1. What type of bikes do 50+ folks ride?
I've got a 52cm Salsa Campion road bike with an all black 2x9 Shimano 105 group for faster road rides, a 52cm Pake fixie all blacked out as well just for cruising and commuting, a Monocog single-speed 29r setup for our local "no hills within 30 miles" off-roading, a Fisher Opie Free ride mountain bike for real mountain bike rides with real mountains, a Serotta T-Max mountain bike with all carbon/XTR parts that I use for commuting mainly, and a 20"x18" Santana Arriva tandem that I actually built back in 1988 while I was working for them. Most of my bikes have two or three wheelsets shod with different tires/spoke counts for training or faster rides, and I've been car-free for the past 10 years.


2. Do you take any special supplements/vitamins/minerals as you have grown older?
Ginseng, green tea, multi-vitamins, B-complex mostly.....


3. How much do you feel you have "slowed down" if any?
Sure, I've slowed down a little. But I use to do 12-15,000 miles a year and now I average 4-6,000. I still do 100 mile days once in a while and commute at least 15-20 miles daily, but as I've gotten older I become a little less "driven" and I spend more time enjoying the moments.


4. How long have you been biking? New, around a while, biked all your life?
All of my life. When I was young I road motorcycles and bicycles because I hate cages, and now I mainly ride bicycles because I enjoy the journeys more. Still hate being caged in though.....


5. What type of biking do you do? Long rides, touring, short rec rides.
Long days mainly on the road, short rides with friends, commutes.....



6. How often do you bike? Your approximate annual mileage?
Every day. 4-6,000 miles a year plus 20-30 miles of recreational walking per week.


At 54 I still ride mainly for recreation and daily transportation because cycling allows me freedoms that driving just insulates me from. As I've structured my life to be car-free, I've found myself much more satisfied and enjoying my life more, and I avoid traveling by car as much as possible. I'm not really an anti-car zealot, but I enjoy my days more when I spend them on a bike.