Pedal Like There's No Tomorrow

This post is born out of fear.

I rode my bike from AUP to AIIAS today, after the Adventist Youth program we had at the Psychology Department. Although it was pretty dark already when I reached the shortcut (18:00) it was supposed to be one of the ordinary bike trips I make now and then.. I was feeling pretty confident too, because of my so-called "Grade1™ aerobars" and the fixed brake system.

Anyway, I was riding through Pooc, feeling the control and speed. Passing through the built-up areas, where there were many people passing by , was no problem. However, I also had to pass through a stretch of road that had no streetlights. The few houses that I would pass by on that stretch can be counted in one hand. Aside from a house, it was either a bunch of trees, a field of pineapples or a coffee plantation.

I don't know, maybe some dogs just don't see enough passers-by to stultify their curiosity.
But this one dog just started to chase me. He kept it up for a pretty long time. If his goal was to just to scare, he definitely succeeded.
I will tell you, I was scared.
I forgot about "steady and consistent speed."
I pedaled like there was no tomorrow. My legs were turning those pedals fast. Really fast. But the dog was fast too. Really fast. He was inches from my rear wheel. I was maintaining the distance for quite some time (because the road was flat), but there would be a small bridge and a steep ascent ahead. Fortunately, I didn't feel the rubber-muscle feeling of lactic acid buildup (thanks to adrenaline). And even more fortunately, there was this incoming vehicle. I bet that vehicle scared the dog as he scared me, so he stopped the chase.
He finally stopped the chase. I rode through the bridge and up the ascent shaken and, this time, feeling the rubber legs.