It’s been over a month now since I started to bicycle to work. I feel much fitter, perspire less and enjoy the ride more now. The enjoy part is mostly because I gave the chain some much needed cleaning and lubrication, recently. I also adjusted the gears so I can now shift to a better gear ratio when needed. So, how exactly do I do on the bike? I used to think that I was pretty good in India, but out here, is a completely different story!

Just the other day, I was pushing pretty hard on an uphill section and was feeling pretty good about myself, when a bicycle came up from behind and shot past me like I was stationary! The guy looked like a serious athlete and I consoled myself that he was a professional. I’d barely covered another hundred yards when there was a zzzip! It was a balding middle aged guy on a shiny new sports bike! Ah, that bike must have cost twenty times what I paid for my humble bike, I told myself , but I didn’t feel half as bad then as I did a couple of minutes later! There was the sound of crunching snow from behind me and a flash of faded blue and orange shot past me! It was a granny on a rusty basic bicycle without even gears!! Man! Being in a country where people take their fitness as seriously as they do in Sweden does frame your own fitness levels in a rather harsh perspective!