The air is still cool and damp with dew as I roll my bike out of the garage. I stop to take a deep breath, and my lungs recoil from the sudden chill. Everything is quiet.
It is hard to get my legs to respond in the chill as I push them up the first grade on Frisbee Hill, and the 28mph descent sends a shiver through my whole body as the air passes through my jersey. My peace is broken by a group of Canadian Geese overhead, and I do my best to keep pace with them as I make the turn onto Manitou Rd. Hearing the rooster already crowing up ahead, I know I am a bit off pace this morning and need to pick it up as I make my way onto Burritt Rd. I make sure to give a hearty "Good Morning" to the girls taking their morning bath in the stream as I zip by.
As I near Zarpentine Farms, I see that the top of the giant tee-pee is already basking in an orange glow, and I shift up to give myself a few extra mph's down the Burritt Rd straight away. Crossing Rt 259 I am still working to stay ahead of my riding partner, but I can tell by the length of the shadow laid out in front of me that he is gaining fast. Up the final rise on Burritt, I can see the left turn for Hill Rd ahead of me. I feel the burn in my legs starting and I notice that the chill is gone from my body. 
Once on Hill Rd, I continue the sprint to do everything I can to beat him to the top of the hill even though I can see by the beams breaking through the trees that it is hopeless. Cresting the hill I see that he is already there, and realize that today I will not be the first of us to the top. But, as I sit there a moment, warmed by another amazing fall sunrise, I think about how alive I feel. How everything seems right with the world, and how I cannot think of a better riding partner than the Sun that chases me every morning.
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