In Tandem: A Bicycle Built for Two

 

Tandem Ride Across the Golden Gate Bridge

We arrived in the Bay Area where we will be for our summer break (well it is break for my son and I and work for my husband).  This is my second extended trip to the area and last year I called it my  "Ironman Training Camp", but this year, I will just call it "Triathlon Summer Camp".   When we were driving through the desert, hills and plains to get to the water, the temperatures ranged from the 80s to the 100s peaking at 106 and we were questioning how this could be as we are here to escape the heat.  Apparently there are usually 10 very hot days each summer in the East Bay and we just happened to arrive on one of them.  The very next day was in the 60s and 70s.  In the city, it is usually in the 60s and they don't call it the windy city for nothing!  My first morning run was on the Ironhorse Trail which connects all the towns on the East Bay was a pleasant confirmation of the reason we are here, for the cool cool weather.  I managed to get a 2 hour run in to explore sections of the trail and find the closet aquatic center.  Then my son was anxious to visit the city (my husband corrected me when I said let's go "downtown" and told me they call San Francisco "the city") so we hopped on BART and headed to the city.  We learned how to purchase and use our tickets and found our way to the Embarcadero on Market Street.  We ate lunch on the water (a very pricey lunch in the city) and strolled down the piers toward Fisherman's Wharf.  We passed the venue for the American Cup which takes place July through September and passed by a few museums.  My son spotted a submarine museum, so we took a quick tour.  It is one thing being trapped in your mind during a long swim in the open water, but the thought of being on a tiny tubular vessel in a tiny room shoulder to shoulder with 75 other comrades would make me go out of my mind (not to mention they were on the vessel for 80 days without a shower!).  I will stick to swimming on top of the water where I am free to pee wherever I like and I can move away from my fellow triathletes by swimming faster. 

Next we found bikes to rent from "Bike and Roll" one of the many companies that loan bikes out for a small fee to ride over the Golden Gate Bridge.  My husband and I wanted to ride a Tandem and my son was adamant that we should not try it because it would be hard to handle (not to mention, we might embarrass him in the process).  We decided to try it anyway!  They forgot to tell you that tandem means riding one behind the other in sync with your partner.  This means that the two parts must work together for the greater good of the whole.  My husband took the front seat and I the rear as the more powerful cyclist should lead.  This also means he should communicate with his partner.  This was going to be a good exercise in teamwork for two very independent people who like being in control.  The front person should drive, steer and call the commands to his partner as well as warn the other people on the road of his intentions.  He should call what side that he is dismounting and mounting from as the bike cannot lean in both directions at one time.  The rider in the back had to give occasional reminders for communication strategies.  Besides the front guy forgetting to call out what foot to put down or when he was switching gears and the back rider almost falling off or losing her footing on the pedals, it was a delightful ride on a bicycle built for two.  We had to work together to get up the hills and to maintain an upright position on the very windy bridge.  In the meantime, while we were trying to stay in sync, we lost our 13 year old on the bridge.  He was up ahead of us and we never saw him actually get on the bridge, nor did he wait for us.  The winds were so powerful and we grew rather concerned about where he was while we were being blown around over this rough body of water below.  Contact was finally made by cell phone as he was waiting for us on the other side.  We proceeded to a cute little seaside town called Saulsalito and hopped on the ferry back to Fisherman's Wharf.  Sometimes a slow scenic ride is just what the cycling doctor ordered.  Eight miles on a tandem through tourist traffic by foot and pedal can be just as exhausting as a century ride.  What a great way to sight see and get a different perspective of something that looks so grande.

My desire for ocean swimming came to a screeching halt as we traveled back on the ferry.  The water looked very uninviting and rough and that old question popped in the back of my mind "WHY".  Hopefully I will not start asking "WHY NOT?" as I think I am just fine with lake swimming and pine trees over white caps, sharks and jelly fish.  We returned out bikes and I had a conversation with one of the guys that worked at the bike place about Ironman because he saw my IMAZ sweatshirt and he handed me his triathlon business card.  He said he just moved to the area and took this job so he could have weekends off to race.  He will be volunteering at Vineman and I told him I would look for him.  My husband looked at me in amazement as once again, he witnessed the connection between triathletes around the globe!  Even know TRI means 3, we are all 1!

We got another bite to eat and listened to some jazz music and then took the long walk back to the BART and headed to our new temporary home in Walnut Creek.  It was most fun to see my son experience city life and try new things from food to riding a bike over a bridge to riding BART to walking to get everywhere!  In some ways it is just like being in a giant amusement park.  I know in a few weeks, I will desire solitude again, but I think it is important for kids to experience different lifestyles so they can choose for themselves where there place is in the world.  It is nice to experience it in TANDEM.