Back to riding

Beautiful weather in Southern California.

This Saturday was my second ride on the trails since I went under surgery to repair my left shoulder. The weather was nice and the trail was really green. This is something that I really missed from mountain biking. Chino is no picnic, and fortunately I’ve been riding the stationary bike so I was able to make it to four corners with dinner still in my stomach. I’m still riding my “all-purpose” bike, the KHS Flagstaff 29er. I really like this bike, although it is not the best climber, it helped with my apprehension of riding down a hill.

It is interesting how the mind messes with you when you come back from an injury that needed surgery. I went as far as to purchase a McDavid jersey with shoulder hexpad protection to help with my fear of crashing and landing on my shoulder again. As we hit the fast rolling sections, I found myself riding a little too cautious, but as I started to trust my bike and myself, I began to have fun again.

I’m very thankful to my buddies that made it to the ride, everyone took turns on waiting for me. Even the super fast “El Guapo” was hanging around with me when he could have easily done two loops and caught me almost at the same spot. I truly miss riding without the pressure of racing, and most of all, I really miss riding with my friends.