Newbie in Fort Worth
 

Howdy. I'm Scott, and I'm new to the forums and not quite as new to bicycling. but not an old hand either.

Las year, I was just starting to get serious about losing weight. I was down from 352 to 309 and I was having trouble getting enough exercise because my leg and hip pain kept me from being able to walk more than 1/4 mile without a break. I pulled the kids' last 2 department-store mountain bikes out of the garage and fixed them up so my wife and I could start riding. I ended up getting a different bike from a pawn shop for my wife. We found that I was able to ride much more than I could walk. I set some goals for myself including doing the Hotter'nHell 100 this year.

After lots of diagnosing and physical therapy, we finally discovered the source of all my pain. I had a broken L5 vertebra and have had it for 34 years. My spine was finally falling apart and sawing the nerves apart. September 2nd, I had lumbar spinal fusion to fix it.

With the complications I experienced after the surgery, I gained back some of the weight I had lost. I also lost a lot of training time on the bike.

This spring, I finally got the OK to get back on the bike. I got road bikes for me and the wife. I bought Windsor Wellington 3.0s for both of us. For those of you who don't know BikesDirect.com bikes, that's an aluminum frame and carbon fork bike with Sora components.

I got interested in Bikeforums because of the Clydesdales and Athenas forum. I've lost some of the weight I put on after the surgery, but I'm in the high 280s up from the 270 I weighed before the surgery. I'm aiming for 200. I'm not going to make it to the Hotter'nHell this year, but I'm planning to next year.

See you on the trails and roads. Be careful out there!

Welcome to BikeForums.
Glad you finally got off the kids bikes and got bikes that fit. :thumb: And I think most everyone here knows about BD. They're one of BikeForums advertisers and dozens (if not hundreds) of folks here have bought from them. They offer decent bikes for those who don't have bags of money. ;)
Good luck with the weight loss. The C&A folks can offer lots of help and advice.

What side of town are you on? There are several BF people, bloggers, etc., in Fort Worth. We'll have to get together for a ride sometime.

Howdy, Scott! Welcome to BF.

(Coincidentally, my wife & I arrived in Fort Worth last night. We're here for a big anniversary party.)

Enjoy the ride.

Howdy Scott, I'm Scott too. Also a new member here.

Just wanted to say good luck with your health and future weight loss goals. And congratulations on your recent bike upgrades it'll definately raise the enjoyment level of your riding.

Scott