Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Bicycle Built For Two

Near the C&O Canal Trail in MD

Tooling along wooded paths with your sweetie on a tandem bicycle is a romantic way to spend an afternoon. My husband and I enjoy riding our bike on rail-to-trails and canal trails in several states on the East Coast.

As with any relationship, riding a tandem bicycle requires trust.

In our case, the rider in front, the captain, is in control. He controls the speeds, the brakes, and most of the steering. The rider in back, the teammate, pedals—hopefully, in rhythm with the captain.

The teammate must trust the captain to make safe decisions especially when crossing roads and navigating obstacles such as drop-offs. And the captain must trust the teammate to pull her weight.

Communications is important, whether it be verbal or by way of body language. Need to pedal hard, in unison, to make it up that hill.

With time, skills are honed and riding as a team becomes effortless. Well, almost, you'll still feel the muscle aches tomorrow.

If you're a writer wanting to force your characters to resolve trust issues, put them on a tandem bicycle and let the gravel fly.

Enjoy bicycling with your honey? Consider a bicycle built for two.

10 comments:

Pat McDermott said...

Great, Dawn. Now I'll be humming Daisy, Daisy all day! We used to rent those bikes during beach vacations when we were kids. I didn't realize they still existed. Leave it to you to find a romantic bicycle! I like your captain/teammate analogy. Hope your recent rides greatly inspired your writing!

Dawn Marie Hamilron said...

Hi, Pat. Thanks for visiting. We had some great rides during our recent trip to Fl. Very relaxing.

Mona Risk said...

How fun. I'd love to try it.

Dawn Marie Hamilron said...

Hi, Mona. It's a ton of fun. Paved community bike trails are perfect for newbies. Hope you find an opportunity to try a tandem. Thanks for dropping in.

Anonymous said...

Hi Dawn,
You and your hubby make a great team in so many ways! Loved your tandem bike analogy...

Paisley Kirkpatrick said...

I used to love to ride a bike but arthritic knees changed my mode of transportation. No more pedaling for me. Love the photo of that bicycle for two.

Dawn Marie Hamilron said...

Thanks, Anonymous! *blushing*

Dawn Marie Hamilron said...

Hi, Paisley. Photos of bicycles built for two make me long for slower times. Thanks for dropping in.

Josie said...

How fun, Dawn. Thanks for the interesting post.

Dawn Marie Hamilron said...

Hi, Josie. Thanks for dropping by.