Keep Calm and Pedal On

A tense encounter — and a reminder to stay vigilent on the bike trail

Photo by Pixabay from Pexels

I didn’t like the look of them. Two Guys, skulking down the bike path. I could smell the cigarette smoke off their bodies, even though they weren’t actually smoking. They were older, maybe fifty, with greasy hair and sagging clothes. As I biked past them, I saw the one guy’s face — freshly cut in several places, a bandage pasted over his cheek. He looked like he’d been in a fight.

“Afternoon,” I said.

“Hey, there,” they both answered, jutting their chins.

I wouldn’t have cared. Their walk, their business, their lives. I was on my bike, they were on foot, and they would soon fade into the leafy backdrop.

But I wasn’t alone. My son was bringing up the rear, pedaling along on his miniature mountain bike. He had just learned to balance a couple days earlier, and he was still slow and unsteady.

“Beautiful day,” I said.

“Yeah,” the Two Guys grunted back, grinning cryptically.

We rode onward, and I was relieved to leave the Two Guys behind. But my son kept stopping. He wanted to rest. He wanted to take in the scenery. He had never ridden so far on his own, and he was…