15 Days After

My first ride since the accident. I was a little nervous. 2 reasons really. 1: A mental concern. What would my frame of mind be like as I rode again. Ever since the accident I wondered If I would be very timid or super-careful my first time out. I always thought I watched out for myself very well. Looked for potential dangers and tried to avoid them. Would I be too careful? Is my newly enhanced suspicion of all cage drivers going to affect my ability to enjoy the ride? 2: A physical concern. I am not entirely healthy yet. My shoulder has healed very nicely, still a bit sore, but range of motion is good and it feels strong again. The hip is another matter. It feels like every muscle attached to my hip is pulled and sore. The soreness gets better each day, but the improvement is very slow and very frustrating at times. But I no longer have to hold myself up against furniture or walls and can walk, albeit slowly, without the aid of a crutch or other device. I still walk with a bit of a limp and cannot walk very fast at all. But my scooter, Max, had been at the dealership ever since the accident and it was time to get him home. He started right up and ran beautifully all the way home. I think he survived the accident better than I did. He has some scratches and a bent turn signal bar, but otherwise he is ready to go. As I headed out, the traffic was not real heavy, but normal for a Saturday afternoon. Lots of people were out doing errands and other things. It was a bit windy, some small thunderstorms in the area. But otherwise a beautiful afternoon. I was also excited to wear my new helmet for the first time, my first full face helmet. I was a little surprised how the helmet quieted the ride. The purring of the engine was still very noticeable, but other sounds were a bit more muffled. As I rode on I was very conscious of how other drivers behaved and was very aware of the relative positions of other drivers as I went down the road. But I did not feel the need to be extra cautious and actually felt quite comfortable. The only problem I had while riding was putting my left leg down when I had to come to a stop. It was a bit sore when I did that, but not excruciating. Some thoughts occurred to me regarding a fellow blogger with an arthritic hip and the pain he must experience at times. As I rode I actually became more interested in the differences in the ride that the new helmet made. I was a bit concerned that my field of vision might be more restricted, but really did not find that to be the case. The quietness of the helmet surprised me a bit. It also seemed to catch the wind more than my old helmet. It was certainly heavier than my old helmet. So far, I like the new helmet very much. The route home was very similar to my route home from the office so the streets were all very familiar, just some new road repairs in a couple of spots. My wife had dropped me off at the dealership, intending to stop at the grocery store on her way home. I spent a little time with Lloyd at the shop as we checked a few things out on the scooter and took a few pictures. I arrived home just after my wife did. She didn't say so before dropping me off, but when I got home she said she was worried about me riding, for the same reasons I was concerned. But the ride was enjoyable and rather uneventful, which was just fine with me. In fact, today the physical concerns were probably more important to me than the mental concerns. But over time I think the physical concerns will go away almost entirely as I eventually heal. The mental concerns will stay with me a bit longer, and maybe never completely go away. It will become a part of a learning and experience process I think. The ride was about 7 miles. Maybe not a great ride, but definately a good ride! It was good to feel the air again.