The better angels of our nature
I'm feeling a bit down on myself about something. I'll save the navel-watching that's about for another day. But I'm giving myself a pat on the back here for two small things that I've realized I'm proud of myself for doing.
I was driving home a few weeks ago from some errand. I passed a group of cyclists stopped by the side of the road. I recognized one of them as a maniac I used to ride with. He's utterly insane as a task-master, pushing me beyond comfort levels. He was great when I was training for triathlons. He makes me wince and flee when I'm not. I drove past - he didn't see me, I didn't wave or anything. But as I drove past, my mind evaluated the scene: three cyclists, three miles from the shop they parked at, NOT bent over a tire. In fact, one had her helmet off and was holding her head. Something was wrong.
Half a mile up the road I turned around and drove back and swung around to be on the same side of the road as them. "Anyone need any help?" Yes. It was over 90 degrees out and one of the women was feeling dizzy and disoriented. She had signs of being overheated and was starting to decompensate. Bob introduced her to me and told her I was a "fair offer", whatever that means. I put her bike in my van, gave her some water and turned on the air conditioner and drove her back to the shop, making sure she drank and warning her to get cool.
I saw Bob last week-end and he gave me a hug. I think I may have been someone's angel that day.
This, by the way, is exactly why I'm taking the Wilderness First Responder 70 hour course. I *am* the sort of person who stops when something doesn't look right. It'd be good if I had a better idea of what the right thing to do is.
The reason I saw Bob last week was because we were both volunteering at the local triathlon. I volunteer to work in the transition area because, as a sometime triathlete myself, I know what the athletes need. I showed up holding my good bike pump and held it over my head and asked if anyone needed air. Yes. I helped a lot of people. As mutual aid I'm allowed to help get wet shirt-backs pulled down in T1, I'm allowed to throw someone their number belt over the fence as they dash out without it in T2.
And I provide counseling services. I heard a bike tire pop during the swim and went searching through the entire transition area until I spotted where it was. I left my air pump next to it and went to consult about the limits of mutual aid. Bike Bob told me categorically that I couldn't touch the bike. (Later a USAT official said I could, but I believed Bike Bob.) When the swimmer came in I broke the bad news to her. She said she had a tube but couldn't change her own tire. I told her that this would be a good time to try. She said she couldn't do it because of arthritis. I told her that she'd likely be really mad at herself the next day if she didn't at least try it. She might fail, but DFL beats DNF beats DNS. She owed it to herself to try. Otherwise it would just be an expensive early morning cold swim. Then I walked away. This was between her and her.
She thanked me later, after she finished.
I'm mad at myself right now for screwing something up and not getting a job done. I just needed to remind myself that sometimes, though, I'm an angel.
I was driving home a few weeks ago from some errand. I passed a group of cyclists stopped by the side of the road. I recognized one of them as a maniac I used to ride with. He's utterly insane as a task-master, pushing me beyond comfort levels. He was great when I was training for triathlons. He makes me wince and flee when I'm not. I drove past - he didn't see me, I didn't wave or anything. But as I drove past, my mind evaluated the scene: three cyclists, three miles from the shop they parked at, NOT bent over a tire. In fact, one had her helmet off and was holding her head. Something was wrong.
Half a mile up the road I turned around and drove back and swung around to be on the same side of the road as them. "Anyone need any help?" Yes. It was over 90 degrees out and one of the women was feeling dizzy and disoriented. She had signs of being overheated and was starting to decompensate. Bob introduced her to me and told her I was a "fair offer", whatever that means. I put her bike in my van, gave her some water and turned on the air conditioner and drove her back to the shop, making sure she drank and warning her to get cool.
I saw Bob last week-end and he gave me a hug. I think I may have been someone's angel that day.
This, by the way, is exactly why I'm taking the Wilderness First Responder 70 hour course. I *am* the sort of person who stops when something doesn't look right. It'd be good if I had a better idea of what the right thing to do is.
The reason I saw Bob last week was because we were both volunteering at the local triathlon. I volunteer to work in the transition area because, as a sometime triathlete myself, I know what the athletes need. I showed up holding my good bike pump and held it over my head and asked if anyone needed air. Yes. I helped a lot of people. As mutual aid I'm allowed to help get wet shirt-backs pulled down in T1, I'm allowed to throw someone their number belt over the fence as they dash out without it in T2.
And I provide counseling services. I heard a bike tire pop during the swim and went searching through the entire transition area until I spotted where it was. I left my air pump next to it and went to consult about the limits of mutual aid. Bike Bob told me categorically that I couldn't touch the bike. (Later a USAT official said I could, but I believed Bike Bob.) When the swimmer came in I broke the bad news to her. She said she had a tube but couldn't change her own tire. I told her that this would be a good time to try. She said she couldn't do it because of arthritis. I told her that she'd likely be really mad at herself the next day if she didn't at least try it. She might fail, but DFL beats DNF beats DNS. She owed it to herself to try. Otherwise it would just be an expensive early morning cold swim. Then I walked away. This was between her and her.
She thanked me later, after she finished.
I'm mad at myself right now for screwing something up and not getting a job done. I just needed to remind myself that sometimes, though, I'm an angel.