Simple and correct.

Artfully expressed ... what goes on while the above is also happening .....

Luckily your spouse has the right priorities.

One thing have learned from (crashing while) mountain biking is to listen to my fear just a little.

If I am really afraid---even if it is a section I have run before---I will go slowly or go elsewhere. Sometimes the brain just isn’t ready ... and survival might demand 100 percent brain activation, and if you have ten percent fear, you will crash even if it is an easy section.

I expect to have to fight a little nervousness because I am not a brave soul ... so I have learned to balance and modulate my effort to suit my internal situation.

Cliff Notes version: Go a little slowly a few times and get some confidence back.

I generally watch the road surface most of all. I am not worried about bike failure---that is stupid, in real life bikes don’t just asplode---and I don’t fear a blowout—beyond my control, and unlikely to happen at any time anyway. Slow punctures are much more common and can be controlled (hopefully.)

I watch for sand, gravel, brush and leaves and such. If I relax I can roll right over or through anything I don’t have time to get around, but if I get caught off guard I might tense up.

This is the biggest lesson I learned from mountain biking---look Far ahead. It is easy and seems normal to look at what is almost under your wheels, but by the time you see the stuff ten feet away it is too late to react.

I always forget to look Far down the road.

It is like using your mirror s while driving. Of course you don’t stare into your mirror, but you switch from looking around, looking ahead and checking your mirrors.

When cycling I should always be looking long, then scanning the sides, then looking close to fully identify stuff I noticed while looking long .... When descending particularly I tend to look too close in front of me. I need more practice ... but on the other hand, that would mean climbing more hills. Not my forté.