Any other Wu members enjoy biking? I have an old road bike I've been using for about 27 years. No really. Older than most of you mugs here which I got back when I was in college during the Jurassic Age.
Anyway I usually ride a few times a week when I have a chance and do 15 to 18 miles at a time. Longest ride I've done was a 40 mile round trip ride between two small towns in Texas: Weatherford to Mineral Wells on a biking trail. I turned my brother on to riding and he picked him up a fancy carbon fiber road bike for the price of a used car. We did a 28 mile ride a couple of weeks ago which about killed him. My aluminum frame bike has to weigh over 25lbs but I don't even notice it since I've been using it so long.
For longer rides I got a "Camel Back" which holds 2 litres of water which is a helluva lot better than reaching for the bottle. Usually pack a protein bar along with it for those rides.
Anyone else?
Posted by DeuceBigglo (Member # 1326) on :
Yeah i ride. When i was young the chopper was the one to have. I didnt have one. Anyway i have a gaint bike and ride about 15 miles on the weekend. it is great if only the weather was better in uk
Posted by Hal (Member # 3484) on :
LD, I have a couple of bikes. The best one being a vintage bike from 1924. It is an amazing bike from my grandfather. People always compliment me on it -- it even had a small hood ornament at the front but some idiot stole it. The bike is basically indestructable -- it is built like a Panzer from WWII Super heavy and durable with fat tires -- bikes like that aren't manufactured any longer today.
I live in the center of a large, old German city and I go everywhere by bike. I get to places faster by bike than by car because it sucks having a car here -- it is impossible to find a parking space, the streets are crowded or just one-way streets, etc. -- so very many people just use their bikes. It is totally normal for Germans to travel by bike and in most cities there is a great infrastructure for this.
I don't cycle for sport because I probably travel about 50 kilometers each week by bike, just going places on normal day routines.
Posted by Andy-Laa (Member # 31511) on :
Never even learned to ride a bike - I was more into rollerblading.
Posted by LeDaemon (Member # 198) on :
I did a 25 mile bike ride with my brother today. Three rides this week for a total of 60 miles. Feeling really good after this.
Where we live is NOT ideal for biking as a mode of transportation. Not very many roads have bicycle lanes and plus with the heat here in the summer you would smell so bad and be drenched in sweat by the time you got to your destination such as a job in an office you would be reviled by all your coworkers.
Posted by Hal (Member # 3484) on :
^ Yeah, I can understand about the smell
A friend goes cycling in the Alps twice a year. He says there are slopes where he gets a speed of up to 60km/h. Really crazy.
Posted by LeDaemon (Member # 198) on :
Top speed I've taken my bike going downhill was 40 mph or 64 kmph. I have a little wireless computer that tracks speed, distance, calories burned, etc when I'm riding. Its pretty intense going that fast without anything between you and the pavement except the little plastic/styrofoam helmet and everything is vibrating. One stone or pothole in my path could take me out easy.
Posted by DeuceBigglo (Member # 1326) on :
40mph. That is fast on a bike.
Posted by LeDaemon (Member # 198) on :
Looking at possibly doing a 40 round trip ride this Sunday with my brother depending on the weather. There's a town 20 miles west of me that we would hit, grab lunch and then head back. I'm good for it, but he is still fairly new to riding and it may be too much for him this soon.
Deuce, the 40mph speed was very brief and as I said was going downhill when I hit it. May have lasted 10 seconds before I just started coasting and slowing down.
![[Laugh]](graemlins/laugh.gif)
Super heavy and durable with fat tires -- bikes like that aren't manufactured any longer today.![[Wink]](wink.gif)