Always Use TWO Hands

Earlier today, while I was out walking the dogs, I thought it would be fun to take some pictures on my ride across town today and post them as a little tour through the town.

My car was in the shop yesterday for a minor repair and I had to pick it up this morning. I dropped it off yesterday morning and rode this home.

It's a 4 mile ride from the shop to my house and it was enjoyable as well. Sun was out on the Columbia River and even on the hills in Washington!

Sun was out again this morning but there was still a chill in the air so I made more coffee and waited a bit longer for it to warm up so I didn't have to wear gloves.

Around 9:30 I had all my stuff together and was ready to ride. Even had a route picked that would take me up a bit for some good snaps of the area.

I lit out down the road and thought I'd take a shot of me on the scooter, to put the following shots in perspective, well, it didn't go as planned, that first shot xD

Here it is.

I was not going more than 5 or 6 mph but as soon as I took this picture I realized what a bonehead move it was to take one hand off a scooter that is moving.

The first problem, I quickly realized, was the road was a slight hill, so I started picking up speed. At that point I realized I could not move my left hand, even the finger, off the grip to pull the brake. I know, had I pulled the brake I would not have been able to keep the front wheel straight. When I say straight I mean wobbling back and forth but still traveling forward :(

So in the matter of probably a couple seconds I realize all this, all the while trying to stow my stupid phone without dropping it to it's death. I just need to get my hand on the other grip so I can regain my balance before the right turn directly ahead :D

Then it all happened at once, it seemed; phone slid into the pocket as I got my right hand back on the steering and pulled the brake to negotiate the turn 🎉

As I made the right turn I saw a car coming from the left that might have been a problem if I was a tiny bit dumber than I had just been. Phew.

I had a nice, uneventful ride to the shop with my phone stowed the whole time. I felt like such an idiot for almost crashing because of it that I didn't touch it on the way.