Sounds of the commute

I rarely pay much attention to sounds around me when I am bike-commuting, but this morning was different.

I roused thousands of little birds from their nests in a large stand of bamboo trees. The flapping and squawking sounds as they swarmed me was surreal.

I heard the roaring sound of an emergency electric generator being tested at a medical clinic along the Tobacco Trail. I wondered what it was the whole time I approached.

Out on the road again, I heard car engines revving furiously as they passed me in a tight clump, even though they were already on each others' tails and had nowhere to go.

Finally, I heard my bike tires squealing as they started slipping sideways over gravel fines in a tight left turn. That's when I realized I was riding way too fast, I was leaning way too far, and my pedal was grazing way too close to the pavement. Oh, and then I heard the sound of a car engine revving right behind me. Ah, the adrenaline.