The Bicycle Experiment 2.0

So, almost exactly a year since the original bicycle experiment, I’ve found a new object of lust (the subject of the conversation experiment did not return my feelings, as it were). My odds of ensnaring him are rather low, but he is rather flirtatious online.

I’m getting ahead of myself.

As a result of a few drinks with some of my bike shop friends, I somehow agreed to join the shop’s cyclocross team. Of course, I had no idea what this agreement meant, but let me tell you that cyclocross is a level of pain/crazy reserved only for the most masochistic. Going as hard as possible in short intervals, while still needing the stamina to last the full race and maneuver around tricky curves… Yeah, you see where I’m going with this.

I’d go to practices for the shop team on Mondays and then found out there was an open clinic on Wednesdays. I met riders on other teams. Despite the competitive nature of the field, everyone was super-friendly and offered …