Riding To Victory

This week I’m in southern Michigan with the in-laws, so it’s a little hard to do a date from the deck of dates like mini golf or ghost tours. Instead, I thought I’d do a date anyone can do - a bike ride. Call it a tribute to our mate Cadel fighting for survival in this year’s Tour de France.

In our case, we rode the Kal-Haven trail which stretches 50km directly westwards from Kalamazoo to South Haven on the eastern coast of lake Michigan. I’m told from South Haven that on a clear night you can see the lights of Chicago on the far side.

The Kal-Haven is an old railway bed that’s been converted into a recreational trail for hikers and mountain bikers in the summer, and cross-country skiers and snowmobile riders in the winter. The ride took us through some beautiful old Michigan forest (at points, the trees actually close over the trail like a tunnel) and past many fields of corn with rarely a building in sight. We chatted to fellow riders and hikers along the way, stopped to taste some wild raspberries and mulberries and ended the ride with a slice of good old American apple pie.

Now, the odds are small that anyone out there will ride the Kal-Haven due to it’s geographic location. However given we’re not in Sydney, we wanted to review something that anyone can do - a bike ride date. There are plenty of good rides in Sydney which share similar
characteristics - the Oaks in the Blue Mountains for example, or even just a few laps of Centennial Park.

Wherever you’re doing it, bike riding makes a good date activity for couples of any ability. You wear tight clothing, get some physical exercise and watch beautiful scenery go by while you chat to your partner. Kind of like sex, only there’s more time for talking.

If you’re riding with a beginner (as I was) the first key is patience. Bike riding is not hard, it just requires practice. If he or she hasn’t ridden since they were a young kid - be patient! Once you’ve ridden for a few miles, it all comes back to them fairly quickly.

The second key is energy - or rather the maintenance of energy. If it’s a long ride, make sure everyone keeps consuming plenty of water and your energy source of choice (for me - chocolate chip Clif Bars). Once your energy levels sap, the date stops being fun. Don’t wait
until then to eat something - it’s too late. Instead, eat small amounts constantly throughout the ride!

So there it is. We rode across the beautiful countryside of the American midwest and had a blast. Grab you partner, find a stretch of country road and start turning over those pedals again. Rediscover riding, I’m sure you’ll love it too

Posted by Mike() on 07/20