Read Online Lion by Jeff Stone - Free Book Online Page A

going to cost you.”
    “Oh?”
    “I want to ride one of your handcycles.”
    “Is that all?” Peter said. “Come on, then. You can try one right now! I want to close this deal before you change your mind.”

We unloaded our luggage; then Phoenix, Jake, Peter, and I waited inside the garage while Hú Dié disappeared into the house. She soon reappeared wearing our new “team” cycling jersey and padded riding bib shorts, as well as new white socks and racing shoes. She pulled her long black hair into a ponytail and shook out her legs, stretching them. Her thighs rippled like the shoulders of a powerful feline.
    “You know you won’t be using your legs at all with this handcycle, right?” Peter asked.
    “Yes,” Hú Dié said. “I just feel a little stiff after the plane ride.”
    I rolled my eyes. She wanted to show off her muscles to Peter.
    Peter pointed to two cycles he’d lowered from the ceiling. Both were hand-powered trikes with three wheels, but one was low to the ground with two wheels in back and one in front, while the other was higher and had one wheel inback and two in front. The higher one also had knobby off-road tires and a seat that appeared to have long armrests.
    “Which one would you like to try?” Peter asked.
    “Both!” Hú Dié said.
    Peter laughed. “All right, but you can only ride one at a time.”
    “I’ll ride the other one,” Jake said.
    “Not before I get a chance,” I said. “He’s
my
cousin.”
    “You can all have a turn,” Peter said. “Let’s get Hú Dié squared away first.”
    “Thank you,” Hú Dié said, eyeing both bikes. “One is for off-road, and the other is for riding on pavement, yes?”
    “That’s right,” Peter said. “The low one with the single wheel in front is a road cycle. You sit in it like a regular chair. The higher one is a mountain cycle. See those things that look like armrests on the mountain cycle? They’re actually for your legs. You kneel on them. There is also a pad to rest your chest against.”
    “I will try the mountain handcycle first,” Hú Dié said. “I like road riding, but I enjoy mountain biking more.”
    “Sounds good. The mountain cycle is better suited for the crumbling asphalt of my neighborhood streets, anyway. I can’t wait for them to be resurfaced.”
    Hú Dié climbed onto the mountain cycle, and Peter strapped her in, binding her ankles and bent legs to the cycle’s frame. If she crashed, she’d stay attached to the bike.
    “You’ll notice the hand crank arms on this cycle are set a hundred eighty degrees apart, like on a regular bicycle,” Peter said. “Your arms will work in opposition, just like yourlegs work in opposition on a regular bike. You can lift yourself to absorb bumps by straightening your elbows slightly, just like you’d rise up out of your saddle on a regular bike by straightening your knees a little.”
    Hú Dié glanced at the road handcycle. “Those hand cranks are different.”
    “That’s right,” Peter said. “The cranks on that cycle are parallel with one another. Your arms go around in unison. Parallel cranks help you go faster over flat ground because you can really get your torso behind each revolution. However, cranks set a hundred eighty degrees apart are better for climbing because you’re providing continuous power. There aren’t any dead spots in your stroke.”
    “Makes sense,” Hú Dié said. “Where are the brakes, and how do you steer this thing?”
    “Both types of cycles have brake levers and gear shifters mounted to the hand cranks. To steer the road cycle, you turn the hand cranks like a steering wheel. On this mountain cycle, the chest support does the steering. You simply lean in the direction you want to go, kind of like riding a motorcycle.”
    “I understand,” Hú Dié said.
    “Ryan,” Peter said, “see if you can find the helmets in the smallest of those three boxes that came from Indiana.”
    I opened the box and tossed Hú Dié her