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08-01-05, 10:21 PM
I'm a 45-year-old woman, 40 pounds overweight, and I LOVE cycling! I've been cycling all my life, although the amount has varied greatly depending on how often someone can take care of my kids. (I homeschool.) Right now I manage two to four times per week. My usual route is right out of my house, 8.5 miles. There is almost no flat land around here, but each time I conquer a hill I feel good! It's also very scenic. I live in a rural area of upstate New York. Even though I ride along "major" roadways, I usually don't encounter more than 3 cars in an hour. There are no tall buildings, so I see plenty of sky. My favorite time to ride is when the sun is just rising or setting. The sky turns all sorts of colors. When the sun is really low in the sky, all the yard-high grass alongside the roads turns golden, and I see the shadow of myself and my bicycle seeming to ride along in the grass. I almost always see deer, and sometimes turkeys, rabbits, and other wildlife. I nod my head at the people I pass, and they always wave back. When no one is looking, I'll sometimes wave my bicycle back and forth along the road, just like a kid. And I love to go fast down hill. I find that cycling is the perfect speed to see the world.
Right now I ride a GT Streamline bike. It's light blue. I had the bike shop put shields over the tires (I don't know what they're actually called) because I ride even in the rain, and otherwise I get a mud stripe up and down me like an inverse skunk! Sometimes I wear a helmet and sometimes I don't.
My cycling hero is even less your average cyclist. It's a woman in my neighborhood who is 83 years old and rides her bicycle every day, every season. Usually when it's below the 40's, I give up. But I've seen this lovely lady bundled up and riding the roads when it's in the 20's. (She's really sweet, too.) I have been organizing bike-a-thons for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital for years, and she's always there!
My other hobbies are reading, listening to talk radio, taking long walks through the woods with my dogs, and singing in a women's barbershop quartet. If I could, I'd add tennis and boating. I'm mostly a stay-at-home mom (youngest is 4), but I also do freelance writing and secretarial work. I'm happily married.
Right now I ride a GT Streamline bike. It's light blue. I had the bike shop put shields over the tires (I don't know what they're actually called) because I ride even in the rain, and otherwise I get a mud stripe up and down me like an inverse skunk! Sometimes I wear a helmet and sometimes I don't.
My cycling hero is even less your average cyclist. It's a woman in my neighborhood who is 83 years old and rides her bicycle every day, every season. Usually when it's below the 40's, I give up. But I've seen this lovely lady bundled up and riding the roads when it's in the 20's. (She's really sweet, too.) I have been organizing bike-a-thons for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital for years, and she's always there!
My other hobbies are reading, listening to talk radio, taking long walks through the woods with my dogs, and singing in a women's barbershop quartet. If I could, I'd add tennis and boating. I'm mostly a stay-at-home mom (youngest is 4), but I also do freelance writing and secretarial work. I'm happily married.