Clearance Strike

I stepped clear of the tree basin onto the textured sidewalk slab. Ahead, an empty flattened beverage can lay discarded near a concrete expansion seam. Three paces short of it sat a dense, dried chestnut husk. Reliable mass. I aligned my shoulders with the gutter edge, setting my left pivot foot on the scored pavement line. I drew my right leg back, locking the knee angle, and struck the husk dead center with my instep. The husk skipped low across the concrete, glanced cleanly off the can's concave rim, and lodged into the pavement crevice. Target hit. Transit lane verified.