Why have I waited 20 years ?

mark.astell

After putting the love of my life (my "10 speed racer") under the wheels of a Ford Escort after taking a corner slightly too fast, I took a longer than expected "break" from cycling.

Well, last night, for the first time in 20 years (I'm now 37), after the arrival of my Giant SCR 2, I hit the roads again !

I'm still grinning from ear to ear :P I can't believe how strange it felt but at the same time all so familiar.

I know I'm hooked again already.

So, any advice for a returning 37 year old wanting the legs, lungs and bodyweight of when he was 17 ?

And, 1 quick question, who's moved the gear change levers ?

Bronzie

mark.astell wrote:

And, 1 quick question, who's moved the gear change levers ?

Welcome back................and welcome to the forum!

That reminds me of when I was running the new fangled Campag Ergo levers on my best bike and downtube shifters on my winter hack. Forever putting my hand in the wrong place when I switched between them. :roll:

No short cuts on getting your fitness back to a reasonable level I'm afraid. Lots of riding and making your legs sore is all it takes.

songwriter

Hey I'm 33 and everything you said I agree with. Halfords put my bike together and off I went until the gears bamboozaled me. I went back to ask where the gears were and I would have never guessed where they were had they not told me.

Was you as wobbly as me at first on your new 21st century bike?

Enjoy your new hobbie. I intend to.

DavidBelcher

Bronzie wrote:

That reminds me of when I was running the new fangled Campag Ergo levers on my best bike and downtube shifters on my winter hack. Forever putting my hand in the wrong place when I switched between them. :roll:

I stiil make this mistake when swapping between the winter road bike and the race bike! Just to complicate matters, my 'cross bike has an ordinary brake lever on the l/h side (with a bar-end control for the front mech) and a Chorus Ergo for the r/h....

David

Rich Hcp

Just build your fitness steadily.

Best thing is to enjoy it!

cumbriamike

After putting the love of my life (my "10 speed racer") under the wheels of a Ford Escort after taking a corner slightly too fast, I took a longer than expected "break" from cycling.

Well, last night, for the first time in 20 years (I'm now 37), after the arrival of my Giant SCR 2, I hit the roads again !

I'm still grinning from ear to ear I can't believe how strange it felt but at the same time all so familiar.

I know I'm hooked again already.

I did all the above as a mere lad of '49' after moving to Cumbria this summer. Apart from the odd day when my body remembers its age its been brilliant. Cycling round Ullswater from Pooley Bridge on my SCR 2 on a warm summers evening (we had one or two) takes some beating.

Crapaud

Bronzie wrote:

That reminds me of when I was running the new fangled Campag Ergo levers on my best bike and downtube shifters on my winter hack. Forever putting my hand in the wrong place when I switched between them. :roll:

I came back to cycling from driving. For the first 2 weeks I was always looking up to the left to check my rearview mirror. :oops:

Welcome, mark.astell.

giant_man

Ah yes takes me back and I know exactly where you're coming from mark. And those STIs eh? Where did they come from lol?

Take care on the roads and above all, enjoy your riding cos at the end of the day that is the most important thing.

mark.astell

Hi everyone, just a quick thanks for the warm welcome.

Ride 2 last night. It was windy and lashing it down with rain, a perfect evening for a spin ! God, how I absolutely loved it Drenched, rain dripping off my helmet, grinning like a fool.

I've already learned one lesson, the difference between "lights to be seen" and "lights to see with". A sudden lack of cars on an unlit country lane and then total darkness left me wondering were the hell the road had gone.

At least that's the bike properly christened

The Giant's sat in the hallway at the minute, as I was setting off to work this morning I said, "see you later sweetheart", the wife said, "see you later", I replied, "I wasn't talking to you !"

NFMC

But why haven't you cycled to work?

Once you understand the joys of cycle-commuting (fitness, lack of stress, cost, convenience - usually) then you'll never look back!

mark.astell

That's a good point about cycling into work considering I got the bike through the cycle2work scheme :oops:

Santa's bringing me a new lock and some mudguards so the commute to work will start in earnest in the new year.

That's my excuse anyway, I really want to a least get some level of fitness before I cycle into work. Sitting at my desk red faced and exhausted as the office call the paramedics would be sooo embarrasing

NFMC

Fair enough!...there's plenty of info on the commuting pages about the logistics of how to get in to work and what to do with your suits and stuff.

I commute pretty much every day by bike and I love it. I'd seriously think twice about taking a job (even if it was a great job with more money) if I had to go back to sitting in a car for x hours every day.