Bicycle,bicycle, I want to ride my bicycle....

What could be better than a warm sunny day on a bike?
Well a lot, but it's up there with everything that makes me happy.

Biking is still on my "can do" list. (Happy dance!)
I'm not partial to where I ride, to me it's freedom and it's wonderful.

I love the adrenaline rushes I get from riding in downtown rush-hour traffic, especially in the financial district. Something about trying to get to my destination with craziness surrounding me makes me feel full of life. I have to be quick on my toes and ready to react in a split-second. It's also fun to be the girl on the little bike making it through the intersection before anyone else in a car does.

Going fast makes me feel like I'm flying. I can feel the wind on my skin and my body moving faster by my own power that I wouldn't otherwise be able to do on my feet.

Riding alongside the water is refreshing and comforting. The air smells different (yes it has a smell and it's lovely), it is cool and sometimes crisp. The plant life surrounding the water is vibrant and lush. To me there is nothing more comforting than water. Anything from paddling to taking a shower makes me feel whole. I will go into the shower with a lot of thinking to do, and come out with solutions and the confidence to get started. Paddling... don't get me started. To me, the world is a better place when I'm on the water. Anyway, just imagine feeling like you're flying past the thing that makes you feel whole. Getting off the bike to sit by the water, or to get in is even better.

Paths and trails are also a favourite of mine. When there's a trail, you can relax, zone out a bit and enjoy what the surroundings have to offer. The thoughts of traffic can be put on the back-burner and you can just go. You're not forced to keep at a certain pace, and there are lots of opportunities to stop and go whenever you please.

Biking offers the freedom to choose what we want to do. Something that doesn't happen often with EDS. I can choose the direction I want to go, the intensity at what I want to ride, and I can stop and relax whenever I want. It allows me to be more mobile than I can sometimes be on my feet. It's also low-impact and one of the very few things that don't make everything sublux and dislocate.

When I went looking for a new bike there were a lot of things to take into consideration. I ended up with one of those small folding bikes. Yes, it looks like it should be on the Pee-Wee Herman show but it works well for me. The wheels are small, which means I can pick up speed with less energy, it's light, there's no cross-bar in the middle which means I won't sublux my hips when getting on and off and it's just a lot easier to get in my apartment. I've had to make some minor modifications to my bike as my needs have changed. Different seat, put on different handle bars and cut them down so my shoulders wouldn't dislocate, not having the seat as high as I should to avoid hyper-extending my knees. I also moved the gear shifter, and bell so I don't mess up my hands. If I could only find a way to make riding in the winter easier.

"If everything is under control, you're not going fast enough"

(Mario Andretti)