Pretty much everything you listed except the racing, well organized racing anyway. And I love how you feel after all the pain of a hard ride.

The only reason.

Adventure and exploration

And the feeling of freedom you have when you own a bike.. having the means to go wherever you'd like, whenever you'd like.

I don't.... I just post on BF.

Like my BF friends, Daytrip, Kerlenbach and others, I too am a cancer survivor. When I was diagnosed with male breast cancer in 2002, I decided that I needed to make some changes.

Despite the enegetic discussions regarding cancer factors, the point remains that you can only control that which you can control. I can't control my genes, but I can control my lifestyle, eating habits, etc.

To that end I decided to try jogging. I found that my brain was too small for my skull, resulting it that little bundle of gel bouncing around in that caverous space, giving me a headache! Add to that the fact that chemotherapy gave me peripherial neuropathy (my feet hurt all the time) and I needed to find a low impact form of exersize. Tread mills and stationalry bikes just didn't cut it.

I grew up in the semi-rural environs of Albany, NY, and I had a paper route. Biking was a necessity. I tried it again at 54, and I liked it. That was casual "sidewalk" riding on a comfort hybrid. Last year a 69 y/o buddy decided to do the Miami MS150. And he didn't ride. So we bought road bikes, joined a club, and started pounding pedals.

I don't know if these factors have had anything to do with my current cancer-free status, but my Dr is very happy with my cholesterol, weight, and other health related factors. All this might seem unimportant to you 20 somethings, but wait till your 50+ Better yet, don't wait until your are 50+ Keep active, eat right, live long.

That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.