National Chocolate Eclair Day

According to Facebook and verified by Google, today is National Chocolate Eclair Day!  My immediate thought ... Pack up my desk and work virtually from Bouchon Bakery in Yountville where they serve a vast array of tasty pastries, including, but not limited to, Chocolate Eclairs.  And so, with the beautiful weather taunting me ... That's just what I did =)

En route to the bakery, however, I took a detour to the site of my 2007 cycling accident.  I hadn't been back since 2008 when I completed the ride that was abruptly cut short.

Exiting the freeway and making my way through the narrow and windy roads, it was as if weights were suddenly being stacked on my chest; I found it difficult to breath.  But I couldn't identify what I was feeling.

I parked my minivan at the turnoff just past the portion of the road where I crashed (in the pic, it's after the bottom shadows).

I took some time to walk up the hill and back down noticing the sharpness of the turns, the steepness of the hill, and the width of the road.

I recalled the exhilarating feeling I had flying down the hill and thinking what an amazing ride it was.  I remembered making that last turn and immediately knowing I was going to hit the ditch ... and closing my eyes ... and so I closed my eyes for a moment.

With my eyes still closed, standing on the side of the road, it was as if I were watching myself ride down the hill coming out of the turn.  I tried to figure out why I wasn't able to stay on the road. Too fast?  Too wide of a turn?  Momentary loss of focus and concentration? Lost in a moment of feeling like I was flying? Probably all of the above.  I had been careless.

I opened my eyes again, just staring at the spot where I landed almost 4 years ago. And I offered up a short prayer of thanksgiving to God for sparing my life that day.