Sixty Fiver

Cycling is never that hard... no matter how far, how cold, or how hot it is.

Used to put down close to 16,000 km a year and ride almost every day so nearly half of that was winter cycling, I can only recall a few bad days and that was when it was 40 below zero and have had enjoyable rides at even colder temperatures.

My mom used to be so impressed that I rode 50 miles to see her... she was the woman who walked everywhere, often held down 2 jobs and kept several gardens to keep us fed, and worked late into the night sewing clothes for us or mended other people's clothes to make a few extra dollars.

Most of us have no idea what tough is.

Dave Cutter

I am an old retired guy... so I don't really get to commute. I ride 2000 miles a year and accomplished my 2k goal early (in October) this year. To be honest I was thrilled to complete the last 15 miles of my goal in the rain.

Booger1

Riding a bicycle is not that hard compaired too...OH?....Dragging your wagon over the Rocky and Sierra Nevada Mountains in 1850....

kickstart

You reminded me of something my grandfather said. Being Born in 1882 and living his whole life in Maine, many things we take for granted didn't exist or were uncommon until his late 20s. I don't remember exactly how he said it, but it was basically," life in the old days was tough, people weren't tougher, they just didn't know anything different and suffered in silence like everyone else".

I think the difference is we know it doesn't have to be that way.

irwin7638

There is all sorts of possibility for conjecture and opinion, but the final argument will eternally be answered by Rule #9.

Marc

cobrabyte

So we've established that by 19th century standards, riding in foul weather doesn't make you a very tough person. By 21st century standards, if you ride in the winter, you are the toughest dude on the block.

jralbert

A lot of people are focused on the 'hardship' aspect of this, but I think the toughness that comes from daily cycling is a bit more nuanced than that. I ride every day in part because it makes me a more useful human being: I am able to transport myself everywhere that I regularly need to go with very minimal reliance on external assistance. My daily functions are not subject to whether the bus will be on time, or the cost of gas, or road conditions - I can be responsible for my own business, which I think is a key trait of capable, successful people, and one I perceive as rapidly dwindling in the developed world.

Like everybody else here, I've had coworkers say that I 'must be tough' to be riding on any given day, but I don't see it that way: I'm just continuing to develop myself. All the stories people have mentioned here about their impossibly tough ancestors are impressive less for the physical prowess they suggest than the sheer dynamism of people who, confronted with hardships, just developed and adapted themselves to overcome them. Daily riding has adapted me: made me healthier; stronger; capable of longer endurance; less fazed by external factors like weather, darkness, traffic; and more self-sufficient than I could have been if I'd continued driving to work and struggling to make it to the gym twice a week. Toughness is an aspect of that adaptation, but it's not the whole story.

mcours2006

^^Well said^^
Couldn't agree me.

beastonabike

Here Here!!!! and I just realllyyyyy like to ride

Sixty Fiver

Rule #5 is also fairly important...

El Cid

I like to think of myself as a bit of a tough guy; I shrug off aches and pains that would give others pause, and handle extreme temperatures pretty well at both ends of the scale.

In my life I've had two broken bones and one serious burn, none of which slowed me down for long. But when I had an infected tooth a month ago, it just turned me into a small child again. I found myself in the ER, tears in my eyes, begging a doctor for help because I didn't know how I would even survive until my dental appointment.

Hypno Toad

Well said!

I had a funny exchange last night that fits into this thread; I stopped on the way home from work to get a hair cut. The women working there couldn't get over riding a bike in the dark, in the snow, at 10F, etc. I asked them if they know anybody that snowmobiles in the winter, or downhill skis, or crosscountry skis, or snowboards, or jogs, .... Of course they know people that do all of these things on cold, dark, winter evenings. But somehow to ride a bike in these conditions is different.

What is truly tough; getting people's mind rapped around the idea that a bike isn't just a "summer toy". Riding a bike in the cold and snow isn't tough.

Double0757

Quote from one of our airplane mechanic:

"When your stupid you got to be though! The dummer you are the thougher you have to be."

We we all have some stupid in us, or better said some toughness.

Daniel4

How tough as in how much physical pain we can endure cycling and in our daily lives? Or are we able to endure mental and psychological challenges as in 4 hour negotiations or cross-examinations like Bill Clinton?

I do have a high threshold for pain.

I remember when I was a much younger and in Vancouver, I'd bike and wipe out everywhere until I put on toe clips. I would wipe out on the railway tracks at the back of Gastown. I came home with scrapes all down my left side.

In one of my first cycle rides around Toronto in the mid 1980s, I wiped out on the street car tracks on Queen's Quay. As I lifted my head, I saw a bunch of cars coming off the highway and headed straight for me. I dragged my bike and myself off the road and collapsed on the sidewalk.

Only a few years ago, when I got back to cycling again, my leg cramped up. I rode home 12km, twice with cramped legs.

But all of this is during a time when we didn't have to go through these types of agony. Olympic athletes do these things all the time. In times past our ancestors must have endured all sorts of pain and agony because they had to. Think of all the famine, wars, diseases, and natural disasters our ancestors throughout history had to endure so that we are all here to talk about ours.

tougher

My nickname says so