Tween season is here. The snow is melting and the mud is advancing. The ride's gone from winter storage to mud room.
Yup, it's cycling time.
I'm dressed like I'm going cross-country skiing but I'm not. The hat's under the helmet, the socks are fleece and fingers are covered by gloves. It's early riding time in the Mount Washington Valley.
I exit the soft dirt road for pavement and it is glorious. I pass the frozen lake and soon enough it's time to cross over the frosty Saco River. The river, she's running. But the huge boulders are still covered in snow telling me that winter's grip will remain for a bit.
Then there she is: Mount Washington. The mammoth is beautiful, decked out in white, her bridesmaids pretty but not as radiant. That's the barometer in this parts. When you can't see the snow from the North Conway area you know summer is here.
Summer's a ways away, but not spring. It's here and my backside reminds me that sitting on a chairlift is more comfortable than those first few miles on a bicycle. Still, it's a joy to be out. Ride today, ski tomorrow. Ride in the a.m., ride the board in the p.m.
That's tweening.