June 29th, 2007 | categorizilation: all categories,Switzerland
I spent the majority of today sleeping on the grass in parks around Fribourg.
It was a good opportunity for a rest, as I was waiting for my wonderful CouchSurfing.org host, Mirjam, to arrive back from work at 6:30pm. After yesterday’s big effort I was suitibly knackered. My muscles weren’t sore, but I was feeling understandibly stiff. I am much more committed to stretching now; if I didn’t, I think I’d tense up completely.
So I ate peanuts and watched children expertly dodge each other as they rode bicycles and scooters around the park. At 7pm I met Mirjam – an enthusiastic, open, and well-travelled woman who loves bicycles. Along with some other cycle enthusiasts in the city, she is involved in a new organisation called ‘Pro Velo’. Her organisation promotes the use of bicycles as part of one’s lifestyle.
“Forget the lycra and speedy fasionable bikes,” she says. “Ride your bike to work, to the grocery store. We like to encourage Fribourg to become a more bicycle-friendly place.”
My sentiments precicely. I was more than a little gutted that I wasn’t still riding my bike…
looks like you're going to have to watch out for bumps in the road. how poppie is that board, could you do a small ollie over a bump like that – if you saw it?
Sorry – you can't get your bkie back now. It's destined to be reassembled (if Dad gets around to it) and used by the extended Thomson family. I'm even hoping for a go myself. Might even take up recumbent biking for exercise! It will be interesting to see how long the rubber lasts on your skateboard 'tyres'
Hi Rob
I must read back and see when you made the switch-over from cycling to
skate-boarding, and why. Still, it's always fun to dabble with a new
skill. I did the same with running, and went for years training myself to
do so barefoot. I've done a couple of marathons that way, and then went on
to running one in jandals! On the cycling front, I bought myself a unicycle
the other day and am on the verge of maintaining control for about 20 metres
at a time.
William
Rob,
I can not believe you rode down the hill from Leysin to Aglie on your first day of boarding… that is crazy (mind you, you are a Kiwi). Your log is great to read, some of the new ideas you have come up with are neat.
I hope it is all going well for you.
Take Care
AJ
Rob,
Just out of interest were you into skateboarding when you were a kid? Have you actually done much of it until now?
I don't know HOW you manage to skate UPhill either…you are gonna be SUPER fit by the time you get to the UK.
Do you have knee and elbow pads?
Bitchen dude! hehe
@ AJ – Thanks for the message, Kea. I could hardly contain myself when the parachute idea worked! Now that's No.8 wire mentality for ya! Have fun there in Leysin with the kids.
@ Murdo – I was never really into skateboarding as a kid. I enjoyed roller blading when I was at Uni for a while. And I skateboarded to uni quite a lot. Skateboarding uphill is actually not that hard. When I swap legs in a rhythm, I can skate faster uphill than when I was on my bike. I do have kneepads and a helmet, but no elbow pads. The kneepads act a knee braces also, so that helps with tired knees…
Rob, Hi, I am an American, and I am a school teacher….. for real, we were just talking about you today. I hope that this adventure is more than you had planned for so far. You deserve the best. I really hope our paths cross one day again in the future. Praying for lots of downhill runs, rick
Thanks Rick. I will look out for you down there in Florida.
