As fast as a truck

This is a two-part story. The first part happened while I was still in college. I routinely took a long ride on my bicycle in the evening. It was about a ten mile ride if I remember correctly. My route followed a major river and I was riding for the enjoyment of it as much as for the exercise. You can't ride a bicycle for long, though, without having a run-in with a dog who likes to chase bicycles. But I would hear them coming and speed up until they gave up. But this one day, I ran into a wily one. I didn't know anything was wrong as I leisurely rode along until I heard someone shouting, "Stop! Rover [I don't remember the actual name], you come back here!" I turned my head in the direction of the yelling and saw a medium sized dog running after me faster than I'd ever seen a dog run. And he wasn't making a sound! In the act of turning my head, I slowed down and he was gaining even faster. So, I turned straight ahead and pushed with all my might. I turned the crank as fast as I could and then switched into a higher gear. I was afraid to turn around for fear of slowing down again and allowing my chaser to catch me. But after a while, I wasn't sure how long I could keep the pace up so I decided to take a quick look hoping it wouldn't slow me down too much. Just as I turned, he finally started to bark at me and it slowed him down enough that I knew I would be able to outrun him. What a relief. I learned two lessons - 1) dogs don't run as fast when they are barking, 2) looking behind you slows you down.

The second part of the story takes place about seven years later. I was riding my bike to work every day back then. At this point I was riding about ten miles each way. Now I was on my way home and I wasn't just riding along at a slow pace. I was anxious to get home and get something to eat. This day, I heard a dog barking as I often did on these roads. I pretty much knew all the dogs along the route and I could outrun them all. This one, though, wasn't in the usual place. Ah - a vacationing dog looking for a little thrill to tell his friends about back home. I ignored one of my lessons by looking around to see where my pursuer was coming from. I didn't see him and wasn't even sure he was chasing me. I picked up the pace a little but I wasn't worried. He was barking, after all, and I knew barking dogs couldn't run all that fast. But there was something wrong here. This one was catching up to me! I could hear him getting closer. Fast! I really stepped it up. There was no time to think about it. Use the lessons you've learned in the past. Keep your eyes forward. Keep your legs pumping. Look ahead for obstacles in the road so you don't get a surprise. I was in much better shape now than I was seven years ago and I was really moving. Yet, the dog was still catching up to me - coming at me like a truck.  I could hear him getting closer. I was getting desperate and didn't know what to do. In the last seconds, I decided to turn to see my attacker so I could brace for the impact. I turned my head - just as the pick-up truck with the barking dog in the open bed passed me. I learned another lesson that day. You can't pedal as fast when you're laughing your head off.