but hopefully I’ll recover from this one quickly. The road bike is now safely put away on the wall were it will likely stay for a week or two, until I get the courage to try it out again. After falling, I did pick myself up, take the selfie, and then rode the short distance home (under 1km). Of course, this now means every time I see a doctor in the next month, when they ask “have you fallen in the last 30 days?”, I’ll have to explain how I fell off my bike 🙁