'Tis the Season...

 No, this is not me, but it should be on Thursday.

...for NOT breathing through your mouth (or nose) while cycling!

Wow.

I normally like to write this blog languishing in a pool of my own sweat (just to keep me in the mood). But today, I had to run straight upstairs and into the shower - I was covered in little creatures.

Every couple hundred yards along the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railway Trail, I hit a very large swath (swarm? collection? herd?) of gnats.

Gnats that stuck to my arms, face, and clothes. I  must've ingested enough of the little suckers to abrogate the need for a post-ride protein shake. By the time I got home, I looked like a 200-mile summer roadtrip windshield in serious need of a squeegy.

At one point, something much larger than a gnat (a big fly or bee) struck me in the face, directly in the nasal septum. I'm telling you, a half centimeter to the left, or a half centimeter to the right, and that sucker would have been firmly lodged up a nostril.

Other than that, the weather was perfect!

I listened to music this time, instead of a book (last time I was riding I listened to The War of the Worlds). I went all the way down to 200 N in Kaysville, about an 8-mile round trip (plus I rode to the Freeport Center post office before starting on the main ride). So, 50 minutes total.

It was pretty tough coming back, since it is a gradual uphill all the way home. Had to breathe through gritted teeth to avoid inhaling the bugs. I must've looked like a maniac huffing and puffing along the trail with a bizarre grin on my face. (That reminds me, I should probably floss...)

When I got home, I shook the bugs off my shirt, and they flew off, likely oblivious to their dramatic relocation. The ones that had stuck to my skin were dead, drowned in a salty fluid. The ones in my hair - well. I ran my hands through my hair, shaking vigorously, and released about 50 gnats.

I'm certain when I blow my nose about 400 gnats will fly out (I'll let you know the exact count).

My sunglasses need a good scrubbing. Next time it'll have to be goggles.

And next time, I'll want to go train-robber style (wearing the bandit scarf across my ventilation holes).

Other than that, it was a good ride. Felt good to be back in the saddle (literally). Not good on my butt, just good in an "I'm making a good choice for myself" kind of way. Truth is, I feel pretty horrible physically, because I worked out again for the first time in a very, VERY long time yesterday. After running a mile again. SO sore.

And I've been eating much healthier.

I think, maybe THIS time, will be the time that I lose all that weight I need to lose. Here's hoping.