Your Favorite Thing on the road?

[mimitabby]

did you ever hear the sound of a single leaf racing along the ground... in front of you? It makes a cool noise. And it's nice when you can pass that leaf too.
(it was windy yesterday)

I also love trains in the distance, that's a nice sound.

and the rarest of all (to me)
a donkey bray.

[Susan126]

I love the sound of my husband's breathing ahead of me and the sound of birds singing in the meadows that I bike past. I love the sight of Mount Rainier in the distance cheering me on.

[Brandi]

The sound of the wind wooshing past my ears....
And the sound of the meadow larks....they have a wonderful song.

[TsPoet]

Not a sound, but...
In the summer there are often kestrels on the wires on the worst, most dangerous part of my ride. I can't look at them much as it's a 2 lane 50 mph busy road with no shoulder, but they are heart warming none-the-less.
In the winter when it's dark on the same stretch of road, bats often buzz my lights and I really enjoy that. I don’t see the bats in my car and I’ve never seen them buzz a car when riding my bike, not sure what’s special about the bike to them.

[Tater]

I get a kick out of watching the seasons change. The fields I ride by I see the short sprouts of spring, the full grown plants of summer, the harvest and then the same field covered under a layer of snow.

I enjoy hearing the geese honk as they pass overhead, hearing the distinctive sound of a mourning dove taking off, and seeing the quail scurry off the side of the road.

I also like NOT hearing my chain. If I can hear my chain as I pedal, I know it is time to dig out the rags and clean the drivetrain.

[five one]

I have a route that takes me past several reservoirs. This year the water level is extremely low, but in the past, when riding by them in the early morning, the mist rising up off the water is beautiful. If I get out early enough, there is little traffic, so all I hear is the sound of my tires on the road, my breathing, and the occasional bird or scolding ground squirrel.

We have a lot of sycamores in town. The leaves are quite large and they are falling at a rapid rate right now. I love the crunch my tires make rolling over them as I ride along.

I love watching the hills nearby slowly green up as the rains begin. I'm hoping for a lot of rain this year, but only between the hours of 9 pm and 4 am. And none on the weekends!

[Eden]

I love the crunchy sound (and the smell) of dry leaves in the fall! I'll even go out of my way to run over a particularly good one....

As with a lot of other people, one of the sweetest sounds is when it is quiet enough that all you hear is your own wheels, disc wheels on a TT bike make an awesome sound!

[RoadRaven]

My favourite thing to see? So hard to choose. I love to see my partner beside or in front of me - it gives me such a thrill to be doing "stuff" together still (we were married 22 years over the weekend).

In a race/ time trial though its being able to see the person who started in front of me get closer as I catch them.

My favourite sound? I'm with Eden on this - and Brandi and Silver too I guess. I love the sound of my bike - although especially in a TT when its me and the road, and realising it is me driving this amzing machine forward.

And something no-one has mentioned... the scents... I think that is something that makes cycling unique and really puts you in touch with your world... the smell of hot asphalt/tar/concrete, rain on warm earth, freshly mowed lawns, fruit blossom... the scent surrounds you and fills you and I love that (except when I pass the pigs up the road!)

[Eden]

Smells are one of the brains most powerful triggers for memories!
I actually miss the smell of rain on hot pavement.... We get a lot of rain out here, but mostly in the colder months. It rarely rains when it is really hot (even in the summer if it rains it seems to cool off considerably first).

I can't smell jasmine without thinking about Spain - orange blossoms smell sooooo much like it and we were cycling through orchards of the trees on our first day there.

For some reason cocoa butter reminds me intensely of Christmas (odd huh!) I cannot remember exactly what smelled of it, but I do associate the smell with the year we went to Florida over my Christmas vacation. I was about 8, I think and I got a Merlin (a little electronic toy) as a gift, and a sheet of puffy stickers, one of which was a snake that I stuck on the toy. I feel like its a strange, random thing to remember so intensely......

[Tuckervill]

I love the crunchy sound (and the smell) of dry leaves in the fall! I'll even go out of my way to run over a particularly good one....

That's what I was going to say!

I spent many an hour of my child- and teen-hood swerving down town streets just to crunch the leaves.

Karen

[short cut sally]

Early morning rides are the most peaceful. Cool air, little traffic, and being able to enjoy the sounds of all the wildlife, birds singing, squirrels chattering, geese, or the occasional turkey or pheasant off in the distance. I agree, I love the smell of the leaves when they've blanketed the ground.