Living Car Free - A pleasant suprise for me!

I started working at my LBS part-time a few weeks ago. Today as I was getting ready to head home, I noticed a Lycra clad customer standing with his shiny road bike and an old commuter outside the shop looking dubious. I asked if I could help him, and it turned out that he had borrowed a bicycle to use while his was being tuned up and now had two bikes he needed to get home. He was only about four miles out of my way, so I offered to tow the second bike with my Ute. I warned him that I would probably be a bit slow for him, especially towing a bicycle, which he was fine with (obviously). Well, we got under way and low and behold, I had to hold my speed down for him. There I was, in my jeans and tennis shoes, on my big honking cargo bike hauling another bike while he looked like he was ready for some big road race. I'm overweight, so I was genuinely surprised when a fairly fit-looking person who actually does ride regularly couldn't keep up. I suppose it goes to show that you can't really guess a person's fitness level by their appearance.

I ran a half-marathon a few years ago. I'm a fairly fit, pretty thin guy, and finished under 1:40, but at the last mile I got passed by a 75 year old man and a young woman who appeared to have a very high BMI. It's completely true that you can never tell a person's fitness until you see them in action.

There's an old dude who rides around on an English Roadster-type bicycle here in town. He sometimes wears a WWII vet hat and sometimes a Tyrolean hat with a long pheasant feather in it, and his walker strapped to the back of the bike.

He's dropped me so many times I don't even try anymore.

Looks can be deceiving...I fall into that category, 50+ and slightly overweight. I am not fast but I can keep up a set pace for hours on end, whether cycling or walking.

Years ago when I still did club rides we had a 72 year old lady that had a Raleigh Super Tourist equipped with Northroad bars, she would crank along all day long at 15-17mph, put most of the racers to shame, they would go out fast, and she would pass them at the first rest break and they would never catch up. :D

Aaron :)

Cool story and good karma for OP...

...but... I personally try not to draw too many conclusions about somebody based on appearance or if they are riding a bike instead of driving a car... ;) hehehe

... and his walker strapped to the back of the bike....

Ouch! That's rubbing salt in the wound. That's cool that there are people out there like that.

Nobody has ever dropped me. Because I've never seen anybody even riding the same direction. I very rarely see riders going the other way. The way they are killing us off in Polk County, Oregon this year makes me doubt that will change.