Not my best day…

So, this morning, I got up and went for my daily run/walk.

I cut it short because it was just so freaking hot and humid. Then I got home and tried to fix an issue with my iTouch (you can read about that in my previous post), I bricked it.

So, after Sunny left for work, I stepped outside and thought it was much cooler than it was this afternoon, so to de-stress a little, I decided to finish my run from this morning.

Figuring that without my iPod I wouldn't be getting credit for my run on Nike+, I decided to switch it up a bit and take my bike out instead of going for a run.

First Mistake: I needed pockets to carry my house keys, etc, so instead of wearing my nice light running shorts, I put on a pair of jeans.

Second Mistake: Not taking into account I was wearing a black T-shirt.

The route I took, and this is something else I didn't realize, was pretty much downhill out, and uphill back. So for the first two and a half miles, I wasn't really exerting myself, it took nearly no effort to just turn the pedals to keep the bike at a nice constant speed. At his point I was thinking: "Hmmm, it's a lot hotter and more humid than I thought it was…and I really wish I was wearing my shorts and a nice, thin white t-shirt instead of this thick black thing I have on."

Then I hit an uphill section and it suddenly went from a pleasant ride to a hellish slog. I checked my heart rate…it was 150. Ten more than when I've been going at a dead run for half a mile.

So I hit a short downhill section and I decide to get up as much speed as possible for the big uphill I could see coming. I stood up on the pedals, started pumping for all I was worth…and just when I was pedaling as hard and fast as I could…my fucking pedal fell off.

My foot dropped, hit the road, which nearly threw me off the bike…and I spear off the road, narrowly miss a tree and nearly end up going arse over tit into a ditch.

I ended up at the side of the road having nearly shit in my pants…wondering how the hell I managed to not end up scraping my face along a hundred yards of road.

I walk back, fetch my pedal and realize there's no way I'm getting it back on without any tools.

So at this point, I'm drenched with sweat, out of breath and my heart is pounding in my ears…partly from the exertion, partly from the fact I'd just been within an inch of soiling myself in terror. Add to that the small matter of suddenly finding myself in a real blood-sugar crash.

Luckily, I was less than half a mile away from the gas station…and I can imagine what I looked like when I walked in there, red faced, breathing heavily, hands shaking, covered in sweat trying to buy a chocolate bar and two bottles of pepsi.

"HUUURRRK IJUSTWANNA…HURK…PAYFORTHESE….HURK….PLEASE…."

For the first time since I've lived here, the person on the other side of the counter didn't comment on my accent or ask where I was from.

Then came the fun part.

After sitting outside the gas station eating my snickers bar and drinking my Pepsi and waiting for my blood sugar to return to normal…I got to push my bike the two and a half miles back, mostly uphill, while my nice thick black T-shirt and jeans clung to me in the 90 degree heat.

It nearly got worse when I got back to my road when three, count em, three of the neighbors dogs came running over barking their heads off…deciding I was on their patch. Luckily, I'm not afraid of dogs and know how to handle them. I stopped dead, and when they came over and I started with the "whhooosaGOODboyden?" they looked confused and then their tails started wagging. I got a canine escort to the top of the drive

I got back to the house, dropped the bike, collapsed through the front door, drank my bodyweight in water…and slumped in front of the air conditioner.

I learned my lesson. If I can fix the bike, I'm not riding it except for early in the morning when it's cool…and only when someone is at home and I have the cell phone with me.

The only upside I can see is that I'm not still trying to get home with a broken leg…or lying unconscious by the side of the road.

So how was your day?