Clydesdales/Athenas (200+ lb / 91+ kg) - New member, new bike and 1st ride report

Hi all,

Great forum and I found some usefull information here when shopping for a new mountain bike so thanks. I just bought a Specialized Hardrock Sport last weekend at my LBS. I also bought a new Burley trailer to tote my 7 month old daughter around in. I haven't owned a bike in about 7 years since I sold my Specialized FSR Comp mountain bike (decided to buy a new canoe and used the money for that).

Since selling that bike 7 years ago I have gained about 60 lbs. Part of that was getting married and caring less about my appearance but I have been pretty lazy the last few years. My wife convinced me to buy a high end elyptical machine this winter and it was $4000 :twitchy:. I used it daily for a couple of weeks before getting off it for a day or two and havent gotten back on.

The new bike is great. I've pulled the trailer around the neighbourhood a couple of times and our baby seems to like it other than any big bumps so I have to be carefull about that but we are hoping to get a lot of use out of it this summer. I went out on Sunday with a friend for a 90 minute trail ride on some nice single track trails in a local park. Most of it was not too technical and pretty dry but I hopped a few small logs acoss the trail and climbed some steep hills. Loved the bike!! My rear was quite sore and I am thinking about a new saddle better designed for a 6'3" 280 lb guy but overall I liked this mount a lot. My last bike was full suspension but heavy and slow. The hardrock feels better despite being a cheaper bike.

I mounted my gps on the handlebars so it was great to see the distance, speed and other info. There is something satisfying about going back afterwards and downloading the track into my computer so I can see exactly where I was riding along the side of a creek.

Anyways... great forum and tons of activity here based on all the new posts and responses. I also just went and ordered some t-shirts from Twin Six after reading about them on here - cool company and even ordered a onesie for the baby!

Cheers!

Great to have you here. You know, I wouldn't ditch the elliptical machine unless you really don't plan on using it any more. I commute 4x a week by bike and I find that on my off days or just to change things up a bit, I hit the apartment complex' gym to use the elliptical machine. It's a nice break from the usual of just cycling and walking my dog.
Glad to hear you're enjoying the new bike!

Welcome aboard. Glad to hear you're enjoying it :)

You're going to be saddle sore for a while - it took a good couple of weeks before I started feeling remotely comfortable on mine. If you're going to get a new saddle make sure you get your 'sit bones' measured properly by your LBS. A wider saddle isn't necessarily the right choice even though that may feel more comfortable at first.

Welcome!!! :beer:

The FSR comp was a good bike! :eek:

I did soemthing very similar 4 years ago...you went the right route with the gear, and the Burley for the little one.

My daughter and I did over 2000 miles together with that set up -- got her into biking, great daddy time and a chance to give mom a break (or enough to slow me down if she wanted to come with us).

We had one accident with that set up -- biker coming the other way on MUP skidded out in a corner and i came off the bike avoiding him. May daughter was fine -- crying because she was scared but intact and upright in the Burley. in a seat that would have been scary.

I'd recommend getting her to wear a helmet from the get-go, and make sure her neck control is sufficient that the doctor says it's ok. that way she won't complain about wearing a helment when she gets bigger becuase she'll know it's what you do when you go biking.

Enjoy