I kept the relationship on the cool for about a year. Everytime I went into ACE Hardware I'd keep our visits short, as sincere as they could be, and of course, as superficial as any kind of relationship one has with material objects. It was always a surprise and a relief to me when I'd walk into ACE and still see her sitting there. My best friend would tell me about who would come in to look or ask questions about her. She was my unspoken spy and guard during her shifts at ACE Hardware. She was a protector of my heart, not wanting it to be crushed by somebody snatching her away without warning.
After about a year of saving my pennies and creating a strategic financial plan I walked into ACE on March 26, 2008 and became the proud owner of the Jamis Xenith Team road bike I had had my eye on for so long.
Shortly after purchasing Jamis I was informed that a customer had been coming in for a couple days in a row to look at the bike and had asked many questions and even called the morning I purchased the bike to see if it was still there. Everything fell into place on that particular day for me to purchase Jamis and at the predetermined time a dream of mine came true.
The day after purchasing Jamis I double checked my bank accounts to make sure everything was in order. When I discovered that my bank accounts were not in order I quickly called Angie to explain what had happened and to try to get it figured out. While on the phone with Angie her boss (and owner of ACE) beeped in asked Angie what was going on because the account at ACE was messed up too. Fear was instilled in my heart when the thought of having to return Jamis to ACE came into my mind, but Angie reassured me that wasn't necessary or even an option. But the fear still lingered.
Angie, being a manager of ACE, had the responsibility of helping this situation get straightened out. So, the following day Angie and I spent several hours trying to reverse what had happened and get it straightened out. Option after option after option failed. It felt like we hit brick wall after brick wall after brick wall. But we were determined to resolve it. When we finally did reach a solution, the only solution, that would work I was hesitant to proceed because of its costs. The solution meant Angie paying for half of the bike on her credit card. And under the circumstances that was a huge sacrifice on Angie's part. Placing myself in her shoes I know I would have done the same thing for her in a heartbeat. And having the deep trust and abiding friendship that we do I accepted her sacrifice for me with the understanding that I would repay her. What she did meant the world to me and she became even more a hero to me that day than she already was. Realistically, without Angie I don't think this could have been resolved so all parties were happy. She was a hero to me and a hero to ACE for her skills, knowledge, and determination.
Jamis, being a specialized bike, didn't come with pedals but my sheer joy of finally having my dream in my hands was worth the wait of getting pedals. After researching and looking at several different types of pedals I finally made my decision and made the trip to Idaho Falls to purchase them. Never having any experience with clip pedals I was a bit hesitant and had some fear of purchasing them. I heard and read of the difficulty and injuries that come from getting used to clip pedals. I decided to get a versitile pedal; one side of the pedal had a clip and the other side was a normal flat pedal. I was very happy with this decision for it allowed me to have the option of which way I wanted to ride depending on the ride. With the flat pedal I could just jump on anytime without having to gear up. And with the clip pedal I could take my time to learn how to ride with them without it holding me back from riding freely.
With the pedals finally purchased I was anxious to put them on and take my girl for a ride. But at the same time as the purchase of my pedals my mom came into town to help me create my room into a fantasy suite and that took first priority.
Finally, after more than three weeks from the purchase of Jamis was I finally able to take her out for our first ride together. I must admit two things though. First, I almost didn't want to take Jamis outside of my house because she is too beautiful to get dirty, but on the other hand wasn't going to let that pretty penny go to waste by having it become a decorative feature. And second, I had a little bit of fear inside of me to ride Jamis because I had never really ridden a road bike before. I was very comfortable on my mountain bike, but when it came to riding my road bike I was a little bit scared.
I spent all morning Friday morning preparing for my bike ride. I pumped up the tires, put on the pedals, installed an odometer, filled up my new North Face 100 oz. camelback, packed my tools and emergency supplies in my camelback, and dressed in my new biking gear. I was ready to go! I carried my bike outside and began my ride as my roommate wished me good luck (after making a sly comment about my spandex pants)!
I slowly rode out of Parkside Townhomes as I got a feel for the bike. I crossed the street onto a residential road and picked up speed. I had an immediate connection to Jamis at that point and my biking addiction quickly came flooding back to me! The ride was so smooth and so light. I felt like I was gliding above the ground. Excitement filled my heart with each rotation of the pedals. I couldn't stop smiling. It was a new experience and a new feeling. I loved it! Angie was right on when she said it is a really nice ride.
I kept to the side and residential roads on my bike ride. My first destination was the Nature Park. The weather was moderate for riding, cool and a bit windy, but the smell of rain was in the air and was so refreshing to breath in! It even sprinkled a little bit on me while on my ride which was a tender mercy as it brought back a memory of a previous bike ride in the rain.
Since the wind was blowing a bit, about 14 mph, I had planned on wearing my sunglasses so my eyes wouldn't water excessively, but shortly after I started riding I realized I had forgotten them. Not wanting to turn around and get them I continued onto the Nature Park. After riding around on the trails at the Nature Park I took a picture of myself with my bike with the duck pond in the background. It was when I looked at this picture that I discovered that I hadn't forgotten my sunglasses after all. They were on my head!
Yep! There they are - right on top of my head! Along with my sunglasses I am wearing my new spandex biking pants and blue biking shirt, both gifts to me by Angie. You can't see but I bought yellow butterfly biking socks that I wore too. And to top the outfit out I am wearing my light weight Chaco shoes (which make the world go 'round). With my biking gloves, mp3 player, and my North Face camelback I am set to go! (Well, almost. A helmet might be a good addition. But no worries, it's coming).After riding around the Nature Park for awhile I aimlessly rode around the side streets of Rexburg before heading home making my ride a total of 7.2 miles. There were no close calls or near death experiences like I seem to have occassionally on my bike. Everything was great about the ride, except I longed to have my riding buddy right next to me. But other than that I loved every minute of it and soaked in the memories, tender mercies, and new experience this ride provided me with. It was almost love at first sight and it keeps getting better and better.
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