A Cyclist's Christmas

A Cyclist's Christmas

By Tracy Fawns

Twas the morning before Christmas and all through the ice,
not a creature was stirring, except for the mice.
My bike was clean and maintained precisely,
in hopes that those tires would get me there nicely.

Fudge brownies were stored in the freezer with care,
in hopes that my thighs would forget they were there.
My dog and I snoozed all tucked in our beds,
while visions of chain rings, danced in my head.

When up on the nightstand, there arose such a clatter,
I sprang out of my bed to see what was the matter.
The alarm clock was blaring and I flew like a flash,
my socks were slick on the floor, and I fell on my ass.

The cold day started, while the snow was blowing a muck,
The windy descent, left me saying "oh...this is luck."
The icy roads were covered with snow,
I began to shiver and felt kind of low.

Then what to my wondering eyes should appear,
Santa and his elves, and eight spandex-clad reindeer!
I was hallucinating for sure and was startled with
fright; I rubbed my eyes and shook my head with all my might.

I reached down to the water bottle so dear;
I squirted it at him and pedaled with fear.
My heart rate was racing and my head began to pound,
As I maxed out I begged for more gears to be found.

I heard Santa shout as I pleaded for sanity,
"On hills! On headwind!" I almost fell but avoided to define gravity.
I rode away and looked down at my belly,
it wriggled around like a bowl full of jelly.

And so I rode on and started to drool,
I was so hungry but I was biking...so COOL!
I met up with my friends at mile sixty-four,
we rode in a pace line and we all begged for more.

I managed to get home, the last 10 miles took forever,
I stumbled in the door and looked for a warm cover.
I began to drink eggnog and eat turkey.... boy was it
swell, but ten hours later, it sure gave me hell.

I woke up from my nap and stepped on the cat,
I can't really recall what happened after that.
My bike was filthy and required attention,
but I needed some chain lube and it wasn't really worth a mention.

I relaxed by the fire and took some time to reflect,
on the year behind me and the goals I had met.
My diary I read, with all the rides I had done,
the friends I had made and the miles that were gone.

The days went one-by-one and aches and pains I had,
but each mile I accomplished, made it seem not so bad.
The love of cycling is something that we all share;
we have bonded as a family and helped our friends out there.

Our memories, will endure, for years and years to come,
Our friendships we bonded, from different states and countries we have come from.

As Christmas and Hanukkah approaches,
and we all reflect on our lives,
Godspeed to all, and to all a good ride.