pastorbobnlnh 

Came down from the attic after enduring 35 miles on the trainer. I also clicked off my 1300th mile riden this year. Quite an accomplishment considering I rode >250 in 2004, >150 in 2003 and next to none for 20 years prior!

I have to admit I caught the bug before I discovered BFs' 50+ but you guys kept me going even though I'm 2 1/4 years shy of 50. 50+ encourages where the other BFs tend to have a bite and like to brag a little too much. Here it's all about riding! Thanks for the inspiration!

Bob

GrannyGear

PastorBob......Congratulations on your "come back".....lots of us here are ComeBack, ComefromBehind, ComefromNowhere or just find ourselves coming a little late to the party. But we are here nonetheless and probably enjoying ourselves with more vigor, pure pleasure, and surprized-by-ourselves excitement and appreciation than many of those younger BF'ers you refer to. Humility coupled to (forgivable?)justified and justifying Pride! I sense material for a sermon here!!

jppe

35 miles on a trainer! My Goodness!!!! That is absolutely incredible. You MUST have been listening to some tapes of your most inspiring sermons because doing 35 miles on a trainer would take a LOT of inspiration. What a way to end the year.....

stapfam

I will reinforce that 35 miles on a trainer. I cannot sit on a Gym bike for more than about 15 minutes before the butt ache begins- boredom sets in, and I look for an easier route- normally onto another machine that I find more comfortable. Even on the spinning class, where the bikes have a lot more adjustment, I may not get as uncomfortable, but the boredom sets in and I can't wait for the 45 minutes to end. If you can manage 35 miles on a trainer- just think how far you will be able to go when the snow melts, the sun comes out, the roads and trails dry out and you can get out on a proper bike.

Well done and you have just proved to me that you have a lot more mental strength than I could ever have, (And a stronger butt)

pastorbobnlnh 

Thanks for all the accolades! I actually have my 26 year old Schwinn Traveler (a 10 speed) on a fluid trainer. Between the attic and road I've managed to ride over 900 miles on it since I started Jan 1, 2005. I watch action and Sci-Fi films on the VHS while I ride in the attic. It helps--- but it still takes mental will power, especially after 40-50 minutes.

Bob

P.S. Yes! The butt does hurt and I usually take a 2-4 minute break every 10 or 15 miles.

will dehne

I just came back from Florida biking 1000 miles in 10 days. Now it is back to a Trainer. I was looking for inspiration to work up to a Century/day on a trainer. So I found this thread.
BTW I use Beethoven symphonies to get my mind off the monotony. That works for me. One other trick is to juggle HR, cadence and speed in some kind of interval to break the boredom.

BluesDawg

Hats off to pastor Bob on the accomplishment. It must take a lot of dedication to stay on the trainer for that long.
I've finally set up the new trainer I got for Christmas (Kurt Kinetic Road Machine). Between the unseasonably nice weather and the fact that I had to rearrange a spare bedroom/storage room to make a place for it, it kept getting put off. I have the bike facing a TV and DVD player connected to my old stereo (the good one). I'll be working my way through a huge collection of unseen DVDs and my CD collection to try to keep me awake as I ride through the winter.
I rode for 15 minutes last night and for 30 tonight. It seems odd that anyone would refer to work on a trainer in terms of miles, particularly to combine trainer miles with real road miles. I don't see the similarity. To me, the road is distance and the trainer is time. Not to devalue the time spent on the trainer. It is definitely hard work, harder than some rides. I'm glad I have the trainer and I think it will help me go into Spring in a lot better condition, but it's not riding miles.

pastorbobnlnh 

BluesDawg,

Miles are miles, they just come from different efforts. For instance, on the trainer I have no hills--- either up or down and of course no wind. But--- on the trainer I pedal at 20 mph for 45-60 minutes, and I don't let up. There's no possibility for me to repeat that on the roads here in the NH mountains. The other problem I have is that I can't ride outside from mid November until late May. If I didn't ride the trainer I'd be in lousy shape in early June. So I count the miles!

Bob

P.S. I lived in Conyers, GA for 10+ years. I don't miss the congestion but I do miss the warmth!

Raketmensch

I think something must be wrong with me... I actually >like< riding on my trainer. It's not as good as riding outdoors, of course, but I look forward to it, and my usual trainer session is about 75 minutes long.

People complain about the boredom, but the lack of intellectual stimulation is actually part of what I like about the trainer. It's mentally relaxing. I just put on some loud music (very up-tempo, to keep the pedal cadence up), put my head down, zone out mentally, and crank. I get to the end of a long workout and I feel mentally refreshed, physically drained, and very glad I did it. It's one of the high points of my day.

Is there anybody else out there who likes riding on a trainer?

pastorbobnlnh 

Welcome to the forum. As you see I didn't wait until I was 50. It's ok for me to ask for forgiveness! I like my trainer--- but I'd rather be out on the roads any day. But since I live nearly 1/2 way to the North Pole, that greasey mix of ice, sand and salt that covers our roads from late Nov until sometime in April, makes riding outdoors a challenge.

Bob

jppe

You two are truly amazing-and I suspect there are even more folks out there are just as diligent. I think the most I've ever done on a trainer was 45 mins. Maybe if I were in PastorBob's climate I would also be so inclined but it sure would be a big adjustment. You guys deserve some sort of an award!

Then again I did go out last night and ride laps for 2 hours on a 1 mile loop and wound up with 40+ miles so maybe that's not much different than being on the trainer???? However, it wasn't too hard to concentrate as there were probably 50-75 of us riding on streets that were not well lit, just inches off each others' wheels and one little miscue would have resulted in a huge pile-up.

will dehne

You are not alone. I just did 1000 miles on a bike path in central Florida in ten days. That experience was not all that much more inspiring than a trainer with a view over a golf course, great music, great food, great quality of water as compared to worries about dogs, kids, crossroads and how to get decent food.
The hills in Wisconsin or Minnesota is another story. I cannot wait for spring.

abm1213

The bike path is in Central Florida. You racked 1000 miles in 10 days. How, may I ask, did you do this? I can only imagine riding back and forth and back and forth and back and forth... is that what you did?

Raketmensch

I wish I could lay claim to being amazing or even diligent, but the fact is that I simply find it mentally relaxing. I think is works for me kinda the way that meditation works for some people. Just put my head down, pedal hard, and go "ommmmmmmmmmm..."

will dehne

It is the "Withlacooche State trail" from Citrus Springs to Trilby. It is actually 92 miles so you must do a little more to get a hundredth miles.
The reason for this craziness is that I am not experienced in touring for very long distances.
I have done back to back centuries many times but never over 1000 miles in one go.

I have decided to do a 3000 mile cross country in April 2006. So I needed to find out what happens if you bike over 1000. Well I found out. Sore spots between legs and nutrition problems.

Yes, going back and forth is not very inspiring but still a challenge if you do a 1000 miles.