I smoked from age 16 to 30. Gave it up many times sometimes for up to a year and always went back. I just enjoyed it. I quit cold turdy at age 30. It took two things for it to happen. #1 found out I was going to be a dad and #2 cigarettes went up to 1.50 a pack. I would like to think that it was primarily the child thing, but I am a cheap *******.

I personally loved my Uncles outlook on quitting smoking. He was a lifelong smoker who at age 60 found out his wife wanted a divorce. He decided as long as he was going to be miserable might as well be miserable and not smoke. He has not touched one since.

Cough, cough, cough, hack, wheeeeeeeeze,
Hack, hack, patooie, cough, cough.

Huh?

The other day I was out riding when it was about 10 degrees F. I opened the garage to bring the bike in and stripped off my coat. I was steaming. A little old neighbor lady was walking by and asked me why I was smoking? I told her that I quit smoking 7 years ago.

I don't think she got it...

I gave smoked on and off since i was 16 and someone handed me a ciggerate and i thought it was a joint (i was at a heavy metal concert) I go long periods of time without a smoke. I don't have a very addictive personality. I'll go buy a pouch of tobacco (drum or bali shag) smoke it then not smoke again for a long time. tailor made smokes are expensive in chi-town (7 bux a pack) so i don't even touch them except when i leave chicago.

certain activities like reading and editing video i connect with smoking I find it helps me focus or sometimes after a long day it feels good to come home and have a beer and a smoke.

everything in moderation, even moderation.

on my last tour i didn't smoke at all, heavy physical activity and smoking don't go hand in hand. Thats probably why i smoke more in the winter.

anyone ever smoke mugwart? its a legal herb the enhances dreaming. you can smoke it or make it a tea. it smells good too. A good way to replace on toxic substance with another less toxic one. plus for me hand rolling smokes is half the fun of smoking.

started at age 12, progressed to 2 soft-pack 100's, menthol (nu-port) or pall-mall, or bugler, or kite..a day..untill last attempt to quit.
that was 1991, and cold turkey success at age 31, 18 years ago!
i tell myself that i still want a smoke, but know that the first will be RELAPSE, so stay clean!
if you are contemplating, go for it! find the method that works for you!!

Holy smokers! Didn't realize there were so many... I used the patch both times I quit. I have had slight urges the past year or so but never went back. I cant stand spending the money. I used to roll tops or smoke whatever was on sale. My favorite were Parliaments. I like the cardboard filter. Don't know why though. I smoked Marlboro Mediums a lot too cause they were always buy 2 get one. At that time I was up to 2 packs. I'm glad I quit though. Less &*(@ I spend money on. Oh yea... I can breathe better too.

Always one of the best cigarettes of the day was after surfing.

I've never had a smoke in my whole life. Never saw a reason to smoke... It seems pointless and stupid to me. Sorry if I'm offending anyone, but that's what I feel.

I've smoked since I was fifteen. Still do. Wish I'd never started. Though, to be sure, when I was growing up, most everybody smoked. And contrary to popular belief, this country wasn't founded on or for political or religious differences—it was founded and grew on tobacco.

I'd be a hell of a cyclist if I didn't smoke, but I do and it doesn't seem to to hurt me that much (at present). I keep up and can lead pace lines and can generally ride further/faster than an awful lot of my non-smoking friends. I rode a few days through the Appalachians this Summer with a fella my age (51) and we were equipped pretty much the same. He was a health freak; didn't smoke, drink or have any vices and would work out. It used to tick him off that I'd be waiting at the top of a climb for him having a smoke. Then again, his comfort zone was so narrow that I'm surprised he ever got on a bike to ride across country or even ride with me as long as he did.

What bugs me is some peoples "holier than thou" attitude towards smokers. If I'm not making you breath my smoke then please don't go out of your way to criticize me. Happens quite a bit. Somebody's gonna catch me at the wrong time on the wrong day one of these times. I guess it's one of things that lets them feel better about themselves, or perhaps superior to folks who smoke. Eff 'em, I say—mind your own business.

I smoke. Give it up every night and restart again on the next morning. I normally smoke 15 cigarettes per day. It's amazing that I double it when I'm on tour (but I never smoke while cycling).

I give it a try next week (without restarting) - but it will be hard...

Thomas

Smoked a pack/day for 30 years. Quit about 5 years ago. Quitting has given me a tremendous amount of freedom. I never realized how much of my life was wrapped up around smoking.

I used the patch. It went well until I got down to the last-lightest ones. Then you had to finally give up the patch. Even with the patch I still went through the "cold turkey" phase where I could have probably killed someone with my bare hands. I'm not exaggerating, either.

I would advise against the gum. People get hooked on that. It's just switching addictions.

Funnily enough, I'm just back from the hospital. I had pneumonia in December, then it recurred just after Christmas. I had pain in my side, fever, was coughing blood. The second chest x-ray, the doc said he might send me for a cat scan, just to rule out anything "sinister". The shadow on my lung apparently could be interpreted as something "sinister", and it needed ruling out. Cue two week wait. Saw the doc today, gave me another chest x-ray, and told me it was clear, no shadow.
He still might send me for a catscan just to check there's no scarring to my lungs from the pneumonia, but I tell you, it scared the bejesus out of me.
I'm 44 and smoked from age 18 to 34. Used to smoke about 10 a day. I was constantly quitting, but when I finally did for good, cycling was one of the ways I could keep myself straight. I knew that I couldn;t really square the two.
I had always cycled as a kid and a teenager, but at 17 I went to college and got into music and partying and girls and all that, and dropped cycling for a few years (about 84 to 90), then the mountainbike boom happened, and I got back into bikes. I was an on/off smoker after that, but it kind of suited mountainbiking (mostly downhill - lots of beer and parties).
But then I was in Spain one summer, the hills around the Costa Brava, and I saw the road bikes out there, and the cyclists, and when I got home, I quit smoking for good and bought an expensive road bike (and a few other bikes beside that in the years that followed)
I was back on the road.
I still miss smoking sometimes (mainly if I'm drinking), but I'll not smoke again, esp after this spell with chest problems. It;s not worth it. I also miss my old man, who died of lung cancer a few years ago. Unfortunately, even though he'd quit for 4 years, he couldn't escape it. That's another reason I won't give the cigarette companies any more money.

+1

I just did 2 weeks of the 20mg then quit that. I was irritable... then I started drinking coffee in the morning.

I will say some of the worst attitudes I've seen in this respect are actually from ex-smokers. You'd think they'd understand.

I smoke. I hate it and have tried to quit multiiple times. I don't smoke while riding. It is fun however to dangle one out my mouth and drop someone on my 29'er. The looks are priceless

I smoked for 40 years or so...quit this past April cold turkey. Smoke em if you got em, don't if you don't.

Ah, another filterless smoker ... !!! My favorite ... !!! I too smoked Pall-Malls, Lucky Strikes, and Camels, and just about every other kind of cigarette, including some exotic brands. I quit smoking a little over 28 years ago.

I wish I didn't have to breath so much air pollution while riding my bicycle ...

It's embarrassing for me to admit it, but I used to pick up used cigarette butts and roll up the tobacco with papers. Glad that I'm free from the addiction of tobacco ... !!!

I smoked from about 15 to 18 and then started again at 22. I am going to be 27 in April, and will also be celebrating 1 year with no cigarettes. I do smoke cigars and pipe tobacco from time to time, but it's not even really a routine because it's pretty random and both of those things take time to do. Cigarettes were so easy to smoke on my way to/from places, or before/after events that it drove me nuts. I quit cold turkey and think that it really is about trying to concentrate on the things you did while smoking and trying to do them without smoking.

Interesting that several of you former cigarette smokers can still do an occasional cigar or pipe.
If I tried that I'd be inhaling them. (and smoking a lot of cigars). !